Pittsburgh Union Progress

2 days ago | unionprogress.com | Abigail Hakas

Most of Western Pennsylvania will see sharp declines in population over the next 25 years, and communities are getting creative to fight it, including offering cashSharon and Hermitage in Mercer County are giving $5,000 each to households that move there, alongside other benefits such as YMCA memberships or access to a coworking space, as a part of a collaboration with MakeMyMove, an online relocation marketplace. Greenville, also in Mercer County, is offering nonmonetary benefits.

2 days ago | unionprogress.com | Ed Blazina

Work to replace the Commercial Street Bridge on the Parkway East just outside the outbound the Squirrel Hill Tunnel kicks into high gear this week. Crews will close the shoulder and right outbound lane from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday through Thursday nights between the tunnel and the Edgewood/Swissvale exit. The closure will allow the contractor to build a retaining wall as part of the bridge project.

3 days ago | unionprogress.com | Helen Fallon

For 22 days last month, the Society to Preserve The Millvale Murals of Maxo Vanka labored over figuring out how it could carry on its mission after the Institute of Museum and Library Services  terminated the remaining funds in its Save America’s Treasures $471,670 grant. Then on April 30 executive director Anna Doering opened her email to find out the grant had been restored.

3 days ago | unionprogress.com | Abigail Hakas

Public officials are pushing for new strategies as more women are dying before, during or after giving birth in Pennsylvania. Fueled by mental health conditions, including substance use disorders, deaths among new and expectant moms jumped by over 25% from 2013 to 2020. The state Maternal Mortality Review Committee, which examines all maternal deaths, found that 107 women died while pregnant or within a year of giving birth, in the most recently published 2020 data.

5 days ago | unionprogress.com | Steve Rotstein

Here’s a look at the WPIAL softball playoffs, which begin Monday and conclude May 28-29 at PennWest University, California’s Lilley Field. CLASS 6ADefending champion: Seneca ValleyNo. 1 seed: HempfieldBest quarterfinal game: Canon-McMillan vs. Pine-RichlandPlayer to watch: Lexie Hames, Seneca Valley. There isn’t much left to be said about the Raiders’ flame-throwing, home-run smashing superstar that hasn’t already been written.