Volume 27 No. 11 November 2011
School board considers realignment adjustments By Kelsey Shea
Photo by Kelsey Shea Last month the Northside celebrated its 20th annual Pumpkinfest! For more photos, check out www.thenorthsidechronicle.com.
Three buyers bid on Ridge Avenue school building By Kelsey Shea After eight years of vacancy and two months on the market, the former Pittsburgh Public School building on Ridge Avenue may finally have a new occupant. Pittsburgh Public Schools currently has three bidders for the 44,000 square foot school at 635 Ridge Avenue – Light of Life Ministries, Propel Schools and the Community College of Allegheny County. The bids were made public on Monday, Oct. 17, after Schenley, Reizenstein and the Ridge Avenue schools were put on the market in August. Bids for 12 other schools, including Brightwood’s Horace
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Mann School building on Shadeland Avenue, are due by Oct. 25. The money made from the sale of these schools would offset the projected $38 million deficit the Pittsburgh Public School faces for 2012. Light of Life, an outreach program for the poor, homeless and addicted, made the highest bid at $1.1 million and hope to relocate to Ridge Avenue from their current facility on North Avenue, where they provide food, shelter and resources. “The facility that we’re in is grossly inadequate in both size and condition,” said Light of Life Executive Director Craig Schweiger, who noted that the line
See Ridge School, page 7
-News briefs 4 STORIES, COLUMNS, -Plans for new bridge 5 FEATURES & MORE -Washburn Square Park 9
For the past month, the Northside has been in a tug-ofwar battle sparked by a possible adjustment to Pittsburgh Public School’s realignment plan regarding Perry and Oliver high schools. The original realignment plan, announced August 4, called for California-Kirkbride’s Oliver High School building to close, and roughly 300 displaced Oliver students to filter into the Northside magnet school, Perry Traditional Academy in Observatory Hill. The plan was created in the hopes of filling 10,191 unused seats in the district and reducing a projected $41.2 million budget district-wide deficient. Northview Elementary is also listed as one of the seven schools proposed to close. On October 5, Pittsburgh Public Schools announced that it was instead considering continuing to use Oliver’s building as a high school and sending Perry’s students to the Oliver building. Whichever school is not used as the Northside High School will house McNaugher Education Center for troubled children. The school board will vote on the realignment plan as early as November 22 for the 2012-2013 school year. If the vote is delayed past January, any decision will not go into effect until the 2013-2014 school year. “I remain open to making adjustments to the plan and will carefully weigh the Board’s feedback … from what I am hearing from the community,” said Dr. Linda Lane, Pittsburgh Public Schools
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superintendent, who said in August “You don’t lightly go about combining two high schools.” Pittsburgh Public Schools listed several reasons for considering keeping Oliver open that included Oliver’s child care program that serves 12 students, its larger sports facilities, parking lot and auditorium and its 1,796 student capacity. If enrollment were to remain similar, the combined high school would need to house less than 1,000 students. Since the announcement, supporters of Perry High School have argued that the district recently invested $7 million into the school, the building has enough space for the combined high school, the students are meeting AYP standards and parents and students choose to come to Perry because it is a magnet school with “a tradition of excellence.” Monday, Oct. 24 at a Pittsburgh Public Schools public hearing, one wing of the meeting room was filled with Perry High School’s Commodore blue, while the other was filled with people in black T-shirts that read “Oliver High School, better than ever.” Eighty-eight speakers signed up for PPS’s public hearing on Monday at PPS’s administrative offices, where they could speak in front of the board without argument or rebuttal. The majority of the speakers addressed the proposed Perry Oliver merger, and argued in favor of one school or the other. Supporters of Oliver said that their building was larger, has a
See School Closings, page 12
-The Chronicle’s Daily Blog -Weekly real estate transfers WWW.THENORTHSIDE CHRONICLE.COM -Event flyers and photos
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THE NORTHSIDE CHRONICLE 922 Middle St. • Pittsburgh, PA 15212
November 2011
Community Meetings To have your community meeting included, email editor@thenorthsidechronicle.com Allegheny West Civic Council 2nd Tuesday, monthly, 7:30 p.m. Calvary United Methodist Church 412.323.8884
Manchester Citizens Corporation Quarterly meetings, call for times MCC Center, 1319 Allegheny Ave. 412.323.1743
Brighton Heights Citizens Federation 2nd Thursday, bi-monthly, 7 p.m. Morrow Elementary School 412.734.0233
Manchester Public Safety Meeting Quarterly meetings, call for times Northside Leadership Conference 412.323.1743
Managing Editor Kelsey Shea E-mail: editor@thenorthsidechronicle.com
Brightwood Civic Group 3rd Tuesday, bi-monthly, 7 p.m. Pressley Ridge, 2611 Stayton St. 412.732.8152
Northside Rotary Club Every Friday, noon Cardello Building, 2nd Floor
Advertising Manager Kaitlin Balmert E-mail: advertising@thenorthsidechronicle.com
Brightwood Community Emergency Response Shelter 3rd Thursday, monthly, 6 p.m. 3219 Central Ave.
www.thenorthsidechronicle.com Phone 412-321-3919 • Fax 412-321-1447 Mail Subscriptions are available at a rate of $30 per year.
California-Kirkbride Blockwatch 3rd Thursday, monthly, 7 p.m. 1601 Brighton Rd., 3rd floor California-Kirkbride Neighbors 2nd Thursday, monthly, 7 p.m. 1601 Brighton Rd., 3rd floor 412.758.3898 Central Northside Neighborhood Council
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DISCLAIMER: The viewpoints and opinions of the writers and contributors that appear in The Northside Chronicle do not necessarily reflect the viewpoints, opinions, beliefs or positions of The Northside Chronicle’s publishers, editors, staff and/or affiliates. The Northside Chronicle is not affiliated with any formal political, social, religious, educational or philosophical organization or party of any kind. The materials comprising The Northside Chronicle are provided by various organizations, community groups, advertisers, entities, writers and contributors and are provided as a service to the readers of The Northside Chronicle on an “as-is” basis for informational purposes only. The Northside Chronicle assumes no responsibility for any copyright infringement, errors or omissions in these materials and expressly disclaims any representations or warranties, express or implied, including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose regarding the correctness, accuracy, completeness, timeliness and reliability of the information provided. The Northside Chronicle is not responsible for damages of any kind arising out of use, reference to, or reliance upon such information. Reference herein to any commercial product, process or service does not constitute or imply endorsement or favoring by The Northside Chronicle. © The Northside Chronicle 2011
2nd Monday, monthly, 7 p.m. Allegheny Traditional Academy 412.231.7742
Charles Street Area Council 1st Monday, monthly, call for times Pittsburgh Project, 2801 N. Charles St. 412.321.5567 Community Alliance of Spring Garden/ East Deutschtown 2nd Tuesday, monthly, 6:30 p.m. Fuhrer Building of St. Michael’s Church 412.977.1979 Deutschtown New Hope Council 3rd Thursday, monthly, 6:30 p.m. Community Center, 623 Suismon St. East Allegheny Community Council 2nd Tuesday, monthly, 7 p.m. Bistro Annex 412.321.1204 Ex-offender Aftercare Support Group Saturdays, 4-5:30 p.m. Allegheny Center Alliance Church 801 Union Place Fineview Citizens Council 3rd Wednesday, monthly, 6:30 p.m. Reformed Presbyterian Home Pennsylvania Ave. 412.231.0330 Mexican War Streets Society 3rd Tuesday, monthly, 7 p.m. AUU Church, Resaca Pl. and North Ave. 412.323.9030
Northside Coalition for Fair Housing Board 2nd Monday, monthly, 6:30 p.m. 1821 Brighton Rd. 412.321.5527 Northside Coalition for Fair Housing Membership Monthly, call for times 1821 Brighton Rd. 412.321.5521 Northside Leadership Conference Call for times 4 Allegheny Center, Suite 601 412.330.2559 North Side Lions Club 2nd and 4th Tuesday, monthly, noon Max’s Allegheny Tavern North Side Public Safety Council 1st Thursday, monthly, 5:30 p.m. Northside Leadership Conference 412.330.2559 Observatory Hill, Inc. 3rd Wednesday, monthly, 7 p.m. Byzantine Seminary, 3605 Perrysville Ave. 412.231.2887 Perry Hilltop Citizens’ Council 4th Monday, monthly, 7:30 p.m. Angel’s Place, 2605 Norwood St. 412.321.4632 The Promise Group Every other Tuesday, 6 p.m. Western Pa. Humane Society 412.321.1019 Troy Hill Citizens Council Sept. 15, Dec. 15 North Catholic High School 412-321-2852 Spring Hill Civic League Sept. 12, Oct. 3 and Nov. 1 Spring Hill Elementary School contact@shcl.org Summer Hill Citizens Committee 3rd Tuesday, monthly, 6:30 p.m. WPXI Television Station community room
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Model home completed at Columbus Square By Kelsey Shea In 2006, Mark Schneider, a developer at Fourth River Development, and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl met to discuss a street on the far end of Manchester called Columbus Avenue, where an empty industrial building stood. Five years later, Manchester celebrated the near completion of the first phase of construction of Columbus Square, a new housing development at the formerly vacant property on Oct. 20. With involvement from the City, state, Manchester Citizens Corporation and various other community groups, Schneider, Ravenstahl and other representatives, cut the ribbon on the front porch of the site’s first finished model home today. “It kind of takes a village to build a village,” said Schneider, who thanked the mayor, City Councilman Daniel Lavelle, the developers and designers, who were
Photo by Kelsey Shea
The mayor and other project leaders cut the ribbon at Manchester’s newest housing project, Columbus Square. all in attendance. Also present were representatives from PNC, the Northside Community Development Fund and the Urban Redevelopment Authority, all of whom helped fund the project. When finished, Columbus Square will consist of 31 single-
family residences, each featuring a two-car garage, front porch, rear deck and private yard. “These homes represent all the wonderful things that can happen when we join together to create an exceptional community,” said Linda Nelson of MCC.
For Nelson and MCC, making the former industrial site into a residential area was a long-time goal for the neighborhood. “We’ve been talking a lot about this third renaissance,” said Ravenstahl. “My goal is to make sure that renaissance isn’t just happening downtown … It’s happening all over the city, and that’s what I’m most excited about.” The model home, which attendees later toured, is a 2,100 square-foot, four-bedroom house with three and a half bathrooms and a study. The model home’s base price is $255,000, and the other four homes included in the first construction phase begin at $179,000. The owners of these new homes will benefit from a 10-year tax abatement from the City of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County that will reduce their property tax obligation. The homes also include cost-saving green energy components.
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News Briefs Manchester Haunted Tour
The Route 65 and Interstate 279 interchange is hardly a historic part of Pittsburgh, but what previously stood at 1129 Ridge Ave. is another story. The Northside was once home to what was considered to be the most haunted house in America. Manchester is believed to have housed one mansion that seemed to have cursed the occupants. Known as the Congelier Mansion, the since-destroyed house’s legend involves a murderous love triangle between Mr. and Mrs. Congelier and their maid, as well as a mad scientist who lived in the house and conducted gruesome human experiments. Oct. 19 and 20, The Manchester Historic Society hosted a weekend devoted to the chilling ghost tales of the Northside, like the one of the Congelier Mansion and others that are based on ghost stories that have been told and retold by residents of Manchester. Mark Tomlinson, a member of the society, says that the tour was based upon “[a] collection of ghost stories that have been recounted over the years that have been collected by the society.” The walking tour of the neighborhood featured seven houses, three of which guests were allowed to enter. Each house has an associated tale that sent chills down the spines of even the least superstitious. -Karin Baker
Woodland House Opening
At the end of September, Brightwood Civic Group cut the ribbon at 1407 Woodland Ave. in Brightwood, marking the first step in the Woodland Avenue Revitalization Project. State Rep. Adam Ravenstahl and City Council President Darlene Harris attended the ribbon cutting, which celebrated the completion of the renovated home in Brightwood on Thursday, Sept. 22. “1407 Woodland Ave. is the first of a number of rehabilitations the Brightwood Civic Group hopes to address,” said Jon Huck, project manager. “These rehabs are bringing resources to a major corridor of the
neighborhood.” 1407 Woodland is a single family home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a master suite, hardwood floors and off-street parking. The buyer will be able to take advantage of a 10-year tax abatement which Huck said will save the owner thousands of dollars each year. The house is currently on the market for $119,900. Funding to renovate the home came from Rivers Casino and a loan from The Northside Community Development Fund. The Northside Leadership Conference provided professional project management services. -Kelsey Shea
Antrim Street clean up
The small rivers flowing next to the curb on a rainy day were not an unusual sight to Northside residents on Antrim Street in Brighton Heights before Saturday, Sept. 24. But with a recent Love Your Block Grant from the City and some time and energy from the Brighton Heights Citizens Federation, about 30 Antrim Street residents spent the weekend cleaning up the block and installing a rain garden to stop the flow of excess water that’s been a seasonal problem throughout Pittsburgh this year. Kelly Day, a resident of Antrim Street and a member of the Brighton Heights Citizens Federation board, submitted the proposal to the Love Your Block project to help solve the water drainage problem. “It was a huge thing for us,” said Day, who noted the neighborhood’s gratitude towards the City, and that the project has brought the neighbors closer together. “We feel tighter now,” she said. “It was such a positive experience.” The Love Your Block project granted $500 for the improvement of the street, an amount matched by the Brighton Heights Citizens Federation. With a total of $1,000, residents of Antrim Street were able to purchase the supplies needed for the project. The initial grant also includes the assistance of the City Public Works Department. -Karin Baker
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Designs for new pedestrian bridge presented By Kaitlin Balmert The Allegheny Commons Initiative hosted a public community meeting to discuss design ideas for the replacement pedestrian bridge linking Lake Elizabeth and Central Northside to the Iron Deer and Allegheny West on Monday, Oct. 24 at the Children’s Museum. The purpose of the meeting was to gain community feedback. At the meeting, which was held at the Children’s Museum, Paul Tellers of WTW Architects and Sara Thompson of Pashek Associates addressed the design of the replacement bridge in Photo courtesy Allegheny Commons Initative Allegheny Commons. The current bridge in Allegheny Commons park will be torn “The ped bridge is being down once the project has funding to build a new one. demolished because it is in construction documents. steering committee, volunteered extremely poor condition, Tellers and Thompson his design services, while and falling debris could be presented five options of redesign Thompson is working under hazardous for passing trains,” for the pedestrian bridge, which a small contract in place with said Alida Baker of the Allegheny included a 1960s-style, girder Pashek Associates. Wilbur Smith Commons Initiative. bridge, truss bridge, basket weave Associates volunteered their Tellers, who is part of the and a truss bridge with landings services for the engineering and
with space for plants and benches. “I think a new bridge presents an opportunity to stitch the park back together and potentially be another asset to the city,” said Thompson. As the existing pedestrian bridge’s arch does not provide clearance on its sides for trains, it will be demolished and most likely redesigned. A replication of the bridge would be too costly and difficult, as the arch that is currently at 23 feet, would have to exceed its current elevation. Extending the arch elevation would require longer and steeper ramps to access the bridge deck. As the bridge is concrete, it would have to be cast in place which would mean stopping railroad traffic. Funding for the new pedestrian bridge is not yet determined because the planning is at the early stages and a
See Bridge, page 16
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Ridge school up for sale
Photo by Kelsey Shea
The vacant school building on Ridge Avenue in Allegheny West. From Ridge School, page 1 of people outside the building has been a complaint of residents and community developers in the neighborhood. Schweiger said that the Ridge Avenue building is ideal because it sits apart from any specific neighborhood, is 8,000 square feet larger than their current facility and has a flexible floor plan. If Light of Life wins the bid, they hope to start construction in 2012. “We could easily not get it, even though we’re the highest bidder,” he said. “But I think we did a good job with [the bid form].” Pittsburgh Public Schools will make the decision on a number of factors including highest offer, whether or not the price exceeds outstanding debt and whether the organization has done similar and successful renovations before. They would also like the new owner to be taxable, provide positive community benefits and have the potential to increase student enrollment. None of the bidders are taxable organizations. CCAC offered the next highest bid at $1,050,000 and hopes to use the building to house a new health care program. “We’re really interested in the possibility of bringing a workforce program to the Allegheny Campus,” said David Hoovler, executive assistant to the president. “The opportunity to offer a healthcare program in the city is appealing.” Due to a tightened budget and a state-funding cut, Hoovler said
CCAC has identified private funding to help with the purchase of the building. He said the funding will not come from tuition or CCAC’s usual state or county allocations. Propel Northside, which is holding its first school year in PPS’s former Columbus Middle School building, bid $500,000 for the Ridge Avenue building. “We like the location and proximity to the park and aviary,” said Richard Snyder, director of noninstructional operations at Propel. Snyder said Propel is concerned that the bid is significantly lower but will continue the search regardless. At this time, he said Propel is not interested in Horace Mann School, which will go up for sale in October. Snyder said Propel may be interested in Northside PPS buildings that are slated to close this year and are looking into the option of nontraditional school buildings as well. “We hope to be able to make an announcement regarding winning bids no later than December but earlier if possible,” said Ebony Pugh of PPS. “Any time the District is planning to sell a building, the neighborhood plan and potential impact on the neighborhood should be a critical factor,” said Mark Fatla, executive director of the Northside Leadership Conference, who noted that it was disappointing that the organizations and school board had not already reached out to the community of Allegheny West.
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CCAC’s downtown campus will move to Northside
“There will be extra activity in the evenings,” Hoovler said. “But it won’t be disruptive to the For Northside students at the community.” Community College of Allegheny The night and weekend classes’ County, state budget cuts could have integration into the campus’ a silver lining. schedule are primarily attended by CCAC Downtown Center will business professionals that benefit be shut down at the end of the fall from the formatting of the classes. semester, which will move up to Students can expect to see an 1,800 students to CCAC’s Allegheny estimated 75 additional courses and campus on the North Shore. sections, if enrollment David Hoovler, for the classes is the interim [It will bring] sufficient. director of public These changes relations at CCAC, people who other- will give students at is confident the wise might not have both campuses a wider change will be range of opportunities relatively easy, and come across the with regard to classes many students at offered as well as river the school will see scheduling options. numerous benefits, Hoovler estimates -Dave Hoovler, including access to that class size at CCAC the school’s library CCAC Allegheny will not be and other support affected by the influx services. of students and that Classes offered at CCAC only a handful of classes that were Downtown Center were primarily offered in similar formats saw any reserved for nights and weekends, significant change from the move. which will make the merging of two Hoover said the school is schedules a simple process, as CCAC preparing for the incoming students, Allegheny is less utilized during “beyond just the scheduling of those hours. courses.” Other than increased activity This change could also include during the evening hours on campus, benefits to local businesses in the CCAC is not predicting that the area. additional students will have any “[It will bring in] people significant effect on residents in who otherwise might not have Allegheny West or current students. come across the river,” Hoovler Despite the sudden increase of said. “[They can] see what the area students, the school is not predicting has to offer.” any issues regarding parking in the Karin Baker is a student at the area, because parking lots and onUniversity of Pittsburgh. She has been street parking are not used to the a resident of the City of Pittsburgh for fullest extent during those hours. four years.
By Karin Baker
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October NSC Blog Highlights For full stories go to www.thenorthsidechronicle.com/blog The Northside Chonicle Blog is updated daily with photos, event previews, interviews, videos and more. Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog, find us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
October 5: Google Maps car stops in East Deutschtown October 21: Warhol exhibit celebrates Gertrude Stein October 24: Scarlet Letter tickets dicounted for Northsiders
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Washburn Square Park opens in Brightwood By Kelsey Shea When Brightwood Civic Group Director Diane Annis-Dixon cut the ribbon at Brightwood’s Washburn Square Park on Monday, she finished a project her mother, Carol Dixon, helped start 15 years earlier. On Monday, the BCG, City, Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Northside Leadership Conference celebrated the official opening of Washburn Square Park, which includes three new homes and an open greenspace between Superior Avenue and Hodgkiss Street in Brightwood. “This project started 15 years ago, when the Brightwood Civic Group was just a couple of women who wanted to do something nice for the kids,” said Annis-Dixon. “One of those women was my mother.” About 25 people gathered at the corner of the new lawn for the ribbon cutting celebrating the completion of a project AnnisDixon said her mother thought she wouldn’t live to see finished.
Photo by Kelsey Shea
The recently finished Washburn Square Park in Brightwood. Annis-Dixon’s mother and two other original BCG members who planned Washburn Square died before the $3.1 million project was completed. The roughly one acre site of Washburn Square Park formerly housed 46 row houses, many of which were dilapidated and vacant. “It’s hard to imagine 46 houses on this site,” said David Howe,
manager of the URA’s Pittsburgh Housing Development Corp., looking over the grassy lawn. City Council President Darlene Harris and Annis-Dixon both said they hoped to host movies in the park at Washburn Square Park in the future. The BCG’s original plan for Washburn Square was to replace
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the 46 row houses with 17 new homes, but after a study found that 17 homes would have been difficult to sell, the URA adjusted the plan to include only three homes and green space for the neighborhood. Howe called the project’s incorporation of green space rather than residences “a different kind of economic development,” one that he hopes to see replicated throughout the city. According to Annis-Dixon, funding, asbestos and remaining tenants in the row houses were causes for the 15-year delay. Nearly 20 people still lived in the Washburn complex as late as 2007, former BCG director Ed Brandt said. Because the project received federal funding, project managers at NLC had to help the tenants find new housing. When the row houses were vacated, the BCG ran into more problems with the asbestos-filled
See Wasburn Square, page 16
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Nonprofit receives new playground By Manushka Gracia-Desgage Providence Connections, a Northside nonprofit family support agency, celebrated their newly reopened playground last Thursday with a ribbon cutting a little over a year after their old playground was destroyed by vandals. The ceremony was held Thursday, Oct.20 with three of the Massaro family members, who helped pay for the new playground, in attendance. As a token of their appreciation for the Massaro family’s time, effort and financial support, Providence Connections designated the playground as the Massaro Family Playground. “We knew we wanted to rebuild as soon as it happened, but the insurance didn’t cover all of the necessary funds for the project,” said Dawn Woodfill, the director of development at Providence Connections. They resorted to fundraising and received several grants, as well as support from individual donors and corporations The planning for the rebuilding project began last fall and construction started this past spring. In early May, the project was finished, but phase two, which
consisted of a field adjacent to the playground, was completed this month. “This playground allows children to develop their imagination and extracurricular skills,” said Woodfill. “We expanded the playground into an adjacent field which consists of a hillside slide with climbing walls, two new shade structures and the installation of a track that spans the perimeter of the field.” “We had a wonderful turnout for the ribbon cutting ceremony and open house. Steve, Joe and Dave of the Massaro family were kind enough to join and share this great moment with us,” explained Woodfill. Guests, who also included Darlene Harris, president of the Pittsburgh City Council, were granted the opportunity to tour the newly approved commercial kitchen which was renovated in 2010. “People have donated their money, but, more importantly, their time to making this a success,” said Woodfill. The Massaro family owns a corporation and real estate company that provides different constructing services throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia.
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November 2011
Debate continues over Oliver and Perry merger
Oliver High School
From School Closings, page 1 buildings, the Northside Leadership nearby field and cosmetology, JROTC and culinary programs, as well as Early Head Start program, which offers free childcare. Perry supporters emphasized the new HVAC system, central location of the school, musicalfriendly auditorium, recent $7 million renovations and students meeting AYP standards as reasons to preserve Perry. Others in attendance focused less on the buildings, but instead on curriculum and strategy of combining two rival schools instead. Despite high tension, throughout the night, any mention of unity and working together drew applause from both the Perry and Oliver sides of the room. “Look at this room – Perry on one side, Oliver on the other. We should all be coming together,” said Nichole Tarver, who asked the board for a year of transition before the merger. “We have an opportunity to be innovative,” said Derek Long, a teacher at Oliver who came to speak as a member of the community, asked the board to focus on the task of merging the two schools. “This is an opportunity to draw students back.” Dr. Rochelle Oaks, another Oliver teacher speaking as a community member, had three children go to Perry but echoed Long’s sentiment of unity. “I am not loyal to a building. I am loyal to students,” she told the board. In the hopes of reaching an objective analysis regarding the two
Conference’s education committee toured Oliver and Perry high schools to evaluate each facility and draw up an objective report. “There’s bound to be a wide variety of opinions on the subject,” said NSLC Executive Director Mark Fatla, who noted that the NSLC has taken no position on closing Oliver or Perry, but advocates for one comprehensive and successful Northside high school. The report from committee representatives, Mark Fatla and Mark Masterson, noted that Perry’s building was freshly refurbished over the summer and had all new lavatories, flooring, ceilings, paint and improved lighting. They reported that Oliver’s building shows heavy wear and a lack of reinvestment and that two thirds of the classrooms were seemingly empty. “[Oliver] Building is HUGE. Even with combined Perry-Oliver enrollment, building will likely have excess space,” the report said. “Existing CTE spaces are
Perry Traditional Academy similar, with roughly the same excellent and spacious – Culinary, amount of parking. Oliver’s athletic Cosmetology, JROTC – but fields are in “excellent” condition enrollment numbers are low (20-40 and adjacent to the school, whereas students per semester).” Perry’s are “inconveniently located They rated Perry’s classroom some distance from the building,” the spaces “excellent” and noted that report said. they included 21 labs that could Oliver has an on-site day care be transformed into classrooms with a capacity for eight infants and and space for Oliver’s JROTC four toddlers that is funded by a and culinary programs, though federal grant, whereas Perry has a the cosmetology program would probably remain in Oliver’s building. private daycare across the street. The report stated that both schools had HVAC infrastructures that were in good repair, though Perry’s is brand new. Perry’s ancillary spaces, which include the auditorium, gym, pool, band room and cafeteria to be in “excellent” condition and wellutilized, but they noted the kitchen of Perry’s cafeteria was a bit small. Oliver’s auditorium is larger, but lacks wings or backstage needed for theater productions. The pool was described as equal to Perry’s, but is currently closed and awaiting repairs. The report stated that Perry and Oliver’s grounds were fairly
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Barber shops survive the “big boxing” of Northside stores By John Canning There are places in the world where a boy’s first hair cut is a rite of passage. While not quite the case here on the Northside, regular trips to a barber shop begin at an early age and continue to some point where a barber has to come to you. In the past quarter century many of us on the Northside have watched the gradual demise of neighborhood grocery stores, bakeries, hardware stores and pharmacies. The rise of “big box” chains have taken the place of these smaller and neighborhoodcentered businesses. But, one institution continues serving its customers in the personal manners of the “good old days.” That is the institution of the barber shop. About eight years ago, I took my grandson Blaise, now 11, for his first visit to Mr. Fred Tait’s shop on Galveston Avenue. Fred Tait has been a barber on the Northside for many many years. His shop, like most barber shops, is a community experience. Customers, youngsters and parents of the youngsters relax in the comfortable chairs and sofa at Mr. Taits’ waiting for their time in “the chair.” The shop has an atmosphere that is accurately portrayed in the movie “Barber Shop.” When Blaise was in those preschool years, Fred Tait could hold his head firmly with one hand as the electric clippers were moved skillfully about his head producing a first-rate job. About five years ago, Jerry, the second in command at Tait’s, took over the task of giving Blaise his regular clip. Blaise and Jerry share a common birthday, separated by “only” a few decades. Jerry also has the knack of creating hair designs, almost like a tattoo, with his clippers. Jerry and Blaise agree on the design before the buzzing begins. It is their decision. I simply sit in amazement while reading the magazines. There
is always a stack of new and old magazines in any decently equipped barber shop. When not reading, I enjoy the ongoing conversation between all of us, barbers, customers, friends and relatives who happen to be in the shop. The services of barbers, like doctors and dentists, are selected for a variety of reason and last for many years. While Blaise now goes to Jerry at Mr. Tait’s, I go to Dave’s at Foreland and James. My selection of Dave occurred early in the ’70s when Dave’s shop was located in the old Martin Building on Federal Street. As plans for PNC Park moved to fruition, Dave moved his shop to East Allegheny/Historic Deutschtown. As with any good barber, his customers moved accordingly. For whatever my two bits are worth, I find that Dave’s beard trim and haircut are just right. The atmosphere at Dave’s is similar to that of Mr. Tait’s. However, every “real” barber shop has its own features. NO APPOINTMENTS HERE. You simply wait for your move into “the chair.’ Over the years, customers’ paths cross. Family stories, comments related to current events, neighborhood issues and a few “barbershop jokes” are exchanged as the clippers and scissors of a master barber transform a shaggy dome and beard into a smart look. Dave and I, and I assume many of his “regulars,” have shared many episodes of a lifetime. Whether it is Mr. Tait or Jerry or Dave, the barber shop has remained an institution that is constant regardless of changes in hair styles. I would imagine the same could be said of many other barbershops on the Northside and around the city. Courtesy and comfort are there. But, above all is the personal attention paid to the person as well as the hair that make these places special. It is these qualities that do indeed make the barber shop a survivor in the “big boxing” of life on the Northside.
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Bridge designs New Washburn Square Park open considered From Bridge, page 5
From Washburn Square, page 9
budget is not currently set. Once planning is underway, Tellers roughly estimated the reconstruction of the bridge may take about a year and half. The community had differing responses to altering the bridge and its arch. Some wished to not alter the arch such as community member, Fran Barbush, who said that she liked “keeping the arch as a feature in the bridge, because it mirrors the angulations of the land in the park.” Tellers said he, “appreciated the input because that was the purpose of the meeting.” The committee will review feedback and ideas gained at the meeting and come together to decide which bridge meets the requirements of the community.
buildings, which needed studied and removed before demolition. During the study and removal, which ultimately cost more than the demolition itself, the BCG ran out of money. “The neighborhood begged every entity possible,” said AnnisDixon, reflecting on the funding difficulties. The BCG went to thenCity Councilman Luke Ravenstahl and former State Rep. Don Walko, who both found money to continue the project. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl was scheduled to attend the ribbon cutting but was unable to make it, though a representative from his office noted his continual support of the project. The three newly constructed three-bedroom houses at Washburn Square each sold before the project was completed for $135,000 each.
November 2011
November 2011
The Northside Chronicle
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Allegheny West Shawn Davis to Adam Randall at 846 Beech Ave. for $245,000. Sherry Cramer to Denise Alarcon at 946 Western Ave. for $400,000. Lawrence Ehrlich to David Mosser at 927 Beech Ave. for $330,000. Brighton Heights Estate of Florence Burkhart to Michael and Nancy McGrath at 1847 Chellis St. for $72,000. Charles Beck to Jennifer Ferris and Chad Glick at 3559 Gerber Ave. for $155,000. Rod Rusch to CAH 1 L.P. at 3547 California Ave. for $179,900. Dolores Reemtsen estate et al. to Federal National Mortgage Assn. at 3701 Parviss St. for $65,900 by sheriff ’s deed. Estate of James Verbanac to Lyyong Hong at 1216 Davis Ave. for $35,500. Eileen Marie Durey et al. to Lyyong Hong at 1216 Davis Ave. for $35,500. Bank New York Mellon trustee to Steven Oberst at 3718 Wapello St. for $68,750. Michael Lanick III to Ronald Biernacki at 3333 California Ave. and Rankin St. for $52,500.
The Northside Chronicle
Timothy Lang to Erin Beattie at 3457 Campus St. for $77,000. Norman Schnurr to Robert Davis and Patricia Virgin at 3560 McClure Ave. for $145,000. Dominick Sciulli to Dominick Sciulli at 4029 Northminister St. for $180,000. Clifford Eich to Whitney Chambers at 1481 Benton Ave. for $86,000. Magdalena Cheresnowsky to William and Julia Freeman at 3452 California Ave. for $65,000. Michael Woodson to Dayday Properties LLC at 3571 Elmhurst Ave. for $7,800. Kevin Mesecher to Lawrence and Linda Ehrlich at 3624 Fleming Ave. for $160,000. Veterans Administration to Walz Street Ventures LLC at 3967 Kleber St. for $35,000. Scott Young to Alexander Herd at 3424 Massachusetts Ave. for $70,000. Estate of Margaret Matoka to Greater Homestead Growth Trust #1003437 at 3437 Sipe St. for $15,000. Brightwood Jamie McBride to Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. at 1372 Oakhill St. for
$2,026 by sheriff ’s deed. Ralph Quaquarucci to Bank New York Mellon Trust Co. NA trustee at 1022 Rothpletz St. for $3,112 by sheriff ’s deed. John Schmude estate et al. to David Myers at 957 Woods Run Ave. for $7,000. Janet Johnson to David Mensing at 1335 Gifford St. for $39,500. Adam Ross et al. to Jennifer Caul at 1207 Dickson St. for $250 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $10,146). Sean Monaghan et al. to Aritomo Hirano at 2407 Sorrell St. for $15,000. California-Kirkbride Bank New York trustee to Termaine Eleam and Harry Diggs III at 1310 California Ave. for $4,000. Janet Woodson to Dayday Properties LLC at 1911 B St. for $5,000. Svetlana Glazyrina aka Lyons to Patrick Ryan Costello at 1724 Brighton Place for $17,900. Central Northside Olive Tree Properties LLC to Vista One LLC at 1308 Boyle St. for $15,000.
November 2011
Kyle Pratt to Anthony Turi at 1204 Filson St. for $82,750. James Huff to Jarrett Katawczik and Amanda Speakman at 418 N. Taylor Ave. for $289,500. Ryan Vandegrift to Brendan and Ashley Piovesan at 1208 Resaca Place for $282,500. Lagom LLC to Akator Lagom Jv at 525 Jacksonia St. for $1 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $37,674). Allegheny Community Federal Credit Union to Michael and Karen Shearon at 318 W. North Ave. for $66,000. Kevin Spence to Mary Anne Murphy at 1701 Columbia Place for $1,000 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $2,340). Estate of Albert Holloway to John Engle Jr. at 1528 Monterey St. for $4,000. Steven Hodge to Amtrust REO 1 LLC at 316 North Ave. W Unit 316H for $2,017 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $50,895) by sheriff ’s deed. D. Scott Mosser to Paul Hlivko at 1204 Resaca Place for $245,000. Estate of Patricia M aka Dolan to Vincent Salvino and Jason Owens at
November 2011
1205 Monterey St. for $200,000. Laura Diane Winter to Monterey Street Project LLC at 1226 Monterey St. for $140,000. East Deutschtown Janet Hindman et al. to Steve Hernandez at 913 Peralta St. for $20,550. Historic Deutschtown William Corcoran to KAG Ltd. LLC at 502-504 Suismon St. for $155,000. Gosta Frantz to Justin Victor at 604 Pressley St. for $97,000. Edward Shaginaw to Mary Alexaides et al. and Alex Alexaides at 712 Cedar Ave. for $50,000. Manchester Betty Searles to First National Bank Pennsylvania at 1256 Decatur St. for $4,647 by sheriff ’s deed. Julia Scrivens et al. to Federal National Mortgage Assn. at 1221 Juniata St. for $2,597 by sheriff ’s deed. Khary Davis to US Bank NA trustee at 1127 Sheffield St. for $2,867 by sheriff ’s deed. Manchester Housing Development LLC to Brett Weinheimer at Warner
The Northside Chronicle
St. for $1 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $2,223). Observatory Hill Michael Krivosh to Federal National Mortgage Assn. at 130 Richey Ave. for $1,797 by sheriff ’s deed. Rafal Kowalczyk to Leon and Annita Haynes at 3372 Perrysville Ave. for $53,000. Paul Moser to Domenic Mantella at 119 Bonvue St. for $34,900.Hayden Lutz to Lemesha Perry at 4055 Grizella St. for $70,000. Tonya Avery to Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. trustee at 4036 Vinceton St. for $1,557 by sheriff ’s deed. Lynn Alderson Fox to Janet and Brian Escobedo at 3839 Perrysville Ave. for $124,000. Perry Hilltop PNC Mortgage to William Robinson Jr. at 1950 Federal Street Ext. for $16,000. Patricia Reid to Jason and Rachel Beatty at 321 Marshall Ave. for $81,000. The Pittsburgh Project Inc. to Gavin and Joanna Deming at 447 Marshall
Ave. for $25,000. US Bank NA trustee to Triple A Investments LLC at 414 Hawkins Ave. for $7,000. Vickey Howard to Bayview Loan Servicing LLC at 315 Kennedy Ave. for $1,679 by sheriff ’s deed. Robert Seaton to Life Mender LLC at 542 McClintock Ave. for $6,500. Dennis Lisac trustee et al. to Jennifer Javit at 547 Marshall Ave. for $122,000. Estate of Clarence Maxwell to Michael Jones at 2709 Sherlock St. for $6,000. Kathleen Sweeney to Shawn William Brandon at 219 W. Burgess St. for $0 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $4,800). Fifth Third Bank to Barrgrove Ventures LLC at 2237 Wilson Ave. for $21,399. Spring Garden Mark Ledbetter to Daniel Passner at 1211 Voskamp St. for $5,500. Dorothea Lorenz to Tracey Lorenz at 1416 Firth St. for $1 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $14,742). Housing & Urban Development to
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Jennifer Stalnaker at 1400 High St. for $35,000. Spring Hill Vincent Snyder to Sherry Cramer at 2114 Donora St. for $59,000. Dorothy Lorenz to Robert Lorenz Jr. and Robert Lorenz III at 1330 Diana Place for $15,000. Leslie Carter to Bank New York trustee at 130 Royal St. for $4,064 by sheriff ’s deed. Summer Hill Estate of William Gloff to John Murray and Jessica Collins at 3618 Manuel St. for $87,435. Troy Hill Janet Woodson to Dayday Properties LLC at 1527 Hatteras St. for $15,000. H1 Management LLC to H3 Management LLC at 1918 Lowrie St. for $1 (state deed transfer stamps indicate a value of $26,208). Estate of Catherine Patterson to Cynthia Black at 120 Rialto Place for $68,000. Anthony Narcisi to Gail Florence at 53 Waterfront Drive for $345,000.
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The Northside Chronicle
November 2011
November 2011
The Northside Chronicle
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From the office of State Sen. Wayne Fontana
Working for more jobs in Pittsburgh While there were plenty of concerns raised by the residents and businesses in the Northside about the location of a casino in their midst, the Rivers Casino has also provided a growing source of employment when many other businesses in our region are struggling. Currently, the casino employs 1,679 people and is projecting that the number will increase to approximately 1,800 by the end of the year. There have also been over 350 internal promotions and transfers to date, providing plenty of opportunity for employees to better themselves and move up within the operation. Recruitment outreach efforts continue to be varied and include table games schools and job fairs that are free and open to the public. Not every community is as lucky, and there are plenty of PA residents in the Northside and beyond who are desperate to get back to work or who are in fear
of losing the job they have my colleagues and I have real ideas to create jobs, stabilize the economy and instill confidence in those who do the hiring. We are coming up with answers, and we have been proposing solutions for the last year now. What’s important to us is what’s important to our districts. Families need to feel secure, small businesses need to flourish, students need skills to be marketable, and young women and minorities need to not lose hope. They’ve waited too long for answers. Quite simply - the top priority of this fall’s legislative session must be job creation. The unemployment rate is now 8.2 percent and more than a half million Pennsylvanians are out of work. Last month, the unemployment rate spiked nearly onehalf percent. There is a tremendous amount of economic uncertainty undermining our economic recovery. We should clear the agenda and only act on those items that can create jobs. As I’ve said many times before,
each and every item before us should be looked at through the “job lens.” While we work to move a jobs agenda forward, I have been using my weekly News & Views (enewsletter) to provide information to constituents on job opportunities, training and other resources that can help you in your job search. If you are not already subscribed, visit my website at www.senatorfontana. com and add your email address in the “Subscribe to E-News” box. You can also visit my Media Center page and view past editions of the newsletter to see what you’ve missed. Don’t have access to a computer or email? Please contact my office and we can get a hard copy of the materials to you. I am committed to doing everything in my power to ensure that creating and retaining good-paying jobs is part of any discussion that we have at the state level and pledge to work with my colleagues to accomplish that this fall in Harrisburg.
The Northside Chronicle
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From the office of State Rep. Chelsa Wagner
Heating help available
The LIHEAP Cash program, which provides grants to lowincome individuals and families to heat their homes, opened for applications Nov. 1. Grants range from $200 to $1,000 and are based on household size, income and main source of heat. You need not have an unpaid bill to receive home heating energy assistance, and you can receive this money without being in the Cash Assistance program. Annual income limits for eligibility are $16,332 for an individual, plus $5,736 for each additional member of the household. The fastest way to apply for a LIHEAP Cash grant (and to check the status of your application) is to apply at www.compass. state.pa.us. You may also contact the Allegheny County Assistance Office at 412-565-2146. To apply,
you will need names of people in your household, dates of birth for all household members, social security numbers for all household members, proof of income for all household members and a recent heating bill. Additional money may be available if you have an emergency situation and are in jeopardy of losing your heat. Emergency situations include: • Broken heating equipment or leaking lines that must be fixed or replaced • Lack of fuel • Termination • Danger of being without fuel or of having utility service terminated Assistance with home heating crisis situations is available 24 hours a day by contacting the Allegheny County Department of Human Services at 1-800-8513838.
November 2011
November 2011
The Northside Chronicle
The Game Page Last Month’s Puzzle Solutions First published in a U.S. puzzle magazine in 1979, Sudoku caught on in Japan in 1986, and became internationally famous in 2005. The aim of Sudoku is to enter a number from 1 through 9 in each space on a 9×9 grid made up of 3×3 subgrids (called “regions”). Some of the numbers have already been given. You may not use the same number twice in a single row, column, or region of the grid. Completing the puzzle requires patience and logical ability.
Crossword puzzles provided by www. bestcrosswords.com / Used with permission.
Chronicle Crossword Across 1- Cleanse; 5- Bed down; 10- Appraise, charge per unit; 14- Horne solo; 15Contour feather; 16- Now ___ me down...; 17- Singer Vikki; 18- Warble; 19Drill a hole; 20- Belief involving sorcery; 22- Very small amount; 24- Flows; 27- Belgian river; 28- Wrapper; 32- Intoxicating; 35- Actress Charlotte; 36Inclined; 38- Nonsense!; 40- Orange cover; 42- Floored; 44- London district; 45- Killed; 47- Agitates; 49- Rocky hilltop; 50- Loose; 52- Extortion; 54- Letters, e.g.; 56- Boris Godunov, for one; 57- Less expensive item; 60- Skinflint; 64- Diamonds, e.g.; 65- Senate attendants; 68- Vamp Theda; 69- French 101 verb; 70- Make into law; 71- Skillfully; 72- Clairvoyant; 73- Radioactive gas; 74- Bottom of the barrel; Down 1- Baylor’s city; 2- Bedouin; 3- Beget; 4- Capital of Zimbabwe; 5- Bond, for one; 6- “Seinfeld” uncle; 7- Finishes; 8- Adversary; 9- Somewhat pale; 10Plantain weed; 11- Drug-yielding plant; 12- Small mountain lake; 13- Needle hole; 21- Hawaiian native dance; 23- Abstruse; 25- Words of denial; 26- Rotates; 28- Goes astray; 29- Metal spikes; 30- Open to bribery; 31- Delight; 33Loincloth worn by Hindu men; 34- Lout; 37- Between, old-style; 39- Threadbare; 41- Distance across a circle; 43- Ages; 46- Final Four org.; 48- Con; 51- Herring; 53- Concerning Comanches, e.g.; 55- Woody vine; 57- Adorable; 58- Bring on board; 59- Mild oath; 61- Kemo ___; 62- Della’s creator; 63Beams; 64- Paris possessive; 66- Green prefix; 67- RR stop;
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Sudoku