LARIMER AVENUEGreenway
Nenha Young - UDream 2013
Transforming a public right-of-way arterial street into a more livable residential street.
In the beginning...
Larimer
is a neighborhood in the East End of the City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Larimer was originally settled by Germans in the later half of the 19th century. By the early 1900s Italians became the dominant ethnic group. In Larimer somewhat nicer detached brick homes where built with small yards. Before long, Larimer residents had built and were running concrete foundries and commercial bakeries along Lincoln Avenue towards Two-Mile Run (some of which still exist today), and a successful commercial district at the intersection of Larimer Avenue and Meadow Street. The 1960s were a turning point for Larimer. Residents began to move to the suburbs in the early part of the decade, and the urban renewal of East Liberty and the construction of a 320-unit high rise housing project on Larimer Avenue near the entrance to Larimer from East Liberty. Today, aside from a few remaining businesses along Lincoln Avenue, no vestige of the neighborhood’s Italian community remains. The once-proud brick houses are now either abandoned or neglected by absentee landlords, and the residents, largely African-American, are among the poorest in Pittsburgh. In 2008 over 125 residents, business owners, community organizations and partners in the Larimer neighborhood came together to create a community plan. Through funding from the Urban Redevelopment Authority this plan was generated. After 30 years of decline and the failure of past planning initiatives the neighborhood was able to organize to outline projects that would change the
Aerial image of the City of Pittsburgh. Source- maps.google.com
HIGHLAND PARK
Community Opportunities identified in the
LINCOLN - LEMINGTON - BELMAR
Larimer Community Plan (2008): • Proximity to East End development • Flat, developable land • Proximity to major transportation corridors • Committed political partners (city, county, state) • Vacancy is also an opportunity to rethink land use in the neighborhood
LARIMER EAST LIBERTY
HOMEWOOD
Community Challenges identified in the
Larimer Community Plan (2008): • High vacancy (regional problem) • Older housing stock (regional problem) • Physical isolation and poor visibility (no one know Larimer is there) • Shrinking population (regional problem) • Poor image: o History of crime o Lack of “curb appeal” – many buildings, road, and side walks in poor repair
SHADYSIDE
Aerial image of the neighborhoods in the East End of the City of Pittsburgh. Source- maps.google.com
Images of existing street conditions
LARIMER AVENUE BRIDGE
FAIRFIELD
TARGET
LIBERTY GARDEN
Aerial image of Larimer. Source- maps.google.com