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If Delmar Loop can do it, why can’t we?
by 15211Advocate ~ May 9th, 2008. Filed under: Business, Development, Infrastructure.
We were privileged enough to meet up with some civic-minded people from neighborhoods in the East End of town yesterday to talk about the revitalization of Pittsburgh and Rust Belt cities in general. It was helpful to hear about the strengths and weaknesses of other neighborhoods and how they compare to Mt. Washington.
Perhaps most helpful, was hearing from a man named Joe Edwards who, over 20 years, has taken a 6-block stretch of neighborhood in St. Louis and completely revitalized it. If you have any interest in community development, I urge you to watch this interview with him or check out the Delmar Loop site. (Below you will find the full video interview with Joe. It’s worth your 20 minutes.)
Some things to note about Delmar’s initiatives as they pertain to Mt. Washington:
- An ordinance was passed that required all buildings to be mixed-use in a very specific way. The first floor occupant could only be one of three things: a restaurant, a gallery or a retail shop. Housing and office space was restricted to upper floors.
- Particular businesses were sought out and vacant buildings were customized so that the neighborhood had the right mix of businesses.
- Sidewalks were widened to lend to a café-like atmosphere and streets were narrowed to slow traffic.
These are wonderful ideas that I think would work in our neighborhood, but they take capital and developers that are truly invested in the community. I believe we are lucky enough to have some of the latter and hope to see them prove it soon. As for the former, I think it can be secured in a variety of ways if we’re willing to work for it.
May 9th, 2008 at 12:41 pm
I wonder if we can vote in this Joe guy to be our CDC Board President? I’m sure he’s looking for a new challenging project.
May 14th, 2008 at 9:06 am
http://www.stlouiswalkoffame.org/foreward.html
Love this idea - I wonder if we could do this to fund the business district color-coded sidewalks???
May 14th, 2008 at 9:32 am
I wonder if this could tie in with what Lisa Johnson has been brought on-board to do at the CDC??
May 14th, 2008 at 9:33 am
GOOD POINT MG!!!
May 14th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
I love this idea … as there are tons of pittsburghers that have contriobuted to our national cultural heritage ==== and I’m not talking about Terry Bradshaw
May 18th, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Why can’t we make this happen as part of the Pittsburgh 250?
May 19th, 2008 at 8:15 am
I seriously hope someone brings it up at the Main Streets meeting…