I
NSIDE SCHENLEY High School, Pete Camarda steps around the ceiling tiles that have dropped about 14 feet to land on the floor of the vacant hallway. “Let’s walk with our heads up,” the Pittsburgh Public Schools chief financial and operations officer says. “I keep seeing more of the tiles on the floor.” Indeed, the ceiling of the grand, historic and massive building in Oakland, shuttered as a school in 2008, is pockmarked with missing tiles and water stains. Paint and plaster on the walls, particularly around the windows, are peeling away, leaving piles of debris in the halls where thousands of students once tread. Without those students in the buildURBAN MEDIA} SY OF PITTSBURGH {PHOTO COURTE ing to warrant turning on the school’s meand t) lef Berlin (fourth frommni last week. chanical systems and the air circulation alu cond from left), Liz Edward Alexei (se left) protest with other Schenley m that comes with their activity, the building fro David Tinker (fifth has deteriorated quickly in the five years it has been vacant, custodians say. In addition to the continuing cracks, mold and falling debris, a two-foot high summer after a report surfaced challenging bump has appeared in the gymnasium built in 1916, into 175 luxury apartments. The proposal, which has been recom- the level of asbestos in the building, won a floor, covering about 20 feet. It was first noticed last fall. Custodians speculate that mended to the district by its review com- victory last month when the school board storm water backing up into the swim- mittee — coordinated by Fourth River agreed to re-examine the costs to renovate Development LLC, which is overseeing the school before voting on PMC’s bid. ming pool underneath the gym might If that fails, alumni who organized the sale of the property on the disbe causing moisture to build. trict’s behalf — will be the sub- their own bid for the school — the Andy “This wasn’t for dramatic purpose,” Camarda says as MORE OF ject of a public hearing and Warhol School of Visual and Performing vote by the city school board Arts (the name is pending approval by the visitors to the school examPHOTOSLEY Andy Warhol Foundation) — are continulater this month. ine the decay. “The situaN E SCH INE But despite the build- ing their lobbying. The group’s leaders say tion was as the situation L N O ww. ing’s poor condition and the they are not deterred despite being passed was described.” w aper recommended bidder’s plan over by the review committee that examThe district, which decidpghcityp .com to turn the facility into condos, ined each of the four bids submitted to ed to close and sell the school Schenley alumni refuse to give buy the property. after reports that it was facing up “It’s not over until the actual deed up the effort to make sure that their to a $ 64 million repair bill — mainly to the property and the building are due to alleged high levels of asbestos — is school stays a school. “I think there is a group that keeps the handed over to PMC,” says 1988 alum Edconsidering a $ 5.2 million bid from Philadelphia-based developer PMC/Schen- issue alive, and they are very successful at ward Alexei, who is leading the AWSVPA ley HSB Associates, LP to purchase the that,” says Pittsburgh school board member charge to purchase the building in order to keep it a school. “Just because we 320,000-square-foot landmark building. Sherry Hazuda. Their movement, given renewed life last didn’t get the nod from the committee PMC has proposed turning the building,
doesn’t mean we’re going to stop.” Over the next few weeks, the school board is hoping to resolve the debate over Schenley, one way or another. A set of reports reviewing the history of the decision and offering updated estimates for the school’s renovations, prepared by Pittsburgh Schools Superintendent Linda Lane, are expected as soon as this week. “We have to be fiscally responsible to taxpayers, and that’s where the challenge is,” Hazuda says. ALEXEI, LIKE other Schenley graduates, says he is horrified at the damage done to his beloved school, calling it shameful that it has been left in disrepair. But he says he’s even more aghast at the idea of it going into a developer’s hands. “When I heard they were going to turn it into condos, I said, ‘Hell, no.’ You can quote that,” he says. Born in the Ukraine, Alexei, with his parents and his older sister, came to Pittsburgh in 1979 when he was 9 years old. He went through the international studies and high-technology magnet programs at Schenley. He went on to launch a career in the technology industry, founding a startup called Hungry Mouse Inc. at the age of 25. It provided a way to order food online for takeout or delivery, and its first partners were America Online and Pizza Hut. He says he believes in being able to make the impossible possible. “I hounded the chief information officer at Pizza Hut for six months before he gave me a meeting,” Alexei says. He went on to found and exit from another company, Data Line Products, and has remained in the technology industry, investing and consulting. He lives now in San Francisco with his wife and 4-year-old son and works for Citrix, the company perhaps best known for its GoToMeeting software. His parents still live in Stanton Heights, along with two dozen other relatives in the city, who all followed them CONTINUES ON PG. 08
! Y A L P & T U O T E G . Y A W A T E G
SCAN, CALL OR CLICK
FOR LAUREL HIGHLANDS DEALS, PACKAGES & WINTER GIVEAWAYS:
est peaks! Hit the slopes on PA’s high venture, the Laurel Highlands is the place
ry ad If you are looking for a winte er for skiing, tubing, nt, with tons of fresh powd elle exc are ns itio nd Co be. to th a wide ready to relax, warm up wi are you en wh d An g. din and snowboar d places to spend the night. variety of terrific eateries an
N E W S
+
TA S T E
+
M U S I C
+
S C R E E N
+
A R T S
+
E V E N T S
800.925.7669 laurelhighlands.org +
C L A S S I F I E D S
7