NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER
DECEMBER 14-20, 2016
METRO
Bridgeway Capital gets $1M for development
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grant funds back to Homewood,” Costa said. “Homewood is a growing, thriving community that has so much potential. This project opens the door to new opportunities for businesses and industrial partners to expand their operations. New business ventures mean new job opportunities for residents. What more could we ask for?” The building, which sat idle for years, houses 150,000 square feet of space spread over five floors. Each of these 30,000square-foot floors either has been, or will be rewired, framed, dry walled and painted, and subdivided to fit the lessees’ needs. And, as the New Pittsburgh Courier previously reported, all the work has been supervised by Rashad Byrdsong’s Homewood-based Ma’at Construction firm, which Bridgeway hired as the general contractor for the project in 2014.
Not only has this allowed Byrdsong to hire additional African American tradesmen and crews like electrical contractor Louis McCullough, it affords students of the construction training program he runs though the Community Empowerment Association the chance to get hands-on experience. Bridgeway gets it, he said. “This is true empowerment; when you’re able to build your own organizations and institutions and businesses,” said Byrdsong. “Now, these kids out here will see people who look like them working and contributing, and rebuilding and beautifying their community. Instead of takers, they’ll see makers—they’ll be makers.” Adam Kenney, director of Bridgeway’s Craft Business Accelerator, said the building is currently about two-thirds filled with tenants. The grant will help refit the remaining third, which includes half of the first floor and the entire fifth floor.
Board elects leadership at its organization meeting PITTSBURGH—The Pittsburgh School Board has elected officers for the 2017 fiscal year at this it’s board organization meeting. Regina B. Holley, Phd, was elected president. Silvia Wilson was elected as first-vice president and Moira Kaleida was elected second-vice president. The board also elected Superintendent Anthony Hamlet as secretary of the board, along with three assistant secretaries and a school treasurer. “I am thankful to my board colleagues for this vote of confidence to continue our efforts to improve academic outcomes for all students,” said Holley. “I look forward to advancing the work we have begun with Dr. Hamlet to transform the Pittsburgh Public Schools and create a student-centered culture.” Holley was first elected to represent District 2 in 2011 and elected board president last year. A resident of Highland Park, Holley is a long-time educator and school leader, who retired in 2010 after 35 years with the Pittsburgh Public Schools. In addition to her role as president, Holley serves as
REGINA HOLLEY the Council of Urban Boards of Education representative and Title I Liaison. She has also chaired the board’s Education, Charter and District Sustainability Committees. Wilson was first elected to the board to represent District 1 in 2013. Prior to serving as the assistant to the president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers (PFT), Wilson served as secretary of the PFT executive board since 1979. Wilson previously taught elementary school throughout the Pittsburgh Public Schools for 26 years. For more than 20 years, she was an active
volunteer with community youth baseball and football organizations. Additionally, Wilson serves on the ALCOSAN board as the joint city-county appointee. Previously serving as chair of the Personnel Committee, chair of the Communication & Marketing/Public Information committee, Wilson currently serves as chair of the Education Committee, District 8 (PIAA) Representative and board museum liaison. Kaleida was first elected to represent District 6 in 2015. Kaleida currently serves as chair of the board’s Government Relations committee. A lifelong resident of the City of Pittsburgh, Kaleida is a graduate of the Pittsburgh Public Schools. After graduating from Brashear High School, she attended Penn State University where she received a degree in Social Studies and Citizenship Education. She currently serves on the boards of BREW on Broadway and ICAN of Southwestern PA. She is also a mentor for Nurture PA, and resides in Beechview with her husband and their two children.
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sion and provide a world-class, diverse workforce,” said Walters. With 4,000 employees, Walters’ first order of business is to look, listen, and assess the state of hiring and retaining qualified staff for Pittsburgh Public Schools. He also plans to take this time getting to know the human resources team. “Our recruitment efforts to ensure high-quality staff will go coast to coast. We not only want teachers to come to Pittsburgh Public Schools, but we want them to stay.” Since joining the team, Walters has already started a meticulous effort to attract minority professionals, specifically teachers. Now, within the district’s career section of the website is a tab titled “Teachers of Color,” a page to better support minority applicants. Walters’ team will also reach out to historically Black colleges and universities for recruitment purposes. Another area of recruitment for the human resources department are substitute teachers. The department is currently working on ways to attract retirees, veterans, and those interested in being a fulltime teacher to apply. Walters wants to adopt an automated system where principals can identify
teacher call offs, track those call offs and identify patterns of teacher absenteeism. “Real time data tells us that student academic achievement is directly connected to having a consistent teacher in the classroom,” said Walters. “We want every staff member to possess the necessary tools and materials to do their jobs efficiently and effectively.” Walters’ background is “a combination of corporate, K-12 and higher education experience.” He was an adjunct professor in North Carolina and Maryland, teaching legal compliance, human resources, diversity and leadership, among other subjects. Walters led operations and human resources training and development for nonand for-profit entities in New York City. In addition to several educational leadership-based professional certifications, Walters received his Doctorate of Business Administration from Argosy University and is currently pursuing a second doctorate in Educational Leadership from Morehead State University. The other four appointments include Angela Allie, executive director of the Office of Equity; Chief Academic Officer Seema Ramji; Chief of School Performance David May-Stein; and Deputy Superintendent Anthony Anderson.
too much money parking cars there every day.” Instead of the authority paying for environmental analyses, it should use it as leverage to seize the development rights from the Penguins. Failing that, he suggested, it should use eminent domain. “I don’t see (development) happening,” he said. “I don’t see any way for it to happen with the Penguins involved.” Though the board voted 4-1 to approve a $250,000 contract with KU Resources Inc. to conduct an environmental and geochemical review of the upper portion of the site— which, because it is designated for residential development, must meet stricter requirements— members Danny Lavelle, Pittsburgh councilman, and Cheryl Hall-Russell, Hill House president and CEO, also expressed frustration with the pace of development. Hall-Russell said this was one of the first development projects she learned of when she moved here more than five years ago, and she’s still waiting. Board chair Kevin Acklin said the vote wasn’t a referendum on the Penguins, but for an action that would be needed regardless of ownership. He said the Penguins are making progress. And though the team has paid
DANIEL LAVELLE
CHERYL HALL-RUSSELL
$225,000 for extensions to the development timeline for the residential portion of the development, some of the delay is due to factors it doesn’t control, such as the lost of anchor tenant U.S. Steel, a complaint about the development’s percentage of low-income units filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the more detailed environmental analysis. “I’ve seen the commitment by this team,” he said. “We’re not there yet. It’s a large site and there are a lot of complexities to it. But we have been working diligently with the community and the Penguins to advance development.” Lavelle said the deal had to be made. “If we don’t front the money, there’s no guarantee
the site ever gets done,” he said. The remaining votes at the Dec. 8 meeting were far less contentious. The board authorized several actions needed to apply for tax credits and to float a bond to finance the construction of 65 mixed-income housing units for the $25 million first phase of the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh’s Allegheny Dwellings community. The board also approved receipt of a $1 million state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant awarded to Bridgeway Capital for use in its continued build out of custom leased space for artist, tradesmen and light manufacturing in the former Westinghouse building at 7800 Susquehanna St., in Homewood.