| Quick Links |
|
Mayors Office 255-2626
Councilman Bill Peduto 255-2142
Zone 4 Police 422-6520
Building Inspection
255-2175
Public Works 255-2773
|
| SAC Board
Peggy Ott President
Carol McGinty
Vice President
Brenda Bestland
Treasurer
Board Members
Gloria Ashcraft
Peggy Atkinson
Betsy Bean
Dave Black
Denise DeSimone
Chris Kouklis
Carmelita Portugal
Dorothy Sandstrom
Community Networking
Peggy Ott
Fundraising
Carol McGinty
Historic Chair Donald Doherty
Public Safety Chair Dennis Downey
Rob Pfaffmann |
|
| |
Welcome
We hope you enjoy our second online newsletter. If you do not have email but a friend or neighbor showed this newsletter to you and you would like a copy, please call 412-361-3771 or email us at info@shadysideaction.org. |
|
Looking Back and Looking Forward
To get this year off to a good start, I thought that we might begin with a review of the purpose of the Shadyside Action Coalition (SAC). As an independent, non-profit, non-partisan organization, our mission and purpose is as follows:
· To stimulate cooperative study, planning, civic and social action on problems and concerns which affect the quality of life in Shadyside;
· To promote cooperation among individuals, organizations and institutions;
· To develop the human and physical resources of the Shadyside community;
· To promote and participate in all lawful public and private functions which will benefit the residents and improve living conditions in Shadyside;
· To promote cooperation and mediation in cases of disputes between community members.
In looking back over the past year, I think that we have done a fairly good job in upholding our mission and purpose. Our Historic Committee published a book on Shadyside, our Public Safety Committee has launched several new Neighborhood Block Watches with more to come, our Membership/Marketing Committee has designed and printed promotional material about our organization, our Technology Committee has designed a new and interactive web site, our Fundraising Committee had yet another successful House Tour, and our Zoning Committee has participated in numerous community mediation sessions with neighbors and developers, e.g., Botero Development, Cromisa/UPMC, Doc-Economou/Baum Liberty Crossing.
In looking forward, The SAC Board has recently engaged in a new initiative, that of, Giving Back to the Community. This new project is multi-faceted and entails making more direct, visible and tangible contributions to our community. Our decision-making process in delineating specific purchases or donations was guided by values and standards that we aspire to as an organization. Namely, we believe in a pedestrian friendly neighborhood that strives to uphold green/sustainable principles. We also support the richness of educational and cultural opportunities. So, with these values and beliefs in mind, the SAC Board voted to make the following donations to our neighborhood:
1. Donation to the Scholarship Fund at Winchester Thurston School
2. Donation to the Scholarship Fund for Summer Art Camps for Kids at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts
3. Purchase of Neighborhood Block Watch signs and training manuals
4. Purchase of a bench for the Ellsworth Ave side of the proposed Shadyside/Eastside Pedestrian Bridge
5. Purchase of three "Three Rivers" bike racks to be installed in each of the three commercial districts of Shadyside
6. Purchase of community banners for the various residential districts of Shadyside
7. Partnership with the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy for development of a community garden
We are all very excited about these new initiatives and we welcome your interest and support. Please join us at the next meeting. The cost of membership is minimal and it joins you with other neighbors who are working diligently to make this an even greater community.
|
Shadyside Gets Greener With Three Rivers Bike Racks
By Chris Kouklis
 You may have noticed hundreds of unique "Three Rivers" bike racks that have been installed all around Pittsburgh - but you have not seen any in Shadyside - yet. Soon, the Shadyside Action Coalition will be purchasing some of these unique "public art" bike racks to be installed in the three business districts of our neighborhood.
The non profit bicycle advocacy group Bike Pittsburgh (bike-pgh.org) is instrumental in the coordination of the bike rack project and will work with the Coalition to determine installation. Each rack is a stylized representation of the Three Rivers, and each holds two bicycles - one on each side - and is made of solid galvanized steel that is securely bolted into the pavement.
According to Bike Pittsburgh, these bike racks were made possible by grants from The Sprout Fund and Federal Transportation Enhancement funding. They were designed and fabricated right here in the Burgh. Wall-To-Wall Studios in the Strip District designed them, and they are manufactured by Red Star Ironworks in Millvale. Also, Bike Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership partnered on this idea.
|
Historic Shadyside Committee
2008 was a productive year for the Historic Shadyside Committee with the July 21st release of the "Pittsburgh's Shadyside" book that, through photographs, looks at the origin, growth, and changes in the Shadyside neighborhood from about 1860 to the early 1930s. We expanded the usefulness of the research behind the book by creating an online knowledge base that resides at www.historicshadyside.org. The Historic Shadyside knowledge base includes data about the historic structures, people, and organizations of Shadyside. We're adding geographical coordinates to the database so tjat you may see where the structures are located. We've also included a map showing the locations of where photographers stood to take the pictures in the "Pittsburgh's Shadyside" book.
All of these data are freely available for you to use. To download the data simply look for the scissors icon on the Web page. As you move your cursor over a Web page at www.historicshadyside.org you should see the orange scissors icon appear. Click on the icon and select the format you would like the data to be in. Then simply copy and paste. The ability to freely use and link with these data makes it easy for you to create your own data mash-ups. If the "mash-up" term isn't familiar to you then the easiest thing to do is to simply use the data at the Historic Shadyside site. However, if you do create a data mash-up including the Historic Shadyside data please show us what you've done!
|
| House Tour Recap
By Carol McGinty
When the founding members of SAC decided to start a tradition of holding an annual house tour as the organization's only fundraiser, they chose October for reasons long forgotten. The tradition has been maintained and once again the House Tour gods were with us this past fall. Sunday, Oct. 12, 2008 was a glorious day to showcase both our neighborhood and the eight beautiful homes that were open to the public for viewing. Many thanks go out to the hundreds of volunteers who served as tour guides in the homes, as trolley captains on Mollie's Trolley's and managed the ticket booth at Winchester Thurston School. A very special thank you must be extended to the following homeowners who so generously opened up their homes for all to enjoy: Christine Donohue's beautifully preserved turn of the century Tudor; Lisa and Joe Queri's updated yet historic Craftsman; Donna and John Peterman's 1870s doctor's office turned upscale New York style penthouse; Angel Mendozza's warm and cozy shabby chic townhouse; Peggy Atkinson's three story classic Victorian; Kathy Bowler's English cottage aka satellite site for Animal Friends; and CT Steele and Joe Bellin's comfortable and classy new construction.
Now comes my request for help. Planning has started for the 2009 Tour. As was mentioned, this house tour is the only fund raiser held each year for your neighborhood organization. Without the tour we would not have funds to help purchase block watch signs as part of our public safety initative, to purchase bike racks encouraging people to ride instead of drive, to help investigate the possibility and realization of a community garden, among many other projects. The date for this year's tour will not be set until the end of March (when the Steeler schedule is announced) but we are actively talking to homeowners about their interest in participating. If you would like to showcase your home, or have a friend or neighbor who you think would be interested, please call us at 412-361-3771 or email us at info@shadysideaction.org and leave a message. One of the House Tour Committee members will be in touch with you ASAP. In addition, if you would be willing to work a shift at the ticket booth, as a Trolley captain or as a docent in one of the homes, please call and leave that message as well. We are very fortunate to have such a robust, well informed, vocal community group - please consider becoming a part of the voice of Shadyside by becoming an active member of the group - you won't be sorry.
|
House Numbers
In an emergency situation, every second counts.
By Dennis Downey
One of the simplest and most important items from a police officers viewpoint is your house number, many of which are not visible at all. Your house number should be visible from the street day or night, in a color that contrasts with the color of your home. In an emergency where seconds can mean life or death, valuable time is wasted trying to locate house numbers that are too small to be read from the road, or are absent or obscured. Put these numbers on the front of the house or over the garage, using numbers instead of spelling the numbers out. Numbers on mailboxes are usually not enough, especially when the mailbox is on the opposite side of the street.
Illuminated house numbers are a newer option and can assist the police and play a role in your home security. Illuminated numbers that are clearly readable at night can help the police to identify your home that much quicker. Naturally, to be effective your house number not only needs to be lit-up, it also has to be large enough to be read from the roadside. The number should not be obscured from any angle by trees, shrubs or bushes and needs to be fixed at the right height.
Many illuminated house number signs are solar powered, no wires to run, no maintenance. Exposure to direct sunlight is not necessary as long as the unit is open to the sky it will remain charged up and some of these solar units are capable of holding up to three-months of power. Most signs use LEDs, which use much less power than numbers back-lit by naked bulbs, are neat and stylish and are clearly visible at up to 200 feet.
|
Keeping Shadyside Clean
By Boris Weinstein
Citizens Against Litter, started in Shadyside in 2005, has become a model of neighborhood initiative and volunteering. Citywide there are now "Clean Pittsburgh Stewards" in most of the 89 neighborhoods where 10,000 to 15,000
volunteers take to their streets in the spring and fall.
As a result, Shadyside is cleaner. Picking up litter no longer is a dirty word. Hundreds of our residents are doing it more often. But we still have "garbagevilles": an alley behind the Walnut St. shops, Centre Ave. from S. Millvale to Negley, upper Ellsworth Ave. around the busway, and overflowing waste containers at apartment buildings.
More volunteers are needed who will take responsibility for a zone near their home. Please contact boris.weinstein@verizon.net or call 412-688-9120 if you are interested.
|
Councilman's Corner
By Councilman Bill Peduto
The Baum-Liberty site, formerly occupied by the Don Allen dealership, is a critical link in the Baum-Centre corridor that connects five neighborhoods. The Voelker family, owners of the site, and DOC-Economou, the development company, proposed a phased, mixed-use development that would begin with a building that included a hotel, retail space, and condos. The following phases would include office space along with more retail space and condos.
After two years and dozens of meetings with multiple community groups, the community and the developers were unable to come to an agreement before the last hearing at the Zoning Board of Adjustment in December. The community had concerns about the height of the first building in the plan and how traffic would affect the immediate neighbors. The zoning code permits a building that is 3 stories and 45 feet high, with the developers proposing a building 7 stories and 97 feet. The traffic plan also called for all deliveries and parking garage traffic to use Powhattan Street, with an additional exit the developers eventually added to Liberty Avenue.
The site is made up of five parcels. It is a tremendous amount of land for an urban area and it is too valuable to remain unused. The community is not served by the parking lots and empty buildings currently on the site. As a community we must work together to create a project that will increase property values in the neighborhood, bring needed pedestrian safety and traffic improvements, and encourage customers to visit businesses on Baum, Centre, and Liberty.
We can build a consensus about what will bring the most benefit to the overall community and minimize the negative impact on immediate neighbors. I look forward to working with all of you when discussions begin again.
|
Welcome to Our Neighborhood...
Gloria J. Ashcraft
It has been a little over two years since the Shadyside Action Coalition began to welcome new home owners to the neighborhood with our version of "The Welcome Wagon". I am happy to say that we have mailed or delivered over 200 packets of information since the inception of this project. Hopefully we have provided answers to questions that arise when people move to a new area...such as, "When do they pick up our garbage?" "How do I register to vote?" or "How do I get a parking permit?"
Relocating today can be challenging, to say the least. We wanted our Neighborhood Welcome Packet to keep alive the tradition of helping those that are new to our neighborhood find contacts and services in their new community...and more importantly to call Shadyside home. |
Membership
By Peggy Atkinson
The Membership Committee worked very diligently with a graphic designer to successfully produce a colorful and informative brochure. "Great Neighbors make great Neighborhoods" is the title. The brochures are available at Eureka! Chocolates & Gifts on Copeland Street. We continue to invite and encourage interested neighbors to join our organization. The larger our membership, the more well informed our community will be about issues that affect all of us and the quality of life we share in Shadyside. Our Annual Membership Drive will be combined with our Annual Meeting on Thursday evening, May 7th, 2009. Please plan on attending and bring your friends and neighbors. We are committed to helping you find an answer or solution to any concern or question you may have.
|
Technology Update
By Denise DeSimone
The Technology Committee has been working on and revamping the SAC website. Plans are to create a paypal account in order to be able to renew membership, purchase our Historic Shadyside book or House Tour Tour tickets.
The plans are also to get this newsletter on our website as well. |
Zoning & Planning Updates
Rob Pfaffmann, AIA
Chair, Zoning Committee
Even as the national economy has put on the brakes, Pittsburgh's development action in the East End has at times seemed to buck the trends. Here is a summary for key projects that SAC has been following:
Bakery Square/ Bakery Row
The largest development project, Bakery Square is on track for a fall opening (more soon about a preview tour for the SAC annual meeting!). The area around the Bakery Square along Penn Avenue has been nicknamed "Bakery Row" and is expected to be an area of more change in the coming years. President Peg Ott, Zoning Chair Rob Pfaffmann and ELDI's Skip Schwab have been meeting with all the large landowners of the district to communicate the values embodied in the Bakery Row Vision Plan completed last year.
This summer a new turning lane along Penn Avenue will be created with a relocated walkway. The city's urban forester is carefully watching the health of the mature oaks that are a defining character of Mellon Park.
Reizenstein School:
SAC also met with School Operations Director Paul Gill. In the coming year, we should know the future of the Reizenstein School Site (will it stay a school or be put up for sale? the odds are it will be sold) SAC and the residents of the area around the school are working with the School District to make sure the temporary Schenley High School is a good neighbor in terms of traffic, security and safety.
Other Development Plans:
Chatham University is at work on a reuse plan for the former Eichelay Building and Ellis School is expected to complete a plan for its campus that now includes the former Reserve Center building.
Baum Liberty Crossing (Baum Chevrolet Development)
The end of 2008 brought to a close the DocEconomou/Voelker development proposal (Baum Liberty Crossing Project). Volunteers from the Baum Centre Initiative (including SAC) created a negotiating committee last summer to develop a memorandum of agreement (MOA) in exchange for a three-story variance for the first phase of an expected 700,000sf master development plan covering 5 blocks.
After over a year of meetings, the issues of local neighborhood traffic impact and an enforceable master development plan were unresolved, despite an intensive series of long, evening negotiations. At the December Zoning Board of Adjustment variance hearing, the developer withdrew its application. Despite the unresolved negotiations, SAC and its neighbors reiterated their support for new development that respects the reasonable neighborhood concerns about traffic impact and excessive development density.
While the Baum/Liberty Crossing project dominated the headlines, the Zoning Committee and Board reviewed many other important projects. Stay tuned!
| |
| Annual Meeting / Membership Drive
This year's Annual Meeting will be Thursday evening, May 7th. This meeting will be in the Bakery Square Building on Penn Avenue from 6:30 - 9:30 PM. The theme of this meeting will be "The Greening of Shadyside". There will be more information to follow as the date gets closer. Join us to see this magnificent building and learn all about how you can become more "green". |
|
Susan McGinty
Shadyside Action Coalition
|
|
|
