Category Archive: Preservation News
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Trail Envisioned as Enriching Youghiogheny Towns
By Stacey Federoff
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, September 15, 2010The Great Allegheny Passage trail generates $40 million a year in economic spending, and a preservation plan is intended to use historic preservation in six trail towns to harness that spending power.
A meeting Tuesday night in West Newton hosted by the Progress Fund’s Trail Towns Program organized preliminary goals and objectives for that plan.
Meetings were open to the six communities — West Newton, Connellsville, Ohiopyle, Confluence, Meyersdale and Rockwood — in March to gather ideas.
This second round of workshops, including one at noon today at the Ohiopyle-Stewart Community Center in Ohiopyle and another at 6:30 p.m. at the Turkeyfoot Valley Historical Society in Confluence, are meant to make sure the project was on the right track.
“The purpose of these meetings is to test our information,” said Matt Goebel, vice president of Clarion Associates of Denver, a preservation planning firm assisting with the project. “We’re continuing to seek input as much as we can throughout this whole process.”
About 15 people, many of whom were officials involved in the plan, were on hand in West Newton, but Goebel said the plan is trying to include more than just historical societies and preservation agencies.
“A big theme of this project is that preservation needs to move beyond the usual suspects,” he said, branching out to local governments or chambers of commerce.
One of the group’s goals is to identify common industries and cultural landscapes while continuing to preserve each of the towns’ authenticity.
“We want the trail towns hopefully to work together, but we also want you to own who you are and what makes you unique,” said Erin Hammerstedt of Preservation Pennsylvania.
She pointed out potential areas for preservation in each town, complimenting the classic downtowns in West Newton and Connellsville.
The organizations hope to have a draft plan prepared this fall and begin implementing it by year’s end.
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Last Chance to be Recognized for Supporting the Jury Assignment Room Restoration
PHLF News
October 1, 2010PHLF, in collaboration with the Allegheny County Historic Properties Committee and PHLF trustee Judge Rayond Novak, continues to lead the restoration of the Jury Assignment Room in the City-County Building––one of Pittsburgh’s most significant landmarks.
Restoration work completed to date, thanks to contributions from 90 donors, includes: replacing the window coverings, re-upholstering the chairs, repainting the metal bases of the chairs and installing new carpet. New historically-appropriate lighting fixtures are to be installed by the end of the year, and other work will be completed as funding permits.
A bronze plaque will be installed in the Jury Assignment Room to honor corporations, foundations, and law firms who have made donations in the following categories: $25,000, $10,000, $5,000, and $1,000, and individuals who have made donations of $500 or more. The plaque will be ordered on November 1, 2010.
To be recognized on the plaque, please make you tax-deductible contribution to PHLF by October 29, 2010.
Please send checks payable to PHLF and referencing the Assignment Room to:
Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation
100 W. Station Square Drive, Suite 450
Pittsburgh, PA 15219
Attn: Mary Lu DennyOr make a donation using a credit card. PHLF accepts American Express, Visa, Discovery, and Mastercard.
For questions on the Jury Assignment Room Restoration project, please contact Anne Nelson at (412) 471-5808 or anne@phlf.org.
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Allegheny West House Auction, Friday, September 30th.
PHLF News
September 17th, 2010House Auction, 705 Brighton Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15233Allegheny WestFriday, September 30, 2010 at 6:45 pm7,000 square foot Chateau-style three-story mansion with 2,000 square foot three-story carriage house (with apartment and garage) and courtyard.• Graciously restored 5 bedroom and 4-1/2 bath home• Reception Hall with fireplace, grand oak staircase, built-in window seats and tables, and original hardwood floor• Parlor with fireplace, crown molding, wainscoting, and original hardwood floor• Dining Room with fireplace, oak paneled walls, built-in cabinets, window seat, and original hardwood floor• Gourmet Kitchen with cherry cabinets, stainless steel appliances, granite tops, and porcelain tile floor• Elevator• Unique original spiral rear staircase• Library and Study with fireplace, built-in oak cabinets and seating• Master Suite with fireplaces, Jacuzzi, walk-in shower and balcony• Fully Insulated with Central air & Forced air heat (zoned)• New slate simulated roof, new windowsContact Karl Owens at Howard Hanna 412-897-0330 to schedule a walk-thru or an inspection.10% Deposit required on the day of sale payable to “Howard Hanna Real Estate Services” and final closing within 30 days. The home will be sold in “as-is” condition with no warranties. -
Plan OK’d to Raze UPMC Braddock
CCAC campus and medical clinic planned for siteThursday, September 16, 2010By Deborah M. Todd, Pittsburgh Post-GazetteDuring an emotional meeting, at which the death of Councilwoman Millie Devich was marked with a moment of silence and a bouquet of flowers behind her nameplate in council chambers, motions designed to address Braddock’s financial future added to the fervor.
Borough council voted, 4-0, to approve a memorandum of understanding among the borough, UPMC and the Allegheny County Redevelopment Authority regarding a plan to demolish UPMC Braddock and replace it with a multiuse facility.
Councilman Milan Devich was not in attendance.
The memo calls for UPMC to pay for the hospital’s demolition, estimated at about $5 million, to make way for the potential construction of a building that would feature a Community College of Allegheny County campus as well as a medical clinic.
Most of the land currently being used for parking would be used for new housing, but the Braddock Avenue lot where the former Sky Bank sat would be turned over to the borough once the Redevelopment Authority acquires the title.
The borough also would receive $90,000 per year for the next five years from UPMC as part of the deal.
UPMC would contribute $3 million toward the proposed $29 million development, but that sum is contingent upon the county receiving $3 million from the state to match the effort.
Solicitor M. Lawrence Shields said the state had already earmarked the funds for the borough.
Mr. Shields said the memo should be considered in conjunction with a recent agreement settling a federal civil rights claim filed against UPMC by council President Jesse Brown.
The U.S. Department of Heath and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights reached an agreement with UPMC to provide door-to-door transportation for Braddock residents to an outpatient site in Forest Hills and to UPMC McKeesport.
It also requires UPMC to provide six health screenings per year in the community; to have a patient liaison assist residents having difficulties accessing care; to assist health ministries in local churches; and to place strong emphasis on preventative care with its “Steps to a Healthy Community” program.
The agreement is in effect for three years.
“This is a package deal, so to speak, where both of these agreements interrelate,” said Mr. Shields. “Hopefully, through both of these agreements, we believe we’ve obtained the most we could possibly obtain under the circumstances.
“Believe me when I tell you we tried very, very hard to obtain as much as we possibly could for the citizens of Braddock.”
Mr. Brown said HHS representatives would discuss terms of the civil rights settlement at a meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Blazing Bingo Hall on Talbot Avenue.
Choking up during some points of his speech, Mr. Brown encouraged religious leaders, residents and public officials to come to hear exactly how much Braddock had gained thanks to efforts by local officials, and how much it stood to lose without those efforts.
“UPMC wouldn’t give us nothing,” Mr. Brown said. “They would have walked away and would have given Braddock nothing. But we do have some services that are a part of this agreement. We’re going to have an urgent care center, which we didn’t have before, that will be beneficial to the residents of this community.”
In the aftermath of the suspension of borough manager Ella Jones, council approved a number of measures designed to detect and prevent fraud.
Ms. Jones, 58, of Turtle Creek is accused of embezzling more than $170,000 from the borough since 2008.
From now on, all paper checks issued can come from only the borough’s general fund and payroll accounts. If funds from the remaining deposit-only accounts are needed in the event of an emergency, the money would have to be transferred to the general fund to write the check.
All emergencies must be explained to council in writing. Council also started a policy of reviewing a list of bills before approving payment each month.
Interim borough manager Paul Leger was authorized to sign off on borough checks, along with Mr. Brown and Vice President Matthew Thomas.
Mr. Leger also was appointed to the Southeast Allegheny Tax Collection Committee for Earned Income Tax Collection. Councilwoman Tina Doose was appointed to the finance committee.
Mr. Leger said the moves were an attempt to bring the borough in line with earlier suggestions made regarding the borough’s financial controls.
“This stuff is boring, but necessary to bring us in compliance with our audit recommendations,” he said.
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‘Improve the Vue’ Needs a Helping Hand in Bellevue
Thursday, September 16, 2010By Jonathan BarnesBellevue residents and merchants have raised the visibility of the borough’s business district in recent months, gaining county and borough backing of a plan to redevelop the main street area. The plan has been led by the Bellevue Initiative for Growth development group, or B.I.G.
The Initiative helped the borough to get $150,000 last year through Allegheny Together to pay consultants to aid a redevelopment plan that will focus on revitalizing the borough’s Lincoln Avenue business district.
That plan will take months to devise and implement, but in the meantime, members of the Helping Hands committee of the Initiative want to make physical improvements throughout the borough, and they’re looking for hands to help.
The committee will be host to Improve The Vue, a communitywide volunteer effort Oct. 9 that will tackle several projects intended to spruce up the borough. The daylong event is being sponsored by West Penn Allegheny Health System.
Chuck Gohn, head pastor of Bellevue Christian Church and a member of the Helping Hands committee, is leading the program. He hopes to involve 500 volunteers in the effort.
Rev. Gohn also is looking for more business sponsors. The day will begin at 7 a.m. in Bayne Park and will involve work on projects at a local food bank, on a trail in Bellevue Memorial Park, in painting curbs and the exteriors of businesses whose owners want a fresh coat of paint on Lincoln Avenue, in fixing the gazebo at Bayne Park and in other tasks.
It is hoped Improve The Vue will become a recurring event, Rev. Gohn said. It also is meant to bring together a pool of volunteers from which to recruit for other volunteer-based community projects, the pastor said.
In coordination with the event, Pittsburgh Trails volunteers will work with Bellevue volunteers on the trail in Bellevue Memorial Park.
“They are breaking ground that day. We will focus a lot of our volunteers there,” Rev. Gohn said.
Volunteers are encouraged to register through the Improve The Vue website, but late arrivals can register the day of the event, starting at 7 a.m. at the registration table in Bayne Park. Part of the thinking behind the day is to show the power of volunteerism, Rev. Gohn said. “We’re trying to increase the livability of Bellevue,” he said.
Longtime Bellevue resident Paul Cusick, current borough treasurer, isn’t a member of the Initiative but regularly attends its meetings. He’s optimistic about Improve The Vue, which is being publicized through fliers, a banner in the business district, and word of mouth.
Those interested in joining can get more information or register at www.improvethevue.org.
“Improve The Vue is putting a lot of good elements of Bellevue out front. Everyone benefits from this,” Mr. Cusick said.
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Between a Ramp and a Hard Place
Friday, September 10, 2010 11:33 AMWritten by Diana Nelson Jones
To some people, the historic standards that prohibit vinyl windows and metal awnings are dictatorial. To others, those standards safeguard authenticity and dumbing down is not an option.
When it’s your own budget, a little gray can seep into the argument.
Even someone who appreciates the high standards that are supposed to be followed in an historic district can sympathize with a building owner who needs to replace five 10-foot-tall windows in a group of Victorian row houses. Ouch.
Calvary United Methodist Church
But when you buy in an historic district you’re investing in more than a building.
The people of Calvary United Methodist Church in Allegheny West have been diligent in following the historic course. Their partner, the Allegheny Historic Preservation Society, helped them raise the more than $2 million needed for interior and exterior repairs in the late 1990s. That included removing some of the world’s largest Tiffany windows for cleaning and releading.
Visit their web site at www.calvarypgh.com.
They have raised about $180,000 for the next “must-do” project — making their fellowship hall in the basement accessible to the increasing numbers of people who use the church. They are anticipating six bids for a job that calls for an elevator, a new door carved into the side off the parking lot and a 30-foot ramp with an historically acceptable railing and ramp foundation. Which means limestone.
Based on the first bids to come in, Rev. Larry Homitsky tells me, the church is short somewhere between $75,000 and $120,000. The Historic Review Commission offered some flexibility on the railing but insisted on the limestone. Rev. Homitsky and the church’s architect will reappear before the HRC next month, maybe with hat in hand.
He said the church has had “tremendous support” over the years in grants and other gifts. Many people see Calvary as more than a church, in part because it is on the National Register of Historic Places and also because thousands of people a week, mostly from the community but not necessarily in the congregation, use it to practice yoga, square dance, learn art and confirm the day-at-a-time struggle against addiction. The Allegheny West Civic Council meets there the second Tuesday of every month. A lot of brides who want a beautiful church for their wedding pick Calvary instead of the one they go to. More than 1,000 Christmas house tourists converge on the church as a point of interest.
The time, effort and money spent in being an historic property is important, said Rev. Homitsky. That, set alongside the “ministry value” of functioning for people is the challenge.
If you want to help Calvary make their basement accessible and do it at historic standards, they will take donations. Specify on your check that it is meant for the ramp and elevator project and mail it to the church at 971 Beech Ave., Pittsburgh 15233.
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Between a Ramp and a Hard Place
Friday, September 10, 2010 11:33 AMWritten by Diana Nelson Jones
To some people, the historic standards that prohibit vinyl windows and metal awnings are dictatorial. To others, those standards safeguard authenticity and dumbing down is not an option.
When it’s your own budget, a little gray can seep into the argument.
Even someone who appreciates the high standards that are supposed to be followed in an historic district can sympathize with a building owner who needs to replace five 10-foot-tall windows in a group of Victorian row houses. Ouch.
Calvary United Methodist Church
But when you buy in an historic district you’re investing in more than a building.
The people of Calvary United Methodist Church in Allegheny West have been diligent in following the historic course. Their partner, the Allegheny Historic Preservation Society, helped them raise the more than $2 million needed for interior and exterior repairs in the late 1990s. That included removing some of the world’s largest Tiffany windows for cleaning and releading.
Visit their web site at www.calvarypgh.com.
They have raised about $180,000 for the next “must-do” project — making their fellowship hall in the basement accessible to the increasing numbers of people who use the church. They are anticipating six bids for a job that calls for an elevator, a new door carved into the side off the parking lot and a 30-foot ramp with an historically acceptable railing and ramp foundation. Which means limestone.
Based on the first bids to come in, Rev. Larry Homitsky tells me, the church is short somewhere between $75,000 and $120,000. The Historic Review Commission offered some flexibility on the railing but insisted on the limestone. Rev. Homitsky and the church’s architect will reappear before the HRC next month, maybe with hat in hand.
He said the church has had “tremendous support” over the years in grants and other gifts. Many people see Calvary as more than a church, in part because it is on the National Register of Historic Places and also because thousands of people a week, mostly from the community but not necessarily in the congregation, use it to practice yoga, square dance, learn art and confirm the day-at-a-time struggle against addiction. The Allegheny West Civic Council meets there the second Tuesday of every month. A lot of brides who want a beautiful church for their wedding pick Calvary instead of the one they go to. More than 1,000 Christmas house tourists converge on the church as a point of interest.
The time, effort and money spent in being an historic property is important, said Rev. Homitsky. That, set alongside the “ministry value” of functioning for people is the challenge.
If you want to help Calvary make their basement accessible and do it at historic standards, they will take donations. Specify on your check that it is meant for the ramp and elevator project and mail it to the church at 971 Beech Ave., Pittsburgh 15233.
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Hiding in Plain Sight: A House as Old as Larryville
The house on the southwest corner of 38th St. and Charlotte Street in Lawrenceville is up for sale. It was bult a decade after Lawrenceville became a town in 1814.
We know this because house historian Carol Peterson, a denizen of Larryville, researched the records. The house you see now — ruddy-colored clapboards, patched in part with old tin advertisements — encloses the original log home that was built in the 1820s. The “new” part is from the 1870s. That’s Michael Connors in front of it. Michael has been part of the Lawrenceville Historical Sociaty’s efforts over the years to get it, and to have it renovated.
Read Michael’s “Next Page” in the Post-Gazette on Sept. 12 for a story about one of the buildings past inhibitants, a teenager who packed munitions and died in the deadly arsenal explosion of 1882. And, by the way, thanks to Matt Smith, who was walking along with a smart phone and agreed to take the photo you see. (So, OK, the sun was in the wrong place.)
For some time, heavy hitters including the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation, Sen. Jim Ferlo and other public officials, were at least cheering on the historical society’s effort, Michael tells me.
Arthur Ziegler, president of Landmarks, said the interest and needed money could not be reconciled. “We don’t have many log houses left and we would like to save them,” he said, “but this had been so changed over the years, to put it back the way it was would have meant cutting new logs.”
The historical society “knew it was way beyond our ability” to afford and renovate, Michael said.
It is owned by a limited partnership. Historical Society members toured it a few years ago when the owners wanted $39,000. We’re trying to find out the asking price from the Realtor.
This building was part of the original town of Lawrenceville that composer Stephen Foster’s father subdivided. In 1841, Lawrenceville town was carved out of Pitt Township roughly from 38th to 41st Streets and from Woolslayer to the Allegheny River, Carol said. Lawrenceville was incorporated as a borough in 1834.
“Just think that someone in this house could have walked up the street to see the Marquis de Lafayette when he visited Pittsburgh” in 1825, Michael said. In case history isn’t your subject, Lafayette was a hero of both the French and American revolutions and knew George Washington.
He was our first president.
Michael said his dream is that UPMC, whose Children’s Hospital presence is “the biggest and newest” in the neighborhood, offers the needed largesse “for the smallest and oldest” and help Lawrenceville showcase one of its original structures, which could be an attraction for visitors to the hospital.
Walkabout is putting it out there, like a butterfly wish that might merge with the fluttering fancy of the right person…or institution.