[bradjl2009]

Apparently the Beltway crowd was perplexed by the decision and the video I guess better shows the snobbery.

Won't it be great once the world descends upon Pittsburgh and they see that there ignorance is validated when everyone sees what the city really instead of the videos from 1982 and the 3 monday nights a year when America sees smoldering steel coming back from commercial breaks to watch the Steelers?

They are snobs down there. Many of these ignorant press corps live with their follow 6 figure salary neighbors in Northern Virginia and have kids just as snobby as them.

[Black-n-Gold]

Apparently the Beltway crowd was perplexed by the decision and the video I guess better shows the snobbery.

Could be that, or it could be some people with Pittsburgh roots getting excited about the decision! You could take it either way, it was just a murmur.


I think contrary to the opinion here, that there will be less Primanti's talk, etc. and a lot of talk about how Pittsburgh has transformed itself, isn't Detroit, high tech / green job creation, LEED buildings and all of that.

There will probably also be a lot of comparison between us and Detroit and how we rebounded from the collapse of big steel. A few more points that will be made Pittsburgh vs. Detroit:


Low unemployment vs. record high unemployment

Diverse work force vs. concentration in single manufacturing sector

Super Bowl champions vs. 0-16

2009 Stanley Cup Winners vs. runner up! :tup:

Couldn't resist that last one, but would it be so bad if there were a few terrible towel / "City of Champions" stories thrown in the mix? In a lot of ways, I think the slow, steady and focused way that the Rooney family has built the Steelers into a world-class organization mirrors the rise of Pittsburgh itself from the late 70's / early 80's (remember that the Steelers were terrible before the 1970's and have been pretty consistently great since then).

[Minivan Werner]

Don't these G20 things usually invite massive amounts of protesters and, in some cases, violence? Or am I thinking of something else.

[Evergrey]

Don't these G20 things usually invite massive amounts of protesters and, in some cases, violence? Or am I thinking of something else.

But the beauty of it is... with the lack of connections from PIT... very few of these unpleasant people will be able to get here! :haha: It will probably mostly just be our own homegrown loser anarchists.

[Tombstoner]

The G-20 meeting is such a huge thing for Pittsburgh. Good on Obama to see that Pittsburgh is a real untold story of the changing American economy.

I just hope the powers-that-be can leverage the sh*t out of this and 1) make sure Pittsburgh looks its best (and get the universities, green business concerns and cultural organizations to rally around it and show the city's splendor off in multiple ways--CMU and Pitt should be planning some star-studed [and significant--not fluffy] conferences, the Warhol and Carnegie should plan stellar exhibitions and bring out the good silver, the Symphony, Opera etc. should do cultural events reflecting the G-20 membership) and more importantly 2) sustain the excitment and translate the attention into concrete action in terms of revitalization and transit growth. There will probably never be another time when the twenty most significant world leaders are in the Burgh--when the circus leaves town, we want to have something to show for it.

[hyperion1110]

Haha...you know, it was like a day before this G20 thing broke that I said Pittsburgh will never be restored to its international prominence without Cleveland. Woops!

Sorry, Cleveland...looks like we're going this one alone. Still got love for ya, though! :cheers:

[AaronPGH]

Sorry, Cleveland...looks like we're going this one alone. Still got love for ya, though! :cheers:

I don't. Neener neener! Yes I'm childish. ;)

[chloride1]

You beat me to it, Evergrey. It's gotta be all because of the Steelers.:haha:

Regardless of views on G-20 summits, this is a great day for Pittsburgh and all rustbelt cities. Maybe this will be that "tipping point" for the city's resurgence. The amount of attention that will be paid to Pittsburgh is going to be amazing.

I've enjoyed lurking and reading this forum for some time. I've learned quite a bit from all of you.

I moved to Mt Washington in 2000 and only in the last year or so have begun to understand something about the politics up here. My belief at this point is that the NIMBY people who want to oppose the redevelopment next to the Mon incline are only a few people, and that many people on the Mount are quite enthusiastic about the new development, and anxious about the idea that it might be stopped.

It would be *so* much better if work has begun on that site when the G20 summit comes. The rotting Edge restaurant next to the Mon incline gives a horrible impression - and the inclines are top destinations for visitors.

Any thoughts about how we might advance the approval process for this development?

We have a community blog: 15211.org You will see that several recent posts are about this issue.

The Mt Washington Community Development Corporation are also in favor of the project.

Thank you. Jan

[chloride1]

Could be that, or it could be some people with Pittsburgh roots getting excited about the decision! You could take it either way, it was just a murmur.


I think contrary to the opinion here, that there will be less Primanti's talk, etc. and a lot of talk about how Pittsburgh has transformed itself, isn't Detroit, high tech / green job creation, LEED buildings and all of that.

There will probably also be a lot of comparison between us and Detroit and how we rebounded from the collapse of big steel. A few more points that will be made Pittsburgh vs. Detroit:


Low unemployment vs. record high unemployment

Diverse work force vs. concentration in single manufacturing sector

Super Bowl champions vs. 0-16

2009 Stanley Cup Winners vs. runner up! :tup:

Couldn't resist that last one, but would it be so bad if there were a few terrible towel / "City of Champions" stories thrown in the mix? In a lot of ways, I think the slow, steady and focused way that the Rooney family has built the Steelers into a world-class organization mirrors the rise of Pittsburgh itself from the late 70's / early 80's (remember that the Steelers were terrible before the 1970's and have been pretty consistently great since then).

That's a good point about the Steelers.

[philadelphiathrives]

Way to go Pittsburgh! :cheers: This is great for our state, too!

I'm sick of people still calling Pennsylvania a "rust belt" state. :( Maybe this will finally be the end of that. :D The latest recession has largely ignored Pennsylvania, and its two largest cities are becoming the envy of the country! :tup:

[edmontonenthusiast]

Sorry for my ignorance, but I was just wondering if the city was planning to expand the light rail to the east to places like Squirrel Hill, Shadyside, Oakland, etc. I think it'd greatly benefit going in some of those places.

[pj3000]

... and its two largest cities are becoming the envy of the country! :tup:

Let's not push it, now. Both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have a lot of work to do in a number of key areas before they will be the "envy of the country".

One needs to look at Pittsburgh's insulation from the latest recession in relative terms. Many people like to point to Pittsburgh's diversification of its economic base as reason for its ability to weather this sharp downturn. While that is true to a degree, one must remember that many of Pittsburgh's major employers are exempt from contributing to the city's coffers. So we must remember that it is not as if Pittsburgh has been in some sort of economic boom while the rest of the nation wilts away. Over the past 8 years or so, Pittsburgh has not experienced the rapid growth that many other US cities have. Therefore, it has not had to witness the abrupt stop to that rapid growth and has not had to deal with the effects that other cities have.

Pittsburgh has insulated itself from the busts; likewise, it has also insulated itself from the booms (by various methods). It works both ways.

[philadelphiathrives]

Let's not push it, now. Both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have a lot of work to do in a number of key areas before they will be the "envy of the country".

One needs to look at Pittsburgh's insulation from the latest recession in relative terms. Many people like to point to Pittsburgh's diversification of its economic base as reason for its ability to weather this sharp downturn. While that is true to a degree, one must remember that many of Pittsburgh's major employers are exempt from contributing to the city's coffers. So we must remember that it is not as if Pittsburgh has been in some sort of economic boom while the rest of the nation wilts away. Over the past 8 years or so, Pittsburgh has not experienced the rapid growth that many other US cities have. Therefore, it has not had to witness the abrupt stop to that rapid growth and has not had to deal with the effects that other cities have.

Pittsburgh has insulated itself from the busts; likewise, it has also insulated itself from the booms (by various methods). It works both ways.

Bull! Every city "has a lot of work to do in a number of key areas". We forget that the problems that Pennsylvania's cities have occur in all cities. In many of these cities people don't talk about them as much as people here, but they have the same problems even if they ignore them. Many things our cities have done to solve age-old problems have become a model for other cities and both Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have proven to be as progressive as any city!

And the "rapid growth" that other cities had means nothing if it can't be sustained. Many of those cities saw overdevelopment that sparked the recession in the first place. Their growth was not substantial or it wasn't really happening in the first place. Announcing big projects is not economic growth, only having projects that are built and used constitutes economic growth. Building homes and buildings on speculation that no one wants is not economic growth.

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are doing better than the rest of the country now and that's all that matters. The economic growth they've experienced in the past ten years is substantial and economically sustainable. And that is what all cities want, but most haven't achieved it recently.

[themaguffin]

It would great if all of the leaders went to Mt Washington and took pictures like this with the city in the background like the average tourist does, ha...


http://johnharding.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/ss-090402-g20-01ss_full.jpg

[ctoocheck]

How many bloody parking garages does the SSW need?!

I take this back. Finding a parking space there last evening as a mess. One garage was full, and when I tried another I spent 15 minutes in a queue of cars looking for a spot. It was kinda surprising. But there was some event going on. And also the Hoffbräuhaus was packed. Oh well. I still do wish transit would be better used.

[Evergrey]

Pittsburgh has insulated itself from the busts; likewise, it has also insulated itself from the booms (by various methods). It works both ways.

Actually, this is the first "bust" Pittsburgh has "insulated" itself from... Pittsburgh suffered worse than the nation in every previous recession in modern history... including the first Dubya recession... which Pittsburgh didn't emerge from until 2005. And the early 80s were basically depression level here. I hope what we're seeing during this recession... is that Pittsburgh has finally reached the inflection point of economic restructuring... an effective mix of industries and talent and innovation has been reached here... which currently insulates us and promises a vigorous economic future when the recession recedes. What we're seeing in Pittsburgh today is different from the past... and perhaps it portends a different future.

[hyperion1110]

Actually, this is the first "bust" Pittsburgh has "insulated" itself from... Pittsburgh suffered worse than the nation in every previous recession in modern history... including the first Dubya recession... which Pittsburgh didn't emerge from until 2005. And the early 80s were basically depression level here. I hope what we're seeing during this recession... is that Pittsburgh has finally reached the inflection point of economic restructuring... an effective mix of industries and talent and innovation has been reached here... which currently insulates us and promises a vigorous economic future when the recession recedes. What we're seeing in Pittsburgh today is different from the past... and perhaps it portends a different future.

I tend to agree with you on this, Evergrey. The 80's recession in Pittsburgh was...weird...to live through. I was young, so I have limited appreciation for how bad it was. But, at the same time, I remember all of the building downtown quite clearly. I can distinctly recall the building of 5th Ave Place and the old CNG Tower, and it gave me the impression that things were going okay. Add to that all of the major corporations that still called Pittsburgh home back then, and it was easy to overlook the seriousness of the economic downturn. Moreover, I was probably in the last generation of Pittsburghers born before the massive exodus of young families. For example, the incoming class my freshman year at Perry Traditional Academy (city high school) was 496, the largest there had been in a long time. The classes after mine, though, we substantially smaller. It wasn't until I graduated high school in the late 90's that I realized the difference between how Pittsburgh was before and after the decline of Big Steel.

Many are quick to point out the bad with our city and region. Sure, we have our problems. Some cities are better off even now, though not many. Most, however, are not doing nearly as well. Even that, though, is not cause for celebration (besides how immoral it is to look down on the misfortunes of others). The thing that I think is most important, and the reason Obama selected Pittsburgh for the G20 summit, is the difference between Pittsburgh as it is now and as it was 25 years ago. As someone who's witnessed it first hand, I can attest that the transformation is staggering!

As for the camp that claims Pittsburgh never-boomed-so-never-busted, while this is true, it's a naive perspective. Remember the lesson of the tortoise and the hare: Charlotte, Pheonix, et al may have experienced explosive growth, but that growth is next to meaningless in the long run. Slow growth is sustainable growth. We simply cannot live under the delusion that the explosive growth of the late 90's is the model for smart growth; delusions of prosperity, and entitlement, are what caused the economic issues we have now.

Pittsburghers are not deluded enough to think we deserve something we didn't work for; or that we have something already that is unreal. As a consequence, our growth is no mirage. It's real and steady, and it's the reason why the representatives of the world's 20 largest economies are coming here in September.

[CAPATeach]

There is an interesting article in this week's issue of the Economist. It's titled "Cities and their deficits: Staring into the abyss". It outlines the staggering deficits of America's major cities, including cities like Columbus, NY, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Seattle and Phoenix (many cities people wouldn't expect to see on this list).
The part of the article that's interesting to note in this forum, especially given the last few posts:
"All in all, the future looks grim. Even if the economy recovers tomorrow, there is generally an 18-24 month lag before cities feel it. Many will be in worse shape in 2010 and 2011... But most are plugging present holes with little thought for tomorrow. The one bright spot, suprisingly, is Pittsburgh. The city and its region, once synonymous with steel, lost 120,000 manufacturing jobs in the 1980s. But over three decades it diversified. Now its main industries, healthcare and education are thriving. The waterfront, once lined with factories, has been transformed into parks...Pittsburgh narrowly escaped bankruptcy in 2003, and was forced into state receivership. But it actually has a surplus now."
"Pittsburgh is in relatively good shape because it largely missed the housing and dotcom booms enjoyed by the rest of the country. Indeed, it is currently building a new sports arena and a new hospital. Because of its 2003 brush with bankruptcy, it cut its city workforce by a quarter, implemented a salary freeze and made many hard decisions, such as closing fire stations. The other cities could learn a few lessons from Pittsburgh."
Great props for Pittsburgh from another major source.

[dugdogmaster]

I was floored when I heard this news. This is awesome!!! Woooooo!!! On another note, this is going to be Hell on us in the emergency services and the Region 13 Response Group.

[pj3000]

And the "rapid growth" that other cities had means nothing if it can't be sustained. Many of those cities saw overdevelopment that sparked the recession in the first place. Their growth was not substantial or it wasn't really happening in the first place.

Agreed. I'm not advocating that the rapid growth that other cities in the US have recently seen has been a good thing, necessarily. But because Pittsburgh, for the most part, did not "participate" in the recent boom, there existed no investment bubble to burst (real estate or otherwise). The city has come an awful long way in even the last 5 years, but some of the glaring, crippling problems that still exist (including first and foremost in my opinion... the vampire-like treatment the city receives from the region's seemingly infinite municipalities... which many of us chimed in on just a page back or so) preclude Pittsburgh from being the "envy of the country". That's just a bit of stretch at this time. In a decade, I hope I can confidently assert that.

Actually, this is the first "bust" Pittsburgh has "insulated" itself from... Pittsburgh suffered worse than the nation in every previous recession in modern history... including the first Dubya recession... which Pittsburgh didn't emerge from until 2005. And the early 80s were basically depression level here. I hope what we're seeing during this recession... is that Pittsburgh has finally reached the inflection point of economic restructuring... an effective mix of industries and talent and innovation has been reached here... which currently insulates us and promises a vigorous economic future when the recession recedes. What we're seeing in Pittsburgh today is different from the past... and perhaps it portends a different future.

Everything you say is true, but I guess I'm thinking more in terms of the current "bust" that we're going through... not economic depression/recession that comes with the ending of the steel industry's hundred plus year potent lifecycle (1980s)/national economic structure transition (late 80s-90s)... those are not "busts". The cities that reached those (fake) highs in the past 8 years or so are the ones that are feeling the very real lows now. Pittsburgh, thankfully, hasn't done either. I do not think that an "effective mix of industries and talent and innovation has been reached here"... I think we're on the tip (and maybe this is an inflection point signalling a very bright future), but we haven't reached it yet.

"If you don't boom, you're not gonna bust" may be an oversimplification in Pittsburgh's case, but some of it rings pretty true. Busts are caused by overinvestment spurred on by over-optimistic speculation which continues long after profits have dwindled to nothing. Pittsburgh never saw this overinvestment (or the corresponding, irresponsible loosening of the credit markets) recently, and thus, has never seen the inevitable collapse.

As for the camp that claims Pittsburgh never-boomed-so-never-busted, while this is true, it's a naive perspective. Remember the lesson of the tortoise and the hare: Charlotte, Pheonix, et al may have experienced explosive growth, but that growth is next to meaningless in the long run. Slow growth is sustainable growth. We simply cannot live under the delusion that the explosive growth of the late 90's is the model for smart growth; delusions of prosperity, and entitlement, are what caused the economic issues we have now.

Right... I agree. I'm the last person to call the type of crap that's been going on in Charlotte, Phoenix, et al economic progress or smart growth. I'm glad that Pittsburgh has been racing "slow and steady". Though, I don't know that it has been completely by design... if Pittsburgh had the opportunity and Pennsylvania's tax code was updated from circa 1915 standards...

[hyperion1110]

:previous: Good thoughts all, pj3000. We're not quite the "envy" yet. But we're so close we can taste it!

It's ten minutes to game time. GO PENS!!! :)

[Evergrey]

all of a sudden... this end of Carson is saturated with Mexican or quasi-Mexican restaurants... I'm posting this more for the development content

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/06/01/daily8.html

Adobe Gila’s coming to SouthSide Works

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Tim Schooley

The Soffer Organization has reached a final agreement with Adobe Gila’s, a Mexican-themed restaurant and club concept planned to be the top half of a new two-story building at the SouthSide Works.

Damian Soffer, The Soffer Organization’s principal, confirmed his company has an agreement with the Columbus-based restaurant, which will open in a new building to be constructed at the corner of Sidney and 28th streets across the street from the SouthSide Works Cinema.

In April, Soffer reached an agreement with Shadyside-based Walnut Tree Restaurant Group to open a 5,500-square-foot Shady Grove restaurant in the new building’s first floor. With Adobe Gila’s now signed, Soffer can push forward with the building’s approval process for a project he estimated would cost between $5 million and $6 million.

He projects a 14-month construction schedule for the two new restaurants, which he described as young and hip.

“It will be a huge new traffic generator,” Soffer said. “It’s two new restaurants that are totally different from what we already have.”

The signing will mark the first Pittsburgh restaurant for Adobe Gila’s owner Columbus-based Steve Cohee, who is also in negotiations to open another new restaurant at Bakery Square.

Cohee praised Soffer’s vision for the SouthSide Works. He was also persuaded by the presence of the Cheesecake Factory and Hofbrauhaus, which opened its riverfront location last month in a 17,000-square-foot building that Soffer said generates evening waits of more than two hours.

“You don’t make an investment like that unless you think you’re going to hit a home run,” Cohee said. “The strong operators around us are a big part of our success.”

Abobe Gila’s formula, created by the founders of Hooter’s, is to create a party environment that mixes Mexican and American cuisine with nightly live performances, margaritas and ample patio seating.

Adobe Gila’s is like “a beach border town cantina feel,” said Cohee, who has three other restaurants and understands the business challenge of drawing customers upstairs to a second-floor location. “If you do it right, typically your economics are a little better on second floors.”

tschooley@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3826

[Grego43]

Abobe Gila’s formula, created by the founders of Hooter’s, is to create a party environment that mixes Mexican and American cuisine with nightly live performances, margaritas and ample patio seating.

Adobe Gila’s is like “a beach border town cantina feel,”


Oh jeebus, more bland, americanized quazi-Mexican excremento...sounds like the re-incarnation of Chi Chi's...can't wait. :rolleyes:

[bradjl2009]

all of a sudden... this end of Carson is saturated with Mexican or quasi-Mexican restaurants... I'm posting this more for the development content

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/06/01/daily8.html

Adobe Gila’s coming to SouthSide Works

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Tim Schooley

The Soffer Organization has reached a final agreement with Adobe Gila’s, a Mexican-themed restaurant and club concept planned to be the top half of a new two-story building at the SouthSide Works.

Damian Soffer, The Soffer Organization’s principal, confirmed his company has an agreement with the Columbus-based restaurant, which will open in a new building to be constructed at the corner of Sidney and 28th streets across the street from the SouthSide Works Cinema.

In April, Soffer reached an agreement with Shadyside-based Walnut Tree Restaurant Group to open a 5,500-square-foot Shady Grove restaurant in the new building’s first floor. With Adobe Gila’s now signed, Soffer can push forward with the building’s approval process for a project he estimated would cost between $5 million and $6 million.

He projects a 14-month construction schedule for the two new restaurants, which he described as young and hip.

“It will be a huge new traffic generator,” Soffer said. “It’s two new restaurants that are totally different from what we already have.”

The signing will mark the first Pittsburgh restaurant for Adobe Gila’s owner Columbus-based Steve Cohee, who is also in negotiations to open another new restaurant at Bakery Square.

Cohee praised Soffer’s vision for the SouthSide Works. He was also persuaded by the presence of the Cheesecake Factory and Hofbrauhaus, which opened its riverfront location last month in a 17,000-square-foot building that Soffer said generates evening waits of more than two hours.

“You don’t make an investment like that unless you think you’re going to hit a home run,” Cohee said. “The strong operators around us are a big part of our success.”

Abobe Gila’s formula, created by the founders of Hooter’s, is to create a party environment that mixes Mexican and American cuisine with nightly live performances, margaritas and ample patio seating.

Adobe Gila’s is like “a beach border town cantina feel,” said Cohee, who has three other restaurants and understands the business challenge of drawing customers upstairs to a second-floor location. “If you do it right, typically your economics are a little better on second floors.”

tschooley@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3826
Went on the web site and it seems like it will mix of a club and resturant with some Mexican styles mixed in, not really a Mexican resturant per say. Saw the menu and the food doesn't sound Mexican, just American food with some Mexican taste. It will be their first location outside of Ohio and Florida though.

[JackStraw]

Oh jeebus, more bland, americanized quazi-Mexican excremento...sounds like the re-incarnation of Chi Chi's...can't wait. :rolleyes:

Who cares. The southside works is a place for these "hip" chains. Every city has to have that new and chainy place. It is good Pittsburgh has a new urban neighborhood for the Yuppy urban types that would never want to live in a older neighborhood, and have to have their brand new condos, Cheescake factories, etc.

I kind of like these fake Mexican/Americanized burrito places. They get old after a while, but hey, it provides more options when you want a chain.

I just can't wait till Pittsburgh to finally land a BD's mongolian BBQ. I read like three years ago they were planning one for here. I use to work next to one in LoDo in denver. I loved that chain.

[Evergrey]

yeah... who knows whatever happened to the proposed PGH BD's Mongolian Grille... I'm also pissed that Skyline Chili seemingly dropped their PGH expansion plans (I think it was to be near Century III)

I really enjoy the Shady Grove off Walnut St.... the menu isn't too exciting... but it works for a "youthful upscale casual" place... it's just a nice place to hang out and relax...

as for Fake Mexican... Mad Mex has always been a favorite of mine... used to go there all the time back in State College (before I knew it was a Pittsburgh-based chain)... I've been to the Oakland location a couple times... which is always packed... it's a fun place and the food is tasty... if not quite "authentic"...

[PittPenn 03]

Who cares. The southside works is a place for these "hip" chains. Every city has to have that new and chainy place. It is good Pittsburgh has a new urban neighborhood for the Yuppy urban types that would never want to live in a older neighborhood, and have to have their brand new condos, Cheescake factories, etc.

I kind of like these fake Mexican/Americanized burrito places. They get old after a while, but hey, it provides more options when you want a chain.

I just can't wait till Pittsburgh to finally land a BD's mongolian BBQ. I read like three years ago they were planning one for here. I use to work next to one in LoDo in denver. I loved that chain.

I would like to know when we are getting our Pappadeaux's Seafood Kitchen!

[ColDayMan]

I love Pappadeaux's! I live like 20 minutes from one and trust me, if I actually liked Springdale's horrific sprawl, I'd be there everyday.

But anway, Adobe Gila's = College Bar with Mexican theme, not a "real" restaurant like a Mad Mex or (former) Don Pablo's. The only thing noteworthy about the place are those $2 liquor fish bowls.

[AaronPGH]

Shady Grove is a great bar to go to if you enjoy ending up in unprovoked bar fights with people stumbling and slurring their speech.

[Evergrey]

Shady Grove is a great bar to go to if you enjoy ending up in unprovoked bar fights with people stumbling and slurring their speech.

:haha:

Well, my experience there has mostly been confined to daylight hours... I was there enjoying a light dinner a couple weeks ago and the clientele was rather upscale and international.

[ColDayMan]

:haha:

Well, my experience there has mostly been confined to daylight hours... I was there enjoying a light dinner a couple weeks ago and the clientele was rather upscale and international.

Meaning, Asian students from Pitt who don't "do" Hofbrau.

[AaronPGH]

:haha:

Well, my experience there has mostly been confined to daylight hours... I was there enjoying a light dinner a couple weeks ago and the clientele was rather upscale and international.

Yeah, most of the bad clientele seems to arrive later in the night when it shifts more to a bar than a restaurant.

With that said, I'm on the fence about these new additions. Not even because one is a chain...mainly because up until now, the South Side Works was geared more towards young professionals. This end of South Side (where I live and own my house) has largely escaped being invaded by the vomiting just-turned-21ers that flood the other end of South Side. Not that it's a problem down there (it's the South Side after all)... but with the two distinct halves it allows a wider variety of people to be able to enjoy the neighborhood at the pace they enjoy.

The addition of two more college-ish bar/clubs to the Hofbrauhaus block may create a critical mass of chaos down here that is better left to the other end of south side.

Maybe I'm just worrying too much...but we'll see. My worst nightmare is for SSW to eventually turn into the next Station Square. If that happens, my house will be for sale faster than you can say "slampig".

Man I'm sounding really old now. Get off my lawn!

[AaronPGH]

The other thing too, is that these types of bars are now beginning to directly take on businesses that already exist in the main stretch of Carson St....something that I thought Soffer was going to try to avoid.

[Grego43]

My worst nightmare is for SSW to eventually turn into the next Station Square.


Uggggh, that's a scary, scary thought! Hard Rock Cafe would seal the deal.

[edmontonenthusiast]

Sorry for my ignorance, but I was just wondering if the city was planning to expand the light rail to the east to places like Squirrel Hill, Shadyside, Oakland, etc. I think it'd greatly benefit going in some of those places.

?

[DBR96A]

?

Apparently they're spending more money to do yet another study on how much it'd cost to build a line to Oakland via Second Avenue. I think they'd be better off running it near the Fifth-Forbes cooridor because it'd link the new arena and the Hill District too. Maybe they could make a look where it goes up Fifth/Forbes to the universities via the arena and Hill District, and then down Panther Hollow and up Second Avenue to downtown via the Pittsburgh Technology Center.

[PA Pride]

Mad Mex has always been a favorite of mine... it's a fun place and the food is tasty... if not quite "authentic"...

It says right on the menu that they are "Cal-Mex" food. :frog:

[edmontonenthusiast]

Apparently they're spending more money to do yet another study on how much it'd cost to build a line to Oakland via Second Avenue. I think they'd be better off running it near the Fifth-Forbes cooridor because it'd link the new arena and the Hill District too. Maybe they could make a look where it goes up Fifth/Forbes to the universities via the arena and Hill District, and then down Panther Hollow and up Second Avenue to downtown via the Pittsburgh Technology Center.

Thanks. Though that's kind of stupid, if they've already done studies, why more?

Honestly, based on what I know about Pittsburgh, it would have made sense to go east ward first, but then again I'm no expert. It just seems it'd hit most of the urban neighbourhoods that way.

[dugdogmaster]

Mmmmm....Mad Mex:slob:

[hyperion1110]

Thanks. Though that's kind of stupid, if they've already done studies, why more?

Honestly, based on what I know about Pittsburgh, it would have made sense to go east ward first, but then again I'm no expert. It just seems it'd hit most of the urban neighbourhoods that way.

Quite right, Edmonton. Unfortuntely, "sense" and "Port Authority of Allegheny County" (the organization that runs light rail in Pittsburgh) are mutually exclusive concepts!

[Steel Boy]

I have to come to a bit of a defense against the Port Authority. I worked there for many years and left in the 90s. All of these capital projects are something that have been looked at and studied to death over the years. But the federal process requires detailed minutia and studies that cost hundreds of thousands before a system is even considered for funding. Add to that the draft environmental impact study, the final environmental impact statement, community forums and meetings, alignment alternatives (each with its own impact study), and funding applications and procedures, and it takes decades. It was very frustrating for those of us who worked there. You can't just start the bulldozers rolling because you think it might be a good idea to build a subway. First you have to jump through all the appropriate hoops and juggle the appropriate balls in the air.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09153/974290-28.stm

Nonstop flights to Paris resume from Pittsburgh

Fliers to Europe can say adieu to delays

Tuesday, June 02, 2009
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

When Delta Flight 188 lifts off for Paris tomorrow evening, there may be no happier guy on the plane than Randall Dearth, the Lanxess Corp. chief executive officer and president.

With that takeoff, and hopefully many more to come, Mr. Dearth will be leaving behind the grind, the delays, the frustrations of trying to make connections through Chicago or Newark, N.J., or other chaotic and clogged East Coast airports to get to Europe.

"It's been hell," he said.

But no more. For the first time since November 2004, nonstop transatlantic service will return to Pittsburgh International Airport with the launch of the Delta flight, backed by up to $9 million in potential subsidies.

For employees at Lanxess, whose parent company is headquartered in Germany, and many other business travelers with overseas connections, it couldn't come soon enough.

At Lanxess, about 400 people each year either travel from Pittsburgh to Germany or vice versa. In the past, that has meant trips through Chicago or the East Coast to get overseas or to get into Pittsburgh.

And with them has come congestion, delays, lost productivity, and, every once in awhile, not getting there at all. Mr. Dearth said there have been several times when Lanxess was expecting visitors from Europe who never made it.

In all, the company estimates it will save more than $250,000 a year through better productivity with nonstop service from Pittsburgh. Mr. Dearth said Lanxess lost about a day and a half of productivity from employees who had to make connections to get to Europe.

"This flight, for us, is huge," he said.

He'll get no argument from John Friel, Medrad CEO and president. Last year, employees in his company, an affiliate of Bayer AG, made 381 round trips to Europe, and 137 so far this year.

Mr. Friel said making connections adds at least two to three hours to the flight under the best of circumstances. On flights home, travelers may not get back to Pittsburgh until late evening. Now the Delta flight will leave Paris about 11 a..m. and get into Pittsburgh about 2 p.m.

But as important as the flight is to companies with business overseas, it may be of even greater value to the region as a whole, Mr. Friel said.

In the past, he has been involved in efforts to attract European businesses to Pittsburgh. He said having a direct connection to and from Europe has been an "extremely important" factor in such conversations.

"We make ourselves less attractive as a region to attract business without a gateway to Europe," he said.

Peter Kalis, chairman of the K&L Gates law firm, agreed. "It's abundantly important that businesses and personnel in venues around the world believe that Pittsburgh and the region are significant enough to justify this sort of nonstop connection to Western Europe even in a down economy," he said.

The stakes are high enough that the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and the state have pledged up to $9 million in potential subsidies to Delta over the next two years if the Paris service falls short of agreed-to revenue targets.

One aviation consultant, Darryl Jenkins, questioned whether the potential subsidies were worth it, saying it was a lot of money and a "very good deal for Delta.

"I'm very skeptical of subsidies in general. I would only offer a subsidy during good times and only for a very short period," he said.

But Kenneth J. Zapinski, Allegheny Conference senior vice president of the transportation and infrastructure program, believes the deal is warranted.

He saw potential subsidies as the "determining factor" in Delta sticking with the flight even as it postponed new service between Raleigh and Paris and dropped service between Hartford and Amsterdam.

Mr. Kalis, an Allegheny Conference board member, defended the subsidies, saying they show that the business leaders who make up the organization and contribute to it are "willing to put their money where their mouth is."

If revenue goals fall short of expectations, Delta has the right to drop the flights after two years. On that one point, there is no disagreement -- if the region and the businesses that have coveted the service don't support it, the flight will be gone.

"I think the airline industry will be viewing this as a test, both the Delta service to Europe and the new United service to Los Angeles and San Francisco, Mr. Zapinski said.

"There's no doubt in my mind that what persuaded United to take a business risk to start new nonstop service was Delta's decision to take an even bigger risk to start nonstop service to Europe in June."

Toward that end, Lanxess, K&L Gates and Medrad, whose leaders are conference board members, have adopted conference-recommended travel policies that require employees doing business in Europe to take the Delta flight unless there is a compelling reason not to do so.

"This is a definite business plus for the region, and we all support it," Mr. Dearth said.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority had planned a celebration tomorrow to kick off the service but canceled it yesterday in the aftermath of the disappearance of an Air France jet over the Atlantic Ocean. The plane was carrying 228 people from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.

Mark Belko can be reached at mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262.

Read more: "Nonstop flights to Paris resume from Pittsburgh" - http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09153/974290-28.stm#ixzz0HHvAXaPu&A

[Grego43]

I have to come to a bit of a defense against the Port Authority. I worked there for many years and left in the 90s. All of these capital projects are something that have been looked at and studied to death over the years. But the federal process requires detailed minutia and studies that cost hundreds of thousands before a system is even considered for funding. Add to that the draft environmental impact study, the final environmental impact statement, community forums and meetings, alignment alternatives (each with its own impact study), and funding applications and procedures, and it takes decades. It was very frustrating for those of us who worked there. You can't just start the bulldozers rolling because you think it might be a good idea to build a subway. First you have to jump through all the appropriate hoops and juggle the appropriate balls in the air.

I can appreciate all you say Steel Boy, but how is that cities/metro areas of comparable size (i.e. Portland, Denver, St Louis, Salt Lake City) are able to not only build superior systems, but also layout comprehensive plans for future expansion. Port Authority planners can't see beyond their collective noses.

[pj3000]

^ I agree. Given Pittsburgh's numerous transportation challenges, a comprehensive light rail plan should have been a TOP priority decades ago. It never has been.

[Black-n-Gold]

I can appreciate all you say Steel Boy, but how is that cities/metro areas of comparable size (i.e. Portland, Denver, St Louis, Salt Lake City) are able to not only build superior systems, but also layout comprehensive plans for future expansion. Port Authority planners can't see beyond their collective noses.

I also think that you're misplacing most of the blame here. The Port Authority would love to build a world-class system with room for expansion. They were smart enough to realize that what we needed most was a connection from downtown to Oakland. It was the City / County political leadership that directed them to stop working on that and to focus on the north shore connector. It's our leaders (of both parties and of the County and City) that cannot see beyond their collective noses.

[Black-n-Gold]

^ I agree. Given Pittsburgh's numerous transportation challenges, a comprehensive light rail plan should have been a TOP priority decades ago. It never has been.

Yeah, if only they would do some sort of comprehensive transit plan.And if they did, wouldn't it be nice if they held some sort of public forum so someone like you could provide some input?

How about tomorrow?

http://tdp.portauthority.org/paac/
:) :) :) :)

[Grego43]

Yeah, if only they would do some sort of comprehensive transit plan.And if they did, wouldn't it be nice if they held some sort of public forum so someone like you could provide some input?

How about tomorrow?

http://tdp.portauthority.org/paac/
:) :) :) :)


Its Kismet!

[pj3000]

Yeah, if only they would do some sort of comprehensive transit plan.And if they did, wouldn't it be nice if they held some sort of public forum so someone like you could provide some input?

How about tomorrow?

http://tdp.portauthority.org/paac/
:) :) :) :)

I will definitely check this out, either tomorrow or at the next one in Oakland. Thanks for the info!

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_627869.html

Polaris Real Estate pays $4 million for ex-Salvation Army headquarters

By Rick Stouffer, TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, June 3, 2009

The Salvation Army said it sold its former headquarters, Downtown, for more than $4 million to Polaris Real Estate Equities Ltd., a Cleveland-based developer known for student housing projects.

Last December, the Salvation Army relocated its divisional operations out of the nine-story, 93,000-square-foot building on the Boulevard of the Allies and into a two-story, 36,500-square-foot building in the Carnegie Office Park in Carnegie that was renovated for its use.

Polaris partners Guy Totino and Rob Vadas, both former Pittsburgh-area residents, have hired Massaro Corp. of O'Hara to market the building, which includes a swimming pool, sanctuary and classrooms on its first three floors. Totino and Vadas could not be reached to comment.

In February, Polaris said it had an initial sales agreement to buy the building and that it had to wait for deal approval from The Salvation Army's Eastern Territorial Headquarters, in West Nyack, N.Y.

"We have a sales contract signed by our territorial headquarters, and it's now in the attorney's hands to settle things like a closing," Maj. Robert Reel, divisional commander, said Tuesday.

The Art Institute of Pittsburgh previously had expressed interest in the building for student housing, but spokesperson Devra Pransky couldn't be reached for comment. Point Park University spokesperson Mary Ellen Solomon said her institution has had no contact with Polaris.

Reel said the organization hopes to settle soon on the purchase of a five-acre site in Mt. Lebanon, where a 20,000- 25,000-square-foot building will be constructed to hold its Pittsburgh Temple Corps worship and services center.

Polaris is moving ahead with the Chelsea, a 16-story, mixed-use building located at the southwest corner of North Craig Street and Centre Avenue in Oakland, according to its Web site. When completed, the building will include 334 apartments with 703 bedrooms, 414 parking spaces and about 25,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space.



....


Chelsea information from Polaris web site

http://www.polaris-realestate.com/

http://polaris-realestate.com/images/img-lex.jpg

The Chelsea is a proposed class A, 16 story urban mixed use project to be built on approximately 1.4 acres of land located at the southwest corner of North Crag Street and Centre Avenue in the North Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, PA. When completed, The Chelsea Apartments will include 334 apartments (703 bedrooms), 414 structured parking spaces and approximately 25,000 square feet of ground floor retail space. Amenities will include high end apartment finishes, sophisticated building security including security cameras covering all common areas and electronic controlled building access, swimming pool, gym and community rooms. The building will be conveniently located next to University of Pittsburgh shuttle bus line and will have excellent access to downtown Pittsburgh via nearby Bigelow Boulevard.


...

17 pages of plans:
http://www.polaris-realestate.com/images/Documents/Centre%20&%20Craig%20-%20North%20Oakland.pdf

[AaronPGH]

Great news! Nice catch Evergrey.

[PittPenn 03]

http://pittsburgh.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/06/01/daily36.html

Wednesday, June 3, 2009, 10:11am EDT
First Niagara selects 11 Stanwix in Downtown Pittsburgh for Regional Market CenterPittsburgh Business Times - by Patty Tascarella

View Larger First Niagara Financial Group Inc., expected to enter the Pittsburgh market in September, on Wednesday said it is establishing its Western Pennsylvania Regional Market Center in the 11 Stanwix Building in Downtown Pittsburgh.

Lockport, N.Y.-based First Niagara (Nasdaq:FNFG) is buying 57 former National City Corp. branches in western Pennsylvania from PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Fifty are located in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The transaction will position First Niagara as Pittsburgh’s fourth largest bank by deposits, $3.35 billion, and fifth by branches.

First Niagara is leasing more than 50,000 square feet, the entire 15th and 16th floors of 11 Stanwix. Financial terms were not disclosed. It expects to locate a branch in the building’s lobby.

[hyperion1110]

This is completly unrelated to most of the current discussion, but I'm curious if anyone knows the answer to this. The Pittsburgh Business Times has the listing of population projections for the top 250 metros. It claims Pittsburgh is projected to keep losing population through 2025. Any idea where this projection is coming from? I thought the Census Bureau expected the population to start growing here shortly?

http://www.bizjournals.com/specials/pages/257.html

[Evergrey]

This is completly unrelated to most of the current discussion, but I'm curious if anyone knows the answer to this. The Pittsburgh Business Times has the listing of population projections for the top 250 metros. It claims Pittsburgh is projected to keep losing population through 2025. Any idea where this projection is coming from? I thought the Census Bureau expected the population to start growing here shortly?

http://www.bizjournals.com/specials/pages/257.html

I'm not even going to start... just ignore it... there's about 5 minutes of effort put into Bizjournals' projections... it's not worth spending 5 seconds picking it apart.

[themaguffin]

Please please ignore it. It does not take into account any recent trends or unique trends to the region (and likely other regions as well).

[Gilamonster]

I was disappointed to not see any groundbreaking news about the Chelsea....literally no groundbreaking news......:rolleyes:

[bradjl2009]

Ignore what they say. Estimating population should be taken as serously as the weather forcast 10 to 14 days out. Ex: the Census said in 2004 whites would be the minority by 2050 then in 2008 they said around 2042, now they are retreating that back to 2050 to 2055.

[bradjl2009]

Many interesting pieces from PopCity this week. http://popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/default.aspx

June 3, 2009

Point State Park finishes Woodlands, opens Great Lawn in time for Arts Festival

Point State Park has re-opened its Great Lawn after two years of renovations, and announced the completion of the Woodlands areas on either side of the lawn.

These renovations come in time for Three Rivers Arts Festival, which starts Friday. The Great Lawn will be open to event-goers; however, the Woodlands will remain fenced off until the new plantings settle.

The multi-phase renovation project of the 36-acre park is estimated at $42 million, including soft costs such as design and planting, according to Riverlife’s Edward Patton.

Pressley Associates, Inc. developed the park’s master plan in collaboration with Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), Riverlife and Allegheny Conference on Community Development.

“Point State Park is such a symbol of Pittsburgh,” says Christina Novak with DCNR. “It’s unique because of its history and location, and offers people the opportunity to get outdoors and enjoy nature in an urban setting.”

The $8.2 million renovations to the Great Lawn included re-grading and reseeding the lawn, as well as new benches, paved pathways and lighting, a new stage pad, and upgraded irrigation, electrical and mechanical systems for event vendors.

The $1.25 million renovations to the Woodlands included removing dead and hazardous trees, and planting more than 54,000 native plants.

The project’s next phase begins later this summer, and will include the renovation of the wharf areas and walkways along the Allegheny and the Monongahela Rivers. During this phase, the wharf and fountain areas will be closed to the public.


Writer: Caralyn Green
Sources: Christina Novak, press secretary, DCNR; Edward Patton, director, capital projects, Riverlife


June 3, 2009

Hill District announces intitial projects of six-year, $3M revitalization

The Hill District Neighborhood Partnership Program (NPP) has announced the first nine projects it will fund as part of its six-year, $3 million commitment to community revitalization.

NPP, created in 2005, is funded by BNY Mellon and tax credits from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development. It is an outcome of the One Hill Community Benefits Agreement, a neighborhood coalition of about 100 groups that came together to ensure the area surrounding the new Penguins arena will be developed to benefit the Hill District.

“This is not just a paper partnership,” says Terri Baltimore with the Hill House Association, which is helping to administer and manage funds. “We’ve all rolled up our sleeves and asked one question: Is what we’re doing serving the needs of the neighborhood?”

The first year will focus on financial literacy, tutoring and scholarship efforts, substance abuse treatment, HIV/AIDS testing, violence prevention, the creation of public green spaces, home rehabilitation for low-income and senior residents, and no-interest loans for home improvement.

The initial groups to receive NPP funds are: ACORN (allocated $48,685 for the 2009 fiscal year); Center for Family Excellence - Achieving Academic Excellence ($98,780); Center for Family Excellence - Surface Stripe-ing & Painting Scholarship Program ($20,000); Central Outreach Resource and Referral Center ($54,785); Freedom Unlimited ($71,685); Hill District Federal Credit Union ($23,835); House of the Crossroads ($28,395); One Vision One Life ($23,835); and the GreenPrint program through Find the Rivers! and Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy ($80,000).

To receive Pop City free every week, click here.

Writer: Caralyn Green
Sources: Tiffanie Williams, communications manager, and Terri Baltimore, vice president of neighborhood development, Hill House Association


June 3, 2009

$39.5M August Wilson Center opens doors Downtown

The brand-new August Wilson Center for African American Culture hosted a community open house on Saturday to celebrate the building’s near-completion. The Center, at 980 Liberty Ave., will be open with limited access throughout the summer, and its final look will be unveiled at a gala on Sept. 19.

The $39.5 million addition to Downtown’s Cultural District was designed by San Francisco-based architect Allison Williams of Perkins+Will. The construction management team includes Oxford Development, Turning Construction, Sterling Contracting, LLC and Ebony Development.

The 65,000 square-foot Center, which is pursing LEED Silver certification, uses materials, such as steel, aluminum and plate-glass, that are relevant to the region. The rich purple paint and zebra-wood wall coverings give the space an organic, elegant feel, echoed in the sloping stone wall that rises through the Center’s entire height and anchors the grand staircase. The north-facing, floor-to-ceiling windows on both the first and second floors allow for impressive natural light as well as panoramic views of Downtown and the Hill District.

“We didn’t want it to feel like a palace on a hill,” says Shay Wafer with the Center. “The building is so open and welcoming because of the windows. Anything going on inside is visible from the outside. The Center extends itself into the Downtown community and becomes a part of it.”

The Center also features administrative offices (relocating from the Regional Enterprise Tower mid-June), permanent and changing exhibit galleries, a studio equipped with a spring floor, a gift shop, an education center, a café with sidewalk seating options, and a donor lounge housed in the Center’s metal-and-glass “sail,” its signature design element. The Center’s two-story, 486-seat theater will see its first performance on June 11 by musician Me'Shell Ndegeocello.

To receive Pop City free every week, click here.

Writer: Caralyn Green
Sources: Treshea Wade, manager of communications and e-marketing, and Shay Wafer, vice president of programs, August Wilson Center for African American Culture



June 3, 2009

Port Authority seeks public opinion on transit plans

Port Authority of Allegheny County is seeking community feedback on its proposed Transit Development Plan.

The plan would result in the first major overhaul of the route network in about 40 years, says Jim Ritchie with Port Authority.

Port Authority hopes to make the transportation more efficient, reliable and understandable. An easier route naming system would be adopted, some routes and stops would be consolidated, and confusing route variations would be eliminated, Ritchie explains. Other potential changes include the use of express Rapid Bus service for heavily traveled corridors, such as the stretch between Downtown and Oakland; establishing neighborhood Transit Centers; more direct service to Pittsburgh International Airport; and a color-coded rather than number-based system for the T light rail system.

The Transit Development Plan is the result of a $800,000 system analysis by Nelson\Nygaard Consulting Associates.

Port Authority will hold the first of two open houses this week, and may hold a public hearing down the line. The first open house will be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. today at the Omni William Penn Hotel, Downtown. The second will be 2 to 5 p.m., and 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Mon., June 8 at the University of Pittsburgh’s Alumni Hill in Oakland. Feedback is also possible through a special Port Authority website, which details proposed changes and includes an online presentation.

“We’ll see what riders like and don’t like, and hone in on a final plan by later this summer,” says Ritche. “Our board will then vote in September, and the earliest changes could be implemented by the end of the year.”

To receive Pop City free every week, click here.

Writer: Caralyn Green
Source: Jim Ritchie, director of public relations, Port Authority of Allegheny County


June 3, 2009

$2.2M Garfield housing development promotes home ownership

Garfield Home Ownership Choice has broken ground on its third phase, which is expected to be complete in 2011.

The 50-unit, multi-phase, single family, for-sale housing development is being built along Broad, Winebiddle and Dearborn streets, and managed by Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation with assistance from Garfield-Jubilee Association.

The third phase of the $2.2 million plan consists of seven units, priced from $137,500 to $139,500, each with three bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths, off-street parking, air conditioning, security systems and front and back porches. Homes were designed by Tai + Lee Architects and Hanson Design Group, and construction will be done by Catranel Construction.

“While the houses have been very energy efficient since the first phase, in this third phase, the houses will be so energy efficient they will obtain Energy Star certification,” says Alina Keebler with Tai + Lee.

Thirty-one units have already been completed and sold in previous phases. Eighty percent of buyers have come from the East End, and 20 percent from neighborhoods like the North Side and Hazelwood, and even from beyond city lines, says Richard Swartz, with Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation.

URA second deferred mortgages are available to those who qualify, and Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation has been working closely with Garfield-Jubilee Association to counsel aspiring homeowners about loans, mortgages and budgeting concerns.

“We want to see Garfield attract a more mixed income base over the next 10 years,” says Swartz. “We’re looking to help Garfield compete for middle-class, aspiring home-buyers that have been purchasing homes elsewhere.”

To receive Pop City free every week, click here.

Writer: Caralyn Green
Sources: Alina Keebler, Tai + Lee; Richard Swartz, executive director, Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation


June 3, 2009

$90K lighting, $800K townhouses completed along Penn Ave. in East End

The East End Partnership has announced the completion of two notable projects: Three townhouses at 5000 Penn Ave., and lighting along Penn Avenue between Children’s Hospital and the Allegheny Cemetery entrance gates.

According to Sarah DiLeo with Friendship Development Associates, Inc. (FDA), the Cemetery Row lighting is the first completed project recommended in the Penn Avenue Corridor Master Plan, which outlines goals and guidelines for the 2.25-mile stretch between 34th Street and Penn Circle West.

The $90,000 lighting initiative, designed by Hilbish McGee Lighting Design, was offset by a $60,000 grant awarded by Duquesne Light. Twenty-three low-wattage lights were mounted on more than a half mile of cemetery wall, according to designer Rick McGee.

“The up-tree lighting contributes to public safety, and at the same time creates an interesting ambiance for pedestrians between the hospital and arts district,” says Maya Haptas with the East End Partnership, an alliance between Bloomfield, East Liberty, Friendship, Garfield and Lawrenceville.

The three new townhouses are located at the intersection of Penn Avenue and Gross Street, just a few blocks from the cemetery. Designed by Friendship-based Hammer-Mann Designwerks, the $800,000 project was constructed on a previously unoccupied lot. Of the homes, which are energy-efficient and are priced from $185,000 to $208,000, one has sold, one is under agreement and one is still available, says DiLeo with FDA

A lighting dedication will be held 5:30 p.m. Friday, followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the townhouses. The event is part of Unblurred, a monthly program that celebrates Penn Avenue’s art, music and performance options.

To receive Pop City free every week, click here.

Writer: Caralyn Green
Sources: Sarah DiLeo, marketing & communications coordinator, Friendship Development Associates, Inc.; Rick McGee, Hilbish McGee Lighting Design; Maya Haptas, business district manager, Lawrenceville Corporation, co-manager, East End Partnership

[JackStraw]

I want to go over there and check out that lighting design. Sound cool. I never heard of Hillbish McGee (sounds very hillbillish), as I never knew there was just a firm that just specialized in lighting.

So the August Wilson center is going for a Silver rating?

Is there any site that shows how cities and how many LEED buildings they have for each certification? I don't know why none has been created yet. Everytime I google it, it is stupid articles that never mention that dirty smokey Pittsburgh. I use to post on a much more retarded forum, and there are always "The most Green City argument". Pittsburgh is never mentioned even though we were one of the cities developing the most Green buildings in the early part of this decade. Largest LEED Convention Center, Highest LEED Highrise, Largest LEED certified Hospital, and other Green Buildings all around downtown and the city. I know that many cities require a LEED certification to all new buildings, but Pittsburgh is rarely ever mentioned in these articles as we were up there with Seattle, San Fran, and Portland in the beginning when it wasn't a trendy thing yet. But than again, does anybody give two shits about Jackstraw's rants on this forum?

[hyperion1110]

Haha...I will consider the ranking ignored then :) I just thought I had missed something.

[Blackbeauty212]

If this means Pittsburgh will be one of the 1st cities to recover from the recession, this is truely Amazing....


http://pittsburgh.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/06/01/daily51.html

Pittsburgh unemployment rate falls to 6.9 percent

Thursday, June 4, 2009, 10:46am EDT
Pittsburgh unemployment rate falls to 6.9 percentPittsburgh Business Times
Print Email Reprints RSS Feeds Add to Del.icio.us Digg This CommentsRelated News
Kansas City-area workers earn average of $21.44 an hour
Denver-area jobless rate 7.5% in April, better than March
D.C.-area unemployment rate falls to 5.6%
Kansas City-area unemployment rate improves from March

Unemployment in the Pittsburgh area inched down in April to 6.9 percent, but was still up from 4.2 percent unemployment in April 2008, according to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment rate is still lower than April’s national unemployment rate of 8.6 percent, not seasonally adjusted, which was up from 4.8 percent a year earlier.

Statewide, the unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in April, down from 8.3 percent in March, but up from 4.5 percent in the year-ago period.

The Pittsburgh area's April figure was down from March's rate of 7.5 percent. In the region, there were about 83,000 people unemployed, down from about 91,300 in March.

Across Pennsylvania, there were about 480,900 people looking for work in April, down from 527,700 in March.

Philadelphia's unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in April, down from 8 percent in March. Like Pittsburgh, however, the rate was much higher than last April's rate of 4.4 percent.

The Williamsport area had the highest unemployment rate in Pennsylvania for the month of April, according to the census figures, at 8.5 percent. The figure is lower than that area's March rate of 9.3 percent, but close to double the April 2008 rate of 5.0 percent.

All 372 metropolitan areas posted higher unemployment rates than a year earlier, and 93 areas had rates of at least 10 percent. The Pittsburgh area was one of 117 areas that posted rates below 7 percent, down from 347 areas in April 2008.

In April, the jobless rate was at least 15 percent in 13 metro areas, nine of which were in California, and 31 areas had rates below 5 percent.

[bradjl2009]

If this means Pittsburgh will be one of the 1st cities to recover from the recession, this is truely Amazing....


http://pittsburgh.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/06/01/daily51.html

Pittsburgh unemployment rate falls to 6.9 percent

Thursday, June 4, 2009, 10:46am EDT
Pittsburgh unemployment rate falls to 6.9 percentPittsburgh Business Times
Print Email Reprints RSS Feeds Add to Del.icio.us Digg This CommentsRelated News
Kansas City-area workers earn average of $21.44 an hour
Denver-area jobless rate 7.5% in April, better than March
D.C.-area unemployment rate falls to 5.6%
Kansas City-area unemployment rate improves from March

Unemployment in the Pittsburgh area inched down in April to 6.9 percent, but was still up from 4.2 percent unemployment in April 2008, according to the latest numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment rate is still lower than April’s national unemployment rate of 8.6 percent, not seasonally adjusted, which was up from 4.8 percent a year earlier.

Statewide, the unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in April, down from 8.3 percent in March, but up from 4.5 percent in the year-ago period.

The Pittsburgh area's April figure was down from March's rate of 7.5 percent. In the region, there were about 83,000 people unemployed, down from about 91,300 in March.

Across Pennsylvania, there were about 480,900 people looking for work in April, down from 527,700 in March.

Philadelphia's unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in April, down from 8 percent in March. Like Pittsburgh, however, the rate was much higher than last April's rate of 4.4 percent.

The Williamsport area had the highest unemployment rate in Pennsylvania for the month of April, according to the census figures, at 8.5 percent. The figure is lower than that area's March rate of 9.3 percent, but close to double the April 2008 rate of 5.0 percent.

All 372 metropolitan areas posted higher unemployment rates than a year earlier, and 93 areas had rates of at least 10 percent. The Pittsburgh area was one of 117 areas that posted rates below 7 percent, down from 347 areas in April 2008.

In April, the jobless rate was at least 15 percent in 13 metro areas, nine of which were in California, and 31 areas had rates below 5 percent.

One of three things is happening:
1. Some people are employing again.
2. People have given up on looking for a job.
3. The unemployed are leaving the region.

1 may be happening with the economy letting up and demand from the stimilus bill. 2 may be happening because of the record job losses are not a good sign for finding a job. 3 may be happening because people may think there are green pastures elsewhere but we have one of the lowest job losses in the county out of the top 40 metro area.

[PA Pride]

Is there any site that shows how cities and how many LEED buildings they have for each certification? I don't know why none has been created yet. Everytime I google it, it is stupid articles that never mention that dirty smokey Pittsburgh. I use to post on a much more retarded forum, and there are always "The most Green City argument". Pittsburgh is never mentioned even though we were one of the cities developing the most Green buildings in the early part of this decade. Largest LEED Convention Center, Highest LEED Highrise, Largest LEED certified Hospital, and other Green Buildings all around downtown and the city. I know that many cities require a LEED certification to all new buildings, but Pittsburgh is rarely ever mentioned in these articles as we were up there with Seattle, San Fran, and Portland in the beginning when it wasn't a trendy thing yet. But than again, does anybody give two shits about Jackstraw's rants on this forum?

I guess you can search here: http://www.usgbc.org/LEED/Project/RegisteredProjectList.aspx

But i remember a much easier to use list of buildings; They must have scratched that and use a searchable database now that there are so many buildings.

[JackStraw]

Thats still not what I am looking for. I use that site at work, as designers load pdf LEED submittals on that for review.

I wish there was a website, kind of like SSP for skyscrapers, that organized cities with amount of LEED buildings, and highlighted all the new technical advancments of certain ones. Like the Convention center was one of the first to use grey water systems. (recyled water), etc.

I am starting to get annoyed with LEED though. It seems so easy to obtain LEED status anymore. The energy complaince code for buildings is more strict than many LEED points, meaning they have to design to energy complaince codes, so therefore they already have enough points to apply for LEED certification. Just add a few bike racks and your set. LEED should take points away, for such things as building in sprawl.

Remember when I told you and Evergrey that it is total B.S. that Westinghouse Cranberry Woods is going for LEED Certification. It is anti-green. They tore out acres of forest, and are spawning off more sprawl due to them locating their head quarters there. They actually put bike racks in their property to obtain a LEED point. Think about it, who is going to bike to Cranberry woods for work in Cranberry? The whole place is a giant parking lot. The lighting alone got two points, but is no greener than any other office. LEED use to be about applying technical advancments to buildings, and it is coming down to money. Applying for a LEED certification cost the building owner well within 5 digit figure depending on the size of the building.

Wow, I can rant on about this shit all day long.

[Evergrey]

I am starting to get annoyed with LEED though. It seems so easy to obtain LEED status anymore. The energy complaince code for buildings is more strict than many LEED points, meaning they have to design to energy complaince codes, so therefore they already have enough points to apply for LEED certification. Just add a few bike racks and your set. LEED should take points away, for such things as building in sprawl.

Remember when I told you and Evergrey that it is total B.S. that Westinghouse Cranberry Woods is going for LEED Certification. It is anti-green. They tore out acres of forest, and are spawning off more sprawl due to them locating their head quarters there. They actually put bike racks in their property to obtain a LEED point. Think about it, who is going to bike to Cranberry woods for work in Cranberry? The whole place is a giant parking lot. The lighting alone got two points, but is no greener than any other office. LEED use to be about applying technical advancments to buildings, and it is coming down to money. Applying for a LEED certification cost the building owner well within 5 digit figure depending on the size of the building.

Wow, I can rant on about this shit all day long.



Are longer commutes green?

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_628226.html

Workers prepare for longer commutes as Westinghouse begins relocation

By Bonnie Pfister
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, June 5, 2009

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/2009-06-04/0605westy1-a.jpg
Jean Laurent packs up for the move to the company's $200 million headquarters in the Cranberry Woods Office Park.
Sidney Davis/Tribune-Review



As Westinghouse Electric Co. begins its relocation this weekend to Cranberry from Monroeville, hundreds of workers are readying for longer commutes, including turnpike tolls.

Then there's Dan Soroka. His daily commute from Butler County to Monroeville will be over. The 60-year-old Youngstown, Ohio, native spent much of the past two decades as a manufacturing engineer in Tampa. When he was hired by Westinghouse a year and a half ago, he and his wife bought a home in Adams, six miles east of the new headquarters.

"I drove it for a year and a half," Soroka said Thursday. "Between the cost of tolls and gasoline, it's pretty onerous."

Soroka is one of the 2,600 workers the company hired locally in the past four years, as nuclear energy has re-emerged as a compelling alternative to coal-burning power plants.

Westinghouse is following through on its March 2007 announcement to leave Allegheny County because its 38-year-old Monroeville base isn't large enough. Although a disappointment to that municipality's leaders, the move to Butler County was preferable to sites under consideration in South Carolina and Connecticut.

Concerns about increasing demand and coal plants' role in global warming are fueling the nuclear engineering firm's expansion. In 2007, Westinghouse signed a $5.3 billion contract with China to build four AP1000 reactors, which it touts as larger, simpler and safer than previous plant designs. It is pursuing similar contracts in India, South Africa and the United Kingdom.

In the United States, utilities have proposed building more than two dozen reactors, and the AP1000 is the designated design for half of them. Although licensing and construction are years away, Westinghouse signed key contracts for six plants in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina.

The company employs 12,000 people globally and plans to hire 750. Forty-two percent of its employees are in Western Pennsylvania. Three hundred at a Blairsville speciality metals plant, 800 at a nuclear services facility in Waltz Mill, and 200 plant equipment workers in New Stanton all will stay in place.

The new, $200 million headquarters includes a 400,000-square-foot building in the Cranberry Woods Office Park, near the intersection of Route 228 and Interstate 79. Two slightly smaller wings are under construction.

A thousand mostly administrative workers and new-plant engineers will move from Monroeville through the end of July. The 1,500 workers remaining in Monroeville and 200 at the Churchill-based research and technology park will move by late 2010.

A fourth building could be constructed; 400 instrumentation engineers will continue to work in rented space in Cranberry, where they've been assigned since last fall.

Although the move is good for Soroka, some workers based in Pittsburgh's southern and eastern suburbs are less enthused. Cristina Stinelli, an assistant human resources representative from Delmont, said her 25-minute commute time likely will triple. She signed up for the company's shuttle -- tour buses that will transport workers from the Monroeville parking lot to Cranberry free of charge for the first year.

The building has its advantages, she said.

"The gym is going to be so much nicer," said Stinelli, 23, taking a break from taping up boxes of marketing materials. "We have one shower in the female locker room here. There's 17 showers at the new building. And a steamroom and a sauna."

Stinelli said such amenities are important to a pool of recent grads the company is hiring. An outdoor track and sand-filled volleyball court in Monroeville will be replicated in Cranberry, where the company also has tennis and basketball courts.

"So many of us did sports in college, it's nice to be able to continue that at work," said Stinelli, a former softball player and Robert Morris University graduate who works out with weights and on elliptical machines. "A lot of people are really excited about that. And it's a great way to make friends."

[Evergrey]

an article on one of the most hideous towers downtown! :haha:

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_628216.html

Landlords like chances for growing population in Downtown area

By Sam Spatter, FOR THE TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, June 5, 2009

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/2009-06-04/GX-Ages-eds-06-05-a.jpg

Sol Gross took a gamble in 2000 when he purchased the 83-unit 625 Stanwix Tower Apartments, Downtown.

Until Downtown living became more popular in recent years with the addition of numerous condominium and rental developments, the attraction of having a residence in Pittsburgh's Downtown area was at most lukewarm.

That has changed.

Since 2000, there have been 705 new apartment units and 507 condominium units either opened or scheduled to open this year in the immediate Golden Triangle area, according to the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. Recent openings include condos 151 First Street with 80 units, Piatt Place with 60, and Three PNC Plaza, expected to open in December with 28 luxury units.

Entering Downtown are two affordable developments. They are the 60-unit Century Building and 46-unit Market Square Place. Already existing Downtown are three "affordable" apartments with 369 units at the Roosevelt Arms, Midtown Towers and May Building.

Since the 2000 census, Downtown's population has increased 25 percent and stood at an estimated 2,148 as of the end of 2008.

Add 2,428 university and technical students, as well as 89 private houses and other housing and the total population within the Golden Triangle was about 4,576 at the end of 2008, according to the Downtown Partnership.

If the total from the greater Downtown area that includes North Shore, South Shore, Lower Hill, the near Strip (up to 26th Street) and the Uptown/Bluff area is included, there are an additional 3,897 housing units

By the end of 2009, the Downtown Partnership anticipates a greater Downtown residential population of 11,106. That consists of 4,936 household population and 6,170 students.

Count Tracey Barnfather as one of them.

Tracey, 39, has lived in Monroeville, Squirrel Hill, Penn Hills and O'Hara, before deciding to move into the 625 Stanwix Tower Apartments.

"Although I grew up in Butler, I love living Downtown. As both a sports and theater fan, it is close to the stadiums, the theaters, the parks and rivers," she said.

What she likes best about her 14th floor apartment is the outdoor patio -- one of two in the building -- that allows her to have a vegetable garden and outdoor grilling for up to 13 guests.

She works as a financial analyst at Bechtel Plant Machinery in Monroeville. "I'm always going the other way from the morning rush hour and in the evening against the outbound traffic."

With new, competing buildings becoming available Downtown, Sol Gross knew he had to keep his building attractive to tenants. Before the surge began, Gross initiated a renovation program to upgrade each unit in his building as it became vacant.

That meant installing new carpeting, painting, adding new flooring in the kitchens and granite flooring in the bathrooms. Each unit receives new appliances.

"The cost per unit is about $10,000," he said. He even installed a new boiler, at a cost of about $300,000, plus a filtered water system.

Gross brought light into each unit -- tearing out wall panels and installing eight-foot high windows that provide views of the city and its rivers.

Currently, 625 Stanwix Tower Apartments is 82 percent filled. Rental range is from $875 to $2,300 a month, while apartments range from 580 square feet to 975 square feet.

The has had some notable tenants -- Steeler Terry Bradshaw and longtime KDKA newscaster, the late Bill Burns. And the building has multiple uses.

The first floor contains several businesses including a Post Office branch. A nine-floor InterPark garage is owned by General Electric and on the 11th floor is Allegheny County Community College, with the Allegheny County Public Housing Authority on the 12th.

[JackStraw]

As much as I get disguested with companies like Westinghouse supporting sprawl so much, and paying their taxes to Butler county instead of Allegheny. I also get upset with companies like mine that move to Wexford and leave downtown for "better horizons".

Building a downtown population makes me happy. A diverse & lively downtown is very important, if not more important than a downtown filled with just office space that empties out at 5 pm. Our downtown is a long way from being something like Center city, but it is atleast heading in the right direction.

Oh, and 625 Stanwix st. is the most hideous building I ever seen.

[Steel Boy]

When I was a pup, someone pointed out 625 Stanwix to me and said that it was an apartment building on top of an office building on top of a parking garage. If you don't look up, you have no idea there's anything up there.

[AaronPGH]

As ugly as 625 Stanwix is, I'd pick living there over any of the other downtown apartment buildings. The units are actually gorgeous (renovations were done well)....the windows are big, and rooftop deck is incredible. It has a pool on the top of it, surrounded by skyscrapers. It really doesn't get much better. My desk at my previous company overlooked the rooftop pool. Made me extremely jealous sitting there all day during the summer while people were swimming around on the top of the building. Blah!

I have to say 625 Stanwix is certainly a lot nicer than the Century Building. I just toured that place two weeks ago and it was a pretty big disappointment. They advertise it as affordable living....but when you actually get in there and take a look it's obvious you get what you pay for. Extremely cheap materials, thin walls, absolutely hideous carpet. The bedroom carpet is that thin gray shit you'd find in your grandmothers basement craft room. The lowest priced stuff they could find. When you add in the costs, of parking, etc....it's really not worth it. $1150 a month for a small one bedroom downtown that's built horribly cheap is *NOT* affordable. And you don't even get a pool on the roof.

[hyperion1110]

All in all, I'm okay with the move on Westinghouse from Monroeville to Cranberry, mostly because there is nothing better about one over the other. Sure, Monroeville is older, but it's mostly just sprawl, too. Moreover, in the case of a company doing nuclear energy research, I would rather them not be near to the city :)

One thing I don't understand is what they are going to do with the supercomputers? Westinghouse is a partner in the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center, and houses its machine room (while the offices are in Oakland). There are tens of millions of dollars of machines in the old Westinghouse site, and, more importantly, millions of dollars in high speed data infrastructure. A tremendously important component of the internet backbone runes through the PSC machine room in Monroeville, and I have not heard a single thing about what is going to happen.

[JackStraw]

^They don't do nuclear research at the H.Q. in Cranberry. It is just a giant cube farm on every floor. There is a practice one in Chattanooga for people to train how to handle nuclear reactors, but thats all I know.

[JackStraw]

double post.

[PA Pride]

Thats still not what I am looking for. I use that site at work, as designers load pdf LEED submittals on that for review.

I wish there was a website, kind of like SSP for skyscrapers, that organized cities with amount of LEED buildings, and highlighted all the new technical advancments of certain ones. Like the Convention center was one of the first to use grey water systems. (recyled water), etc.

I am starting to get annoyed with LEED though. It seems so easy to obtain LEED status anymore. The energy complaince code for buildings is more strict than many LEED points, meaning they have to design to energy complaince codes, so therefore they already have enough points to apply for LEED certification. Just add a few bike racks and your set. LEED should take points away, for such things as building in sprawl.

Remember when I told you and Evergrey that it is total B.S. that Westinghouse Cranberry Woods is going for LEED Certification. It is anti-green. They tore out acres of forest, and are spawning off more sprawl due to them locating their head quarters there. They actually put bike racks in their property to obtain a LEED point. Think about it, who is going to bike to Cranberry woods for work in Cranberry? The whole place is a giant parking lot. The lighting alone got two points, but is no greener than any other office. LEED use to be about applying technical advancments to buildings, and it is coming down to money. Applying for a LEED certification cost the building owner well within 5 digit figure depending on the size of the building.

Wow, I can rant on about this shit all day long.

Good rant!

oh, and Evergrey: I like 625 Stanwix.

[Evergrey]

Good rant!

oh, and Evergrey: I like 625 Stanwix.

in an ironic way

625 is the somewhat Sao Paulo-ish tower in the center of this photo

http://i531.photobucket.com/albums/dd360/pittsburghrules/downtown%20pittsburgh/DSC07103.jpg?t=1244258216

[JackStraw]

I used 625 Stanwix as a toilet today before going to my friends car after the black keys.

[PA Pride]

^Yeah, it's so strange that it intrigues me. And I think it blends in pretty well with the other silver gateway towers. Anywhere else and it would probably look really out of place.

[themaguffin]

As with Gateway Center in general and other buildings downtown, I like that many eras (or some would argue errors) are represented in the city.

[bradjl2009]

After a great job in 2007, Oakmont Country Club is hosting the 2016 U.S. Open again!

U.S. Open likely to be held in 2016 at Oakmont
Saturday, June 06, 2009
By Gerry Dulac, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Oakmont Country Club will not have to wait 13 years to be host for the U.S. Open again.

The United States Golf Association has informed Oakmont officials that it intends to bring the U.S. Open back to the famed course in 2016, just nine years after it was the host for a record eighth time in 2007, the Post-Gazette has learned.

Barring some unforeseen circumstance or last-minute disagreement, the USGA will make the official announcement June 17 in Farmingdale, N.Y., a day before the 109th U.S. Open begins at Bethpage Black.

After it staged the U.S. Open in 1994, Oakmont had to wait 13 years to be awarded another national championship, partly because the USGA did not feel the course had adequate room for pedestrian flow and grandstand areas.

But, after a new pedestrian bridge that spanned the Pennsylvania Turnpike was constructed and nearly 8,000 trees were removed from the property, Oakmont was awarded the U.S. Open in 2007 -- and dazzled the USGA and the rest of the golf world when it staged the event.

Because of the attention the new-look course received from the Open, won by Angel Cabrera of Argentina, Oakmont has remained at No. 5 among America's 100 Greatest Courses ranked by Golf Digest, trailing only Augusta National, Pine Valley, Shinnecock Hills and Cypress Point.

Oakmont had petitioned the USGA to host the tournament as early as 2015, but the site that year was awarded to Chambers Bay, a public course that opened two years ago in University Place, Wash., near Tacoma. It will mark the first time the U.S. Open will ever be contested in the Pacific Northwest.

But USGA officials were so thrilled with Oakmont's showing at the 2007 U.S. Open -- Senior Director of Rules and Competition Mike Davis referred to the course as "the gold standard" -- they wasted little time making the sure the national championship returned to the club.

It also helped that Oakmont had agreed to host the 2010 U.S. Women's Open, the first time that tournament will return to the course since 1992.

Gerry Dulac can be reached at 412-263-1466 or gdulac@post-gazette.com
First published on June 6, 2009 at 12:00 am


http://www.postgazette.com/pg/09157/975570-136.stm#ixzz0HfhuWO7I&D

[Tombstoner]

in an ironic way

625 is the somewhat Sao Paulo-ish tower in the center of this photo


Excellent description!

[pj3000]

I used 625 Stanwix as a toilet today before going to my friends car after the black keys.

What, you couldn't hold it for 45 minutes as you waited in line to use the limited supply of porta-pottys? The Black Keys rocked, but that venue sucks big time, IMO. No beer, bad stage setup... in fact, that's gotta be the worst stage location they could possibly find in the park. But hey, it was free.

[GeneW]

Yea, putting the Art's Festival stage at the top of the slope of the lawn instead of at the bottom seems to have been a bad idea. I'm 6'2" and had a hard time seeing. And having the sound board encased in an eight foot high tent so that it blocked about 1/3 of the lawn from the stage seemed pretty dumb too.

The Keys did rock though.

[Evergrey]

http://www.newsweek.com/id/200991


Howard Fineman

What Pittsburgh (Don’t Laugh) Can Teach Obama

Struggling cities like Detroit could learn a lot from the Pennsylvania city's rebirth.

Jun 6, 2009 | Updated: 7:37 p.m. ET Jun 6, 2009

http://ndn3.newsweek.com/media/60/fineman_237-covermedium.jpg



Before jetting off to the Middle East and Europe, President Obama took care of another piece of international diplomatic business: He announced the city in which the U.S. will host the next G20 summit in September. His choice drew laughter and puzzlement from reporters and diplomats alike.

Pittsburgh? Are you serious?

As a proud native, I understand and agree with the president's decision. Pittsburgh's story is inspiring and impressive. It was a rusting steel-making behemoth that, through struggle, pain and creativity, retooled itself as a surprisingly vibrant, 21st-century leader in education, computer science, medical research, sports entertainment and boutique manufacturing.
By most measures—unemployment and foreclosure rates, to name two—Pittsburgh is an island of calm in the raging recession.

But I'm dubious about the next step in the White House's reasoning: Pittsburgh's success, officials say, offers hope that Obama's own economic policies will work for Detroit and other beleaguered cities and industries. No, in fact, it doesn't.

Simply put, what worked in Pittsburgh won't work for the auto industry, and what the president wants to do for Detroit isn't the kind of thing that worked in my old hometown. Pittsburgh's rebirth is about the grit, sacrifice and hustle of locals—not the sweeping plans and power of federal bureaucrats.

As the steel industry was dying, no one (certainly no one in Pittsburgh) suggested or would have accepted a federal bailout, let alone a federal takeover. There was and is too much pride and stubbornness; the Whiskey Rebellion was two centuries ago, but the suspicion of Washington's motives remains.

In its first heyday, Pittsburgh produced as much or more steel than the rest of the world combined. Even into the '60s and '70s, the sky on cloud-covered nights glowed orange, reflecting the pulsing fires of open-hearth furnaces along the rivers below.

When the industry faltered—hit by cheap imports, lax management, labor strife and declining domestic demand—steel's leaders sought and won years of tariff and quota protection. So to that extent, the city and its leading industry did turn to the feds.

But ultimately a sense of realism—a trait of the city that sometimes borders on bitter cynicism—won out. The locals realized that the old steel industry was a lost cause, and they moved on.

A way of making a living ended, but not a way of life. The old determination found a new focus, which wasn't anymore a lifetime job in the mill, but a college education—and more education.



And that, above all, has been the key to the city's survival: pride in and commitment to local education. The city school system avoided the kind of collapse that faced other urban centers; schools in surrounding suburbs of Allegheny County have risen in stature. This was largely a local choice, with local and state money.

The same is true with higher education. Pittsburgh is one of only a handful of cities with two institutions—Carnegie Mellon and the University of Pittsburgh—in the 62-member Association of American Universities, a prestigious alliance of the nation's leading research schools. True, CMU and Pitt get a lot of federal research money, and federal grants and loans help pay the tuition of many of their students. But the schools wouldn't be what they are had it not been for the vision of locals, from Andrew Carnegie and Thomas Mellon to the thousands of Pittsburgh schoolkids who contributed pennies toward the construction of the main building on the Pitt campus.

Believe it or not, Pittsburgh today is a college town, with one of the highest ratios of students to full-time residents in the nation.

At the center of the university complex (there are dozens of other universities and colleges in the area) is health care; and again, its creation was the result of local initiative. Affiliated with Pitt, UPMC has become one of the nation's largest, most advanced (and entrepreneurial) hospital and health-care providers.

HHS didn't tell them to do it.

"Now we're the city of 'eds and meds'," says Ira Morgan, a savvy player in Pittsburgh real estate.

Morgan and others see a revival of manufacturing, too—but on a smaller, more dispersed scale. The old open-hearth behemoths are gone; the cleared land along the rivers is now home to startups in computer systems and software and metals fabrication. "The industrial parcels are cheap and the business in them is strong," said Morgan.

The key to all of this is civic pride and lots of time. The city, pretty much left to its own devices, suffered for two decades, its wounds salved by the Steelers and other local sports teams, but the pain was very real. Pittsburgh has half the population it once did (though the Allegheny County metro area has retained its size). Some graceful old neighborhoods are collapsing under the weight of crime and drugs, even as most of them remain remarkably well maintained.

But the point is that this is largely a local story, not a national one. The lesson for the auto business and the auto-producing regions is not the one that President Obama wants them to hear. It is that the old world will inevitably disappear, and that creating a new one is up to you, not someone else.

© 2009

[themaguffin]

Fineman has noted Pittsburgh before (usually it was relevant to the conversation) and I enjoy his columns and commentary on MSNBC.
Actually Newsweek in general is a good magazine.

[AaronPGH]

Awesome article! I think he hit the nail on the head with the local thing. I always wondered why Howard sat in front of a Pittsburgh backdrop so much on MSNBC...now I know.

[GeneW]

What stupid article. He contradicts himself constantly in it. First he says:Simply put, what worked in Pittsburgh won't work for the auto industry, and what the president wants to do for Detroit isn't the kind of thing that worked in my old hometown. Pittsburgh's rebirth is about the grit, sacrifice and hustle of locals—not the sweeping plans and power of federal bureaucrats.

but then he admits:
When the industry faltered—hit by cheap imports, lax management, labor strife and declining domestic demand—steel's leaders sought and won years of tariff and quota protection. So to that extent, the city and its leading industry did turn to the feds.

So is it about "grit and sacrifice" or it is about quotas and tariffs? Aren't tariffs and quotas a form of big government bailout?

[pj3000]

It's a feel-good article... not really any meat to it. It's actually kinda ridiculous.

Fineman is just a bit too full of fluff and puzzling examples...

"Pittsburgh's rebirth is about the grit, sacrifice and hustle of locals" and "The locals realized that the old steel industry was a lost cause, and they moved on". Really?

How about this one... "True, CMU and Pitt get a lot of federal research money, and federal grants and loans help pay the tuition of many of their students. But the schools wouldn't be what they are had it not been for the vision of locals, from Andrew Carnegie and Thomas Mellon to the thousands of Pittsburgh schoolkids who contributed pennies toward the construction of the main building on the Pitt campus." Let's see, he's talking about the the resilience of locals after the collapse of the steel industry in transforming into an educational center, but then cites two steel magnates from the turn of the century and schoolkids donating pennies to build the Cathedral of Learning in the 20s and 30s for their "vision" in doing just that!

In truth, Pittsburgh owes more to Pitt and CMU (and their status as top federally-funded research institutions) than anyone else for helping to reinvent the local economy. The talk of this local grit, hustle, and sacrifice is unrealistic and somewhat nauseating.

[Gilamonster]

There are still a lot of locals who believe that we should bring back the steel industry but fortunately for us they are mostly living in senior citizen centers. People's mindset hasn't changed, it's just that those who look back at Pittsburgh as a steel town are either gray or gone and now the people who are in pittsburgh positions of power, economically and politically, are of a new generation in which Steeltown is little more than a neat nickname for our city.
I had nothing agaisnt Bob O' Conner and no real leanings for or against Ravenstahl but I think having a 26 year old mayor is one of the best things that has happened to this city in a while. Unfortunately it took a sad turn of events for it to happen.

[Evergrey]

It's a feel-good article... not really any meat to it. It's actually kinda ridiculous.

Fineman is just a bit too full of fluff and puzzling examples...

"Pittsburgh's rebirth is about the grit, sacrifice and hustle of locals" and "The locals realized that the old steel industry was a lost cause, and they moved on". Really?

How about this one... "True, CMU and Pitt get a lot of federal research money, and federal grants and loans help pay the tuition of many of their students. But the schools wouldn't be what they are had it not been for the vision of locals, from Andrew Carnegie and Thomas Mellon to the thousands of Pittsburgh schoolkids who contributed pennies toward the construction of the main building on the Pitt campus." Let's see, he's talking about the the resilience of locals after the collapse of the steel industry in transforming into an educational center, but then cites two guys from the turn of the century and schoolkids donating pennies to build the Cathedral of Learning in the 20s and 30s for their "vision"!

In truth, Pittsburgh owes more to Pitt and CMU (and their status as top federally-funded research institutions) than anyone else for helping to reinvent the local economy. The talk of this local grit, hustle, and sacrifice is unrealistic and somewhat nauseating.

But surely Pittsburgh has more grit and hustle than other cities! Sure, it might be impossible to quantify... but it makes me feel good... and that attitude of "can-do" is contagious! Hey, you gotta give Fineman credit... no mentions of fries on sandwiches or yellow terry cloth!

Ok... the whole "too much pride and stubbornness" to accept federal bailouts... and references to the freakin' Whiskey Rebellion are beyond the pale... I'm sure if the federal government would've offered some ambitious programme to save Pittsburgh's steel industry... Pittsburgh would've jumped at the opportunity... and in fact, Pittsburgh (and other steel centers) lobbied for decades for protection against imports... with questionable results

Does anyone here beyond the Glenn Beck crazies really feel like the 1790s Whiskey Rebellion is an intrinsic part of their being? That it informs us as Pittsburghers... and has some grand role to play in our economic and cultural activities?

Ok... there's obviously a lot of cliches and sweeping generalizations in the article... but I like that Fineman recognizes the importance of higher education as both a workforce asset and an economic sector in its own right in Pittsburgh's post-steel evolution toward boutique manufacturing... and I especially like that Fineman offers a contrary argument to the meme over the past two years about how Detroit should follow the lessons of Pittsburgh. There obviously are similarities in that they are both legendary Rust Belt manufacturing centers dominated by a single industry... both imperiled at different points in history due to their complacency and inefficiency in the face of foreign competition. But there are major differences between Pittsburgh and Detroit that limit the usefulness of "Pittsburgh's teachings"... one being that Pittsburgh was a center of commodities manufacturing versus Detroit's advanced consumer product manufacturing... second, Detroit lacks many of the assets that helped Pittsburgh transform... such as the density of universities. Third... the federal takeover of GM, Chrysler... and eventually Ford most likely... will take Detroit on a different path for better or worse.

[pj3000]

But surely Pittsburgh has more grit and hustle than other cities! Sure, it might be impossible to quantify... but it makes me feel good... and that attitude of "can-do" is contagious! Hey, you gotta give Fineman credit... no mentions of fries on sandwiches or yellow terry cloth!


:haha: I do agree that Pittsburgh does have a resilence, grit, toughness, etc. to it that many place lack. I didn't mean to come across as too dismissive... and this type of hype is good overall... positive national buzz about the city is quite refreshing. Some of his stuff (like the Whiskey Rebellion reference, as you said) is just too reaching... and pretty hilarious to think that the region is still characterized by broad distrust of the federal govt! I wonder how many Pittsburghers could even tell you accurately what the Whiskey Rebellion was about, or where it took place?

Good points overall, Evergrey. I agree that some of Fineman's base arguments are solid. He just goes over the top with the irrelevant examples to support his points and the silly generalizations of Pittsburgh's populace.

In my opinion, it's just typical Howard Fineman. All sizzle, no steak.

[themaguffin]

It doesn't matter what policies were in place after the big collapse. The damage was done. Tariffs didn't bring anything back, they just slowed what was left to bleed, but there was still bleeding. No Fineman's column is not precise, but the point is that the region moved on beyond steel.

[hyperion1110]

Tariffs were actually something reasonable for the steel industry in the 70's and 80's. The single biggest reason for the collapse of big steel was international competition. Unfortunately, the competition was never fair. The overseas steel industry was, and still is, heavily subsidized by the European and Asian governments. Without such subsidies in the US, American companies simply could not compete. Indeed, the steel subsidies in other countries had a profound ripple effect through the world economy; you need steel to make pretty much every heavy industry possible. Without it, there are no cars, industrial equipment, buildings, bridges, and so on. It's foundational to an industrial economy! So, when the relative price of foreign steel went down relative to American steel, the relative price of American industrial products. As a result, only those heavy industries that rely on state of the art technology, like aerospace, are still made in the US; China, Japan, and South Korea simply don't have the technology to build an F-22. And the sad part is that the gov't subsidies of the steel industries (and others) in foreign countries that they can import the raw materials from other nations, produce the steel, then ship it around the world more cheaply than the US can produce it for our own consumption WHEN WE HAVE ALL OF THE AVAILABLE MATERIALS RIGHT HERE!!! Sadly, American manufacturers have been beating the drum about this one for decades, and no one in Washington seems to really care. But the US is evil because we help farmers. IF Obama wants to show he is the American President and not the world's highest paid cheerleader and apologist, he needs to grow a pair and deal with the imbalance in these subsidies!

As for Detroit, seriously, I think it's passed the point of no return. It doesn't have the kind of secondary industries Pittsburgh did when steel collapsed. The impact of Pitt/UPMC cannot be overstated. The closest analog in Detroit is Wayne State University...and it's nowhere near as prestigous as Pitt. And don't forget Pittsburgh had a HUGE number of other companies besides steel. With the exception of a bunch of the "Motown" groups in the 50's and 60's, there wasn't, and isn't, much to Detroit besides the auto industry. Pittsburgh had Westinghouse, Mellon, Rockwell International, Gulf Oil, Alcoa, PNC, and so on that kept, and, in some cases, have kept, Pittsburgh filled with high-paying, non-manufacturing jobs.

No, the model of recovery that worked for Pittsburgh won't work for Detroit. I think it has a shot in Cleveland, with Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland Clinic. But Detroit is going to have to go its own way.

[bradjl2009]

Well here's what wikipedia had to say about the matter of companies in Detroit. A lot of it is car based:

Some Fortune 500 companies headquartered in Detroit include General Motors, auto parts maker American Axle & Manufacturing, and DTE Energy. Detroit is home to Compuware and the national pizza chain Little Caesars. Downtown Detroit has major offices for Electronic Data Systems, Visteon, Delphi, Ford Motor Company, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Ernst & Young, Deloitte Touche, KPMG, Chrysler, GMAC, and OnStar. Other major industries include advertising, law, finance, chemicals, and computer software. One of the nation's largest law firms, Miller, Canfield, Paddock & Stone P.L.C., has offices in both Windsor and Detroit. Compuware's new headquarters, GM's move to the Renaissance Center, and the State of Michigan's redevelopment of Cadillac Place in the New Center district have provided new synergies for the redevelopment of downtown.

And here's what was said on Pittsburgh's article:

Pittsburgh has grown its industry base in recent years to include technology, retail, finance and medicine. The largest employer in the city is the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (48,000 employees) and the University of Pittsburgh (10,700 employees).


2009 Fortune 500 Corporations
105 U.S. Steel
161 PPG Industries
267 H. J. Heinz Company
278 PNC Financial Services
406 WESCO International
448 Allegheny Technologies
462 Mylan Laboratories
497 CONSOL Energy

2009 Fortune 1000 Corporations
541 Dick's Sporting Goods
690 American Eagle Outfitters
732 Kennametal
867 Atlas America


Pittsburgh is also home to Bayer USA and the operations center of Alcoa. Other major employers include Bank of New York Mellon, GlaxoSmithKline and Lanxess. Pittsburgh and the neighboring townships serve as the Northeast U.S. regional headquarters for Nova Chemicals, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, FedEx Ground, Ariba, Rand, and National City. Guru.com, 84 Lumber, Giant Eagle, Highmark, Rue 21, and GENCO Supply Chain Solutions are major non-public companies with headquarters in the region. Other major companies headquartered in Pittsburgh include General Nutrition Center (GNC) and CNX Gas (CXG), a subsidiary of Consol Energy.

[pj3000]

No Fineman's column is not precise, but the point is that the region moved on beyond steel.

More than "not precise"... it's pretty much overexaggerated crap that conveniently omits the facts. It's just his assertion and focus that Pittsburgh's reinvention has been this sort of grand local, collective, popular movement that is so laughable. And that it has just been the gritty, pull-ourselves-up-by-our-bootstraps toughness of Pittsburghers that has led the way without any federal gov't assistance. Among other quips in the article, he states "It is that the old world will inevitably disappear, and that creating a new one is up to you, not someone else" and "the point is that this is largely a local story, not a national one". It's just funny how he doesn't acknowledge the long-standing status Pitt and CMU have had as top, federally-funded, national research universities. Rather, he wants to paint the picture that these universities have only recently become renown as cutting-edge institutions due to a groundswell of gritty local effort! That is hilarious.

The truth is that two of the largest federally-funded research institutions in the nation (Pitt and CMU) have had more to do with this reinvention over the years than anything else. The "retooling of Pittsburgh into a 21st-century leader in education, computer science, medical research" is a direct result of federal (not local) monies bestowed to the two major research intstitutions here.

Perhaps the most glaring example of his omission of the facts is when he says, "At the center of the university complex is health care; and again, its creation was the result of local initiative. Affiliated with Pitt, UPMC has become one of the nation's largest, most advanced (and entrepreneurial) hospital and health-care providers.

HHS didn't tell them to do it."

He's right, HHS didn't... but NIH and NSF sure did influence them to do it with massive funding increases. Now, UPMC/Pitt is in the top 5 nationally in federal NIH funding (top 20 in NSF funding) and is charged with developing federally-funded biomedical research programs nationally.


Enough of this rant. The point IS that the region has moved beyond steel. If only Fineman weren't such a bullshitter, it would be an even better feel-good story.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09159/975799-53.stm

East Liberty becomes a vibrant community

Monday, June 08, 2009
By Diana Nelson Jones, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20090608_eastlibertymap_650.gif

Ten years ago, East Liberty had a ray of hope: A Home Depot was under construction. Then-Mayor Tom Murphy called the new store "a launching pad" for the East End's neighborhoods.

He picked the right metaphor; East Liberty is on a rocket's trajectory. But it's a long flight. "We're at year 10 of the story," said Mark Minnerly, director of real estate for the Mosites Co., the developer of Eastside. "We're halfway done."

East Liberty has gone from being a neighborhood in need of someone to invest private money to being a beehive. Sixteen developers are at work there currently. Two new hotels are coming, the first hotels in decades. The Eastside complex that includes Whole Foods is expanding. Hundreds of new homes are being built, and a green-infrastructure plan will bring geothermal heating and cooling to about 800 of them. Storm water sequestration plans are in the works, as is a European-style town square.

On Thursday, over fruit and pastries at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater -- itself 10 years old -- a clutch of community development pros celebrated the neighborhood's journey and marveled at what it took.

It took, first, a community plan built by broad consensus.

Rob Stephany, executive director of the Urban Redevelopment Authority, who then worked for East Liberty Development Inc., recalls ELDI inviting as many neighborhood representatives as possible to help plan, including residents of public housing.

"I remember," said Maelene Myers, executive director of ELDI, "that the community planning just seemed so overwhelming when it started. I thought, 'How were we going to get funding?'"

By the mid-1990s, East Liberty's future and demeanor was grim. Its street life was vice-ridden and forbidding, its core blighted.

"Everyone agreed the high-rises were poorly managed and that dysfunction was an imposing influence on the neighborhood," said Mr. Stephany.

ELDI committed to building affordable replacement housing when it proposed to destroy the high-rises. It has replaced roughly 400 of the 600 units with scattered townhouses and apartments, said Skip Schwab, ELDI's director of grants and development. It has also built and restored hundreds of market-rate homes.

The planning process was spirited and noisy, but "we had an inspired shared vision," said Mr. Stephany. "When Whole Foods approached us, we handed them our plan. They came to the next meeting and we began connecting people to their jobs."

By the time Whole Foods opened in 2002, ELDI, with representatives from a dozen public and private organizations, established the East End Growth Fund.

Ellen Kight, then with the state Department of Community and Economic Development, was on the fund committee, as was Mr. Stephany. Other members came from the McCune Foundation, the Local Initiatives Support Corp., the Green Building Alliance, the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and East Liberty Presbyterian Church, among others.

"The initial $4 million the fund raised leveraged $66 million in private investment between 2001 and 2006," said Ms. Kight, now president of the Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development. Her organization works with North Side, Uptown and Hilltop neighborhood groups to build the same model.

The growth fund's work in East Liberty will extend east toward Larimer, strengthened by green infrastructure.

Four years ago, ELDI hired a coordinator of sustainable policy and has dubbed him its green guru. Nathan Wildfire said East Liberty is "trying to be the model in Pittsburgh for dealing with storm water. And we want to challenge the basic principles of how we build a road, a house, a parking lot and a park" by using water catchment systems, permeable paving and energy-saving design and technology.

ELDI is asking the city to narrow some streets for driver and pedestrian safety, to add bike lanes and widen sidewalks to make room for tree rows and rain-collection gardens.

Mr. Wildfire said representatives from Target, the Hotel Indigo and East Liberty Presbyterian Church are talking to him about ways to divert run-off storm water.

East Liberty Presbyterian, he said, "has agreed to be a storm water mitigation project by taking all the water that runs off it under the plaza. We don't know how it will work yet, whether a cistern or bioswales," or a water feature to enhance the block the church occupies. The plan is to turn that block into a commons, to be named East Liberty Town Square.

The Rev. Randy Bush, senior pastor at East Liberty Presbyterian, said the church is excited about its partnership with ELDI in an effort to "make our building as green as possible."

"Nate suggested our church as a pilot project using rain gardens and specialized planting and specialized piping underground that would divert rain to gravel beds around the church. The preliminary engineering work has been done."

State grants and federal stimulus money is available to encourage projects such as these, he said.

"There's the green of trees and frogs" said Mr. Wildfire, "and there's the green in people's wallets. These plans need to save or make money for every partner at the table. So we need to do our homework to convince them that they do. Our nonprofit can support itself and save money by implementing these measures in our own developments."
Diana Nelson Jones can be reached at djones@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1626. Visit her blog, "City Walkabout," at www.post-gazette.com/localnews/.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09159/975799-53.stm#ixzz0HoEpsTGN&D

[themaguffin]

Ok this rage against Fineman is ridiculous, calm the fuck down people, it's a conservational piece, not an essay for a professional research journal.

Federal funding could be used as issue of Pittsburgh having an unfair advantage or as something to take away from local influence IF most universities did NOT receive federal funds and IF such funds weren't in many cases awarded due to the merit and abilities of the universities.

[hyperion1110]

More than "not precise"... it's pretty much overexaggerated crap that conveniently omits the facts. It's just his assertion and focus that Pittsburgh's reinvention has been this sort of grand local, collective, popular movement that is so laughable. And that it has just been the gritty, pull-ourselves-up-by-our-bootstraps toughness of Pittsburghers that has led the way without any federal gov't assistance. Among other quips in the article, he states "It is that the old world will inevitably disappear, and that creating a new one is up to you, not someone else" and "the point is that this is largely a local story, not a national one". It's just funny how he doesn't acknowledge the long-standing status Pitt and CMU have had as top, federally-funded, national research universities. Rather, he wants to paint the picture that these universities have only recently become renown as cutting-edge institutions due to a groundswell of gritty local effort! That is hilarious.

The truth is that two of the largest federally-funded research institutions in the nation (Pitt and CMU) have had more to do with this reinvention over the years than anything else. The "retooling of Pittsburgh into a 21st-century leader in education, computer science, medical research" is a direct result of federal (not local) monies bestowed to the two major research intstitutions here.

Perhaps the most glaring example of his omission of the facts is when he says, "At the center of the university complex is health care; and again, its creation was the result of local initiative. Affiliated with Pitt, UPMC has become one of the nation's largest, most advanced (and entrepreneurial) hospital and health-care providers.

HHS didn't tell them to do it."

He's right, HHS didn't... but NIH and NSF sure did influence them to do it with massive funding increases. Now, UPMC/Pitt is in the top 5 nationally in federal NIH funding (top 20 in NSF funding) and is charged with developing federally-funded biomedical research programs nationally.


Enough of this rant. The point IS that the region has moved beyond steel. If only Fineman weren't such a bullshitter, it would be an even better feel-good story.

I understand the point your trying to make, but I'm not sure I entirely agree with it. As an administrator in Pitt's School of Medicine, I'd like to make a few clarifications. First, while it is true that a lot of the research at Pitt is federally funded, the picture is not quite that simplistic. Firstly, grants are awarded on a competitive basis to the School of Medicine (much, much more so than UPMC). And while federal funding, especially from NIH, has grown, Pitt's piece of the pie has grown much faster than the total NIH budget; that is to the credit of Pitt. UPMC, for it's part, funnels hundreds of millions each year into Pitt's Health Sciences Schools, on top of the 600+ million a year in competitive grands awarded. Second, Pitt/UPMC had a HUGE uphill battle in gaining national and international recognition. Lest we forget, by the late 1960's, Pitt was bankrupt, and there was no UPMC then. Sure, the state jumped in to help. But, in the decades since, Pitt's reliance on the state appropriation has dwindled significantly.

The point I'd like to make is this: the Detroit auto companies did this to themselves, and the government gave them money to prop them up. In comparison, Pitt competed for every dollar of research funding, incubating a hospital that was so successful (academically and financially), it was spun off as its own corporation, with a name change from Presbytarian University Hospital to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. In the last 15 years, UPMC has become the largest non-gov't employer in the state (Walmart does NOT count), and has given back more to the University and to the city than anyone on the outside can possibly imagine. In short, I think the article was right on: Pitt/UPMC pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, and, by extension, so did Pittsburgh. Will Detroit?

[PGHFan]

Couldn't agree more. Competing for federal grants based on merit is much different than a "bailout" that is awarded for merely being and screwing up. Whether we agree or not with the finepoints of Fineman's (sort of alliterative, no?) paen to the city (and region), we all can agree that it has survived, and indeed, exceeded most expectations for it. Most events in life are overdetermined and its difficult to attribute causality, but my hat is off to Pittsburghers who have persevered to make the city beautiful, liveable, and remarkable. I hope that the G-20 attendees and hangers-on get a sense of that.

[themaguffin]

So I'm browsing the general city discussion section for the first time in maybe a week or two and something that I had not seen before and well hope that I won't see again.

It made me cringe.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=169773

Thankfully the thread was closed and I don't mean to bring this up to call out the thread starter.

I know some of us are overly sensitive to the image that Pittsburgh has, but the fact is that most people don't think that Pittsburgh is "some dying backwater mudhole"

I'm sure some people have outdated views of the region, but not nearly that negative and I would argue that most people simply have little opinion of the region who have not been here before (or since the 80s).

My point is, hosting the G-20 is a big deal and one to be proud of, and having a title in a general section putting ourselves down is deeply embarrising.

I get the idea behind such a title, I get the sarcasm but it and its hyperbole does more harm than good.

[hyperion1110]

So I'm browsing the general city discussion section for the first time in maybe a week or two and something that I had not seen before and well hope that I won't see again.

It made me cringe.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=169773

Thankfully the thread was closed and I don't mean to bring this up to call out the thread starter.

I know some of us are overly sensitive to the image that Pittsburgh has, but the fact is that most people don't think that Pittsburgh is "some dying backwater mudhole"

I'm sure some people have outdated views of the region, but not nearly that negative and I would argue that most people simply have little opinion of the region who have not been here before (or since the 80s).

My point is, hosting the G-20 is a big deal and one to be proud of, and having a title in a general section putting ourselves down is deeply embarrising.

I get the idea behind such a title, I get the sarcasm but it and its hyperbole does more harm than good.

Yeah, I get the sarcasm, but still...way uncool title :(

[pj3000]

I understand the point your trying to make, but I'm not sure I entirely agree with it. As an administrator in Pitt's School of Medicine, I'd like to make a few clarifications. First, while it is true that a lot of the research at Pitt is federally funded, the picture is not quite that simplistic. Firstly, grants are awarded on a competitive basis to the School of Medicine (much, much more so than UPMC). And while federal funding, especially from NIH, has grown, Pitt's piece of the pie has grown much faster than the total NIH budget; that is to the credit of Pitt. UPMC, for it's part, funnels hundreds of millions each year into Pitt's Health Sciences Schools, on top of the 600+ million a year in competitive grands awarded. Second, Pitt/UPMC had a HUGE uphill battle in gaining national and international recognition. Lest we forget, by the late 1960's, Pitt was bankrupt, and there was no UPMC then. Sure, the state jumped in to help. But, in the decades since, Pitt's reliance on the state appropriation has dwindled significantly.

The point I'd like to make is this: the Detroit auto companies did this to themselves, and the government gave them money to prop them up. In comparison, Pitt competed for every dollar of research funding, incubating a hospital that was so successful (academically and financially), it was spun off as its own corporation, with a name change from Presbytarian University Hospital to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. In the last 15 years, UPMC has become the largest non-gov't employer in the state (Walmart does NOT count), and has given back more to the University and to the city than anyone on the outside can possibly imagine. In short, I think the article was right on: Pitt/UPMC pulled themselves up by their bootstraps, and, by extension, so did Pittsburgh. Will Detroit?

Good points. I fully understand all of this. I've been with UPMC for about a year now and been in the biomedical field for 9 years. Of course the federal grants are competitive, based on the merits of the schools/institutions and UPMC has developed itself into a powerful presence. UPMC is just one aspect of the issue. My issue is with Fineman proposing Pittsburgh's relative economic health has been this sort of isloated, concentrated, local effort simply based on the toughness of its citizens. That's schlocky BS. And think I support those points pretty clearly in the previous posts. Maybe it's just my dislike for Fineman...

Couldn't agree more. Competing for federal grants based on merit is much different than a "bailout" that is awarded for merely being and screwing up.

Right, but no one has ever suggested that Pittsburgh's institutions have received a federal "bailout"... just that Pittsburgh's reinvention has been far from simply a local effort as Fineman suggests.

[pj3000]

So I'm browsing the general city discussion section for the first time in maybe a week or two and something that I had not seen before and well hope that I won't see again.

It made me cringe.

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=169773

Thankfully the thread was closed and I don't mean to bring this up to call out the thread starter.

I know some of us are overly sensitive to the image that Pittsburgh has, but the fact is that most people don't think that Pittsburgh is "some dying backwater mudhole"

I'm sure some people have outdated views of the region, but not nearly that negative and I would argue that most people simply have little opinion of the region who have not been here before (or since the 80s).

My point is, hosting the G-20 is a big deal and one to be proud of, and having a title in a general section putting ourselves down is deeply embarrising.

I get the idea behind such a title, I get the sarcasm but it and its hyperbole does more harm than good.

Yeah I saw that and figured it was going to cause some trouble. Not too cool.