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We have to deal with a lot of things in Mt. Washington. Fortunately, the threat of massive flooding isn’t one of them. But, just in case, and because many of us have family and friends living at lower elevations, here are some helpful links to prepare for the convergence of the remnants of 47 inches [...]

The concept isn’t new. Youngstown proposed it in 2005 and deemed it “smart decline”. The idea is that instead of repairing infrastructure and marketing its urban areas for growth, urban planners and city officials decide to raze old homes and buildings and convert the land back to farms or wetlands. Detroit made headlines recently for [...]

A little over a year ago, a request for an occupancy permit for a strip club on Carson Street was rejected unanimously by the City Planning Commission. That would have been the end of the story save for the fact that Pittsburgh City Council failed to hold a public hearing on the matter, which led Judge James of the [...]

Mike Madison over at Pittsblog wrote an interesting post exploring both sides of the Pittsburgh parking chair debate.
Even as the snow melts, I continue to see a lot of chairs,  TV trays, garbage cans, benches, etc. reserving spaces for hours and even days around Mt. Washington. My fear is that people will start to think “Hey, if no one was [...]

The NAACP is calling for the firing of the three police officers that tasered and beat Jordan Miles in January. In interviews with the Post-Gazette and on KDKA, a spokesperson for the Fraternal Order of Police continues to cite the police officers’ stellar record at getting guns off of the streets as reasons for not [...]

Pittsburgh’s Got Sole describe themselves as “a group of Pittsburghers who have watched the horror, devastation, and human indignities suffered by the people of Haiti” and they’re asking for your help. They’ve joined forces with Soles4Souls.org to launch the biggest shoe drive in Pittsburgh history.
You can donate your gently used shoes (gym shoes, sandals and work [...]

Are both not working this morning. We are working on upgrading the site and have ran into a bump in the road. Please be patient! Thanks!

In the spirit of this glittery season, let me get all sappy on you and say that I’m grateful (once again) to be a current resident and native of Pittsburgh, Pa. And you should be too!
An urban planner (who was a resident of Pittsburgh himself, but moved away with his family at a young age) expressed his [...]

There is a good article in the PG today written by Diana Nelson Jones about the responsiblity of state and local governments when it comes to abandoned properties. According to a report issued by Sustainable Pittsburgh, blighted and abandoned properties have reached epidemic proportions in Pittsburgh. It’s difficult to even get a real sense of the magnitude of the [...]

Several people e-mailed wanting to know how to go about “buying local” so I rounded up some resources. If anyone else has any suggestions, feel free to post in the comments.
To shop online for one-of-a-kind gifts hand made by Pittsburgh artisans:

Go to etsy.com.
Click ‘Buy’ on the top horizontal menu.
Click ‘Shop Local’ in the vertical [...]