Articles written by Jennifer Szweda
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Seniors have Market House memories as plans proceed for 100th anniversary
"What is this place?" "What happens in there?" Sarah Johnston hears these questions quite a bit as director of the South Side Market House, a grand 100-year-old red brick building just off East...
South Sider reflects on life, community
South Side residents were considered "second-class citizens" when Virginia Carik moved into the neighborhood 47 years ago, she says. This was where the mill workers lived. "In other words, we weren'...
Editor reflects on life, community
To hear 80-year-old Roberta Smith describe what made her one of South Pittsburgh's most prominent female leaders is to learn the value of public education, public housing, lifelong connections to a...
Carrick residents learn fate of group home, latest crime trends
The Circle C Carrick Group Home where two teen boys fatally beat another resident has been closed. Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak made this announcement at the Carrick-Overbrook Block Watch on May 4. Pennsylvania’s Department of Human Services...
St. John Vianney Church faces an uncertain future
St. John Vianney Roman Catholic Church, a towering cathedral in Allentown has "no chance to succeed," with a debt of some $2 million and a roof crumbling into the pews, according to a spokesman. Yet...
Lifelong Allentowner witnessed the changes in her neighborhood
Ninety-year-old Helen Baney's officially retired from working with Allentown's commercial leaders, but she's still often dressed for business. On a recent afternoon, Mrs. Baney donned sling-back...
Commander assures block watch help is on the way for Zone 3
A big auto heist, a man hiding 36 bags of heroin in the crotch of his pants, and a rise in copper stolen from abandoned buildings. These were among the crimes police described in Carrick and Overbrook at the communities’ block watch meeting on...
Hillcrest Senior Residences may begin on Browsville by November
Sixty-six high-end apartments for the 62-plus set will be available on the Hilltop about two years from now, if all goes as planned. One of the country's largest nonprofit developers plans a $15...
Chief McLay addresses photo controversy in Carrick
Pittsburgh Police Chief Cameron McLay says he regrets not communicating better to his staff after he was photographed with a sign stating, “I Resolve to Challenge Racism at Work:...
Residents let library officials know what they would like in renovations
A green roof would top the Knoxville library, and more computers and dedicated space for teenagers would fill the space inside if residents get their way. Library users ranging in age from teens to...
Judge explains why he can't send code violator to jail
The Berg Place apartment building owner charged with dozens of code violations at the now vacant property--including a raw sewage pit outside -- can’t be sent to jail, Magisterial District Judge Richard King says. Mr. King says it’s a...
Bhutanese seek to let their children, others learn the beauty of their culture
Bhutanese refugees in the U.S. have been committing suicide at a higher rate than any other refugee group. This highlights the difficulty this population faces in acclimating to a new world -- and...
Block watch hears about Berg Place apts., group of young people involved in muggings
Three Kirk Avenue children set fire to the clothing of homeless people who were squatting in the abandoned 2502 Berg Place apartment building on Aug. 16, police said at the September Carrick-Overbrook Block Watch meeting. The property was in the...
Police recommend 'virtual' block watch in Carrick
While Block Watch groups have relied on neighbors' eyes and ears to deter crime, Pittsburgh police are now asking Carrick-Overbrook residents to pilot a virtual block watch by mounting home...
Carrick substitutes for the Bronx in new Gyllenhall movie
Bringing Hollywood magic to the border of Carrick and Brentwood, local artists quickly transformed Brownsville Road at Maytide Street into New York's Bronx last week, setting the stage for the...
Limited police means prioritizing where officers are sent
If Carrick-Overbrook residents create a list of what they think are the three most crime-ridden addresses, Mayor Bill Peduto said that could help him direct a limited police force to prioritize the...
Synthetic marijuana bust in Carrick store
A tearful mother said her son’s life was ruined by drugs he bought from a market police say sold synthetic marijuana. “My son’s demeanor--he was mean, he was nasty,” the woman said at the June Carrick Block Watch meeting. “It affected my...
City grilled on Carrick landlord
An apartment building with sewage and water problems so severe residents had to be abruptly evacuated by the Allegheny County Health Department was the main topic at Carrick Community Block Watch’s May 5 meeting. The audience grilled...
Carrick block watch updated crime trends
After being cancelled due to snowy weather for several months, the Carrick Overbrook Block Watch meeting resumed for the first time this year on April 7. The evening’s guest speaker was Kelly Henretty, an investigator with Pittsburgh’s Office of...
Mister Butler, founder of Elder-ado, Knoxville Y director
Arthur M. Butler, Sr., left a legacy of devotion to important community organizations serving both seniors and youth. But those who knew him said that he always put his family first--and advised...
Margaret Hurney, South Side businesswoman for 44 years
The South Side recently lost a figure who was part grandmother, part unofficial community mayor. Metropolitan Cleaners owner Margaret Hurney was 85 when she died on January 7. She owned and ran the dry cleaner for 44 years. Her family remembers even...
