Wow! Pittsburgh! Check Out the South Side Flats in the New York Times!

Yep. Here it is.

We are, as the kids might say, SWEET. ("We" meaning Pittsburgh, of course. I live in Bloomfield.)

Here's a sample worth discussing:

One buyer was a disgruntled New York City resident, Maureen Rottschaefer. She moved back to Pittsburgh, where she had grown up, discovered the Slopes on the annual Historic South Side House Tour and bid on her house before it was fully built — much to the surprise of the contractors.

“That sort of thing doesn’t happen here,” recalled Ms. Rottschaefer, a 32-year-old law student. “But I was like: ‘I’m from New York! You don’t understand!’ ”

... “If Pittsburgh’s market were on steroids like New York’s, this would’ve happened a long time ago,” said one developer, Ernie Sota, referring to the recent spark of interest here. “But Pittsburgh’s kind of like an eddy. Things move slowly here.”

Mr. Sota, 56, is a prolific local developer who is constructing a series of nine “green” town houses, called Windom Hill Place, into a lush hillside here. He was drawn to the Slopes by the views and villagelike feel, which, for him, conjure memories of visits to Prague and Budapest.

I wonder. It seems like Pittsburgh is already having success drawing people in from places like New York City. So do we really need to subsidize downtown development designed to make Pittsburgh look like Little Manhattan?

Check out the article. A lot of the draw here appears to be... "charm." Old houses. Old architecture. Old neighborhoods. So... why not try to accentuate such things? Why not build on what we have? A lot of these places are "villages." In fact, Pittsburgh prides itself on being 88 separate but connected "villages."

So what are we doing now? Using public money to build number 89--with no one accounting for how that might affect the other 88.

That is not to say that there should not be a number 89. Just that I don't understand why the new neighborhood--which will house the wealthiest people in town--should be privileged in that way.

So... If people from New York are looking for old neighborhoods and low prices, why don't we declare victory and use the money to get ourselves out of debt?

Comments

[Amos the Poker Cat]

Each townhome is $600K! Sacrilige! Windom Hill has a garage with each unit! Still for an area with the average home being $70k.

[Sam M]

That's what I'm saying. Seems to me that the people we are trying to attract downtown--at least people with that kind of money--are already interested in the city. Even ones coming from Manhattan.

Now, what kind of deals Windom Hill got with the city I don't know.

Anyone know?

[Maureen Rottschaefer]

OK, really not fair for Beth to say that I am a disgruntled New York City resident. In fact, I would not characterize myself as a New York City resident even when I lived in NYC, since I was only there for 6 years. I grew up in Oakmont, PA. After 17 years there, I went to college in NYC for 3 1/2 years and then moved to NYC for 6 years, then back to Pittsburgh for a little over 5 years. No way am I a New York resident, but I guess "disgruntled New York resident" sells more papers.

For the record, I spent most of my interview time discussing the fact that the real estate market in Pittsburgh is bizarre and that the people who can afford $2000 rent for a 1 bedroom apartment can't be working in Pittsburgh. I have friends who live in telecommute to Chicago and New Jersey, but live in Pittsburgh. This I thought was interesting, not characterizing me as a New York City resident when nothing could be further from the truth.

[Maureen Rottschaefer]

Small typo in previous post. College was in North Carolina, not NYC.

[sean mcdaniel]

yeah, the contractor talks about sustainability...walking to carson street...taking the "t" to downtown...all those great city amenities...

he says this on the latest popcity cheerleading post:

“To an extent,” Sota continues, “any development in the City of Pittsburgh is sustainable. If you’re building out in the suburbs where you have to drive 20 miles, it isn’t. We’re reinforcing the worth of the city’s access to public transportation and walkable neighborhoods.”

and guess what...his office is in bellevue...and according to the allegheny county tax assessment web site...he lives in the unsustainable suburb of shaler...come sam, let's get the tar and feathers and ride him past piatt place on a wagon!

how dare he talk so pretty and not reside within legal boundries of Pittsburgh?

oh where is john morris when you need his ire?

this is almost enough to make me retire my black and gold "go pittsburgh" varsity sweater.