University of Pittsburgh’s Urban Studies Association Newsletter Issue 13 October 2005 T HE PRESIDENT’ S A DDRESS My fellow Urbanites— We’re back! The urbanSA (yes, we had a branding change this year) is starting Fall 2005 renewed and ready to explore the city again. After a mid-summer planning session with officers, alumni, and current members, the urbanSA is setting up its first strategic plan to make sure we’re sustain- able enough for years to come. Put your two cents into our strategic plan by taking our first-ever online survey, available from our website’s front page. Your opinion will affect how we plan our events in the not-so-distant future. And speaking of events... We know how much you heart getting out into town. So TRACKS OF STEEL: LIGHT far, we’ve set up Oakland cleanups with the Oakland Planning and Development Corporation’s Adopt-a-Block program, an- R AIL IN PITTSBURGH other work day with Habitat for Humanity’s Panther Chapter B Y PATRICK SINGLETON (which was a huge success even in last winter’s 19-degree weather), a tour of Regent Square, with more tours of East One of the most hotly contested issues recently is, not surprisingly, Liberty and other hotspots in the East End in the works, plus a government spending on a transportation project. This time, it is a light talk with Boldly Live Where Others Won’t author Mark Harvey rail extension to the T termed the North Shore Connector. With both Smith and a screening of the End of Suburbia. That’s just the ardent supporters and strong opposition, this $393 million project de- fall term. serves the attention it is receiving. Extended from this one specific pro- I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce and thank ject, however, a wider discussion of Pittsburgh-area transit and trans- this year’s urbane board of officers. Michelle Scott (Vice- portation is also warranted. Let us begin with a brief history of transit, President), Miranda Spiro (Treasurer), Jen Armstrong examining Pittsburgh during the last few hundred years, from trolleys to (Secretary), Lizzie Diller (Newsletter Editor), and Rachael Ko- T’s. han (PR Officer) have all been phenomenal right-arms for the At the beginning of the 20th century, new forms of urban transpor- organization and great sports for tirelessly attending our tation, streetcars and trolleys, were becoming popular. An adaptation of Wednesday night steering meetings. A round of applause the power of the transcontinental railroad swept cities nationwide, and goes out to more members coordinating events and programs Pittsburgh was no exception. In 1902, the Pittsburgh Railways Com- like the West End Pedestrian Bridge contest and the Urban pany acquired most of the established routes to become the near- Library—Patrick Singleton and Kate Spaulding. We also have monopoly transit provider. By 1910, the company was serving about two dedicated alumni, Chuck Alcorn and Dan Feller, whose 600,000 passengers each day across 581 miles of track. That number guidance has kept the officers calm and collected. had increased to over 600 miles spread over 99 routes by 1918. And last but not least, a tip of the proverbial hat goes to Continued on Page 4 our 200+ membership—we are always ready to transform your love of the city into the means to make it better. Find out how to get involved by checking out our website, dropping us INSIDE THIS ISSUE: W H O A R E W E ? an email, or attending one of our steering meetings. Keep the 2 lights on in your city. From the Coordinator The UrbanSA is an organiza- Sean Capperis, urbanSA President [email protected] Environmental Planning 2 tion of Pitt students with the common desire to interpret and Public Art 6 understand the neighborhoods and cities that we live in. To Helping Community 7 that end, we welcome and em- brace a wide range of diverse Oakland Square 8 opinions and ideals. A “New” New Orleans 9 E-mail sorc+[email protected] Crime and Cities 10 Website Residence in Japan 11 The Regent Square tour was a blast! Make sure you come on the next tour. www.pitt.edu/~sorc/urbansa Page 2 T HE ENVIRONMENT AND REGIONAL PLANNING Continued form Page 1 B Y EDWARD K. MULLER, URBAN STUDIES DIRECTOR The environment—its conservation, preservation and resto- vices like fire or police forces and sharing tax revenues, but ration—is increasingly recognized as a significant element in planning is rarely mentioned. Pittsburgh’s efforts to become a competitive metropolitan region Just as smoke pollution and even sewage treatment after once again. Effective remediation of the three rivers’ water qual- World War II required regional cooperation to effect solutions, ity and ecology, for example, would entail extensive cooperation environmental issues today may be pushing the region incre- among the many local governments that make up the Pittsburgh mentally towards greater regional cooperation and planning. region. Yet, Pittsburgh area politicians view “regionalism,” or as Both persistent water quality problems and recent devastating it is sometimes called “metropolitanism,” as political suicide. floods reveal the inadequacy of addressing water management For many Pittsburghers, the word once connoted the forcible issues on the fragmented basis of municipal actions. Early in annexation of suburban communities by the City of Pittsburgh; the twentieth century, City of Pittsburgh politicians and engi- more recently it signals the merger of Pittsburgh and Allegheny neers decided to treat city water drawn from the rivers and al- County governments into one metropolitan entity, all seemingly Continued on next page at the expense in various ways of local suburban communities. A suburban or county politician, who appears to advocate region- alism, courts voter displeasure and the prospect of defeat at the polls. For much of the twentieth century civic leaders and consult- ing experts promoted the consolidation of local governments in order to achieve perceived governmental economies, efficiency in the provision of services, and greater rationality in land use, that is regional planning. After 1910, suburban communities blocked most annexation and regional consolidation proposals. Planning on a region-wide scale occurred only on a limited basis for a few specific functions. In particular, since World War II high- way funding from state and/or federal sources required local consensus on routes crossing political boundaries. Accordingly, regional highway planning actually took place, though it too had to navigate diverse local interests. Recently, economic stagna- A map of Allegheny tion, population decline, and the flirtation with bankruptcy by the County showing all 130 City of Pittsburgh have revived serious interest in some sort of municipalities. city and county consolidation. Discussions involve merging ser- FROM THE COORDINATOR Although I have not received final approval yet, I remain economy, and other economic development strategies. We hopeful that my Integrated Field Trip Abroad (IFTA) proposal will also visit one of the French New Towns. Neighborhoods will be approved, so that I can take students to Paris and that reflect the historical past as well as current government London for two weeks at the end of the upcoming spring se- sites will be included as well. Much of the focus throughout mester. Students enrolled in Urban Studies 1700, the trip will be on experiencing Haussmann’s influence, the “International Urbanism” will have the opportunity to accom- epitome of modernism in city planning. The London trip will pany me to Paris and London in order to do field research, be similar, including a day trip to Letchworth, the first Gar- applying the theories explored in Urban Studies 1700 during den City designed by Howard, whose influence has been the semester to a study of the actual environment. quite widespread in twentieth century urban development. Paris and London are the perfect cities to compare, both While the purpose of each trip is not to visit the common reflecting the impact of globalization and modernism on the tourist sites, many of them do in fact exemplify the very top- urban way of life. The cities share similarities of size, geo- ics we will be studying. I am looking forward to the possibility graphical location along a major river and, in some ways, of this trip immensely. history. Further, both cities being major players in the global economy, they should make for an interesting comparative If you’re interested, be sure to enroll in Urban Studies experience. There are striking differences also. Understand- 1700, “International Urbanism.” ing the causes of those differences, in light of the similari- ties, will be a major focus of the field trip. Commencing in Paris, we will tour different neighbor- DR. CAROLYN CARSON hoods and towns that exemplify specific urban issues such URBAN STUDIES COORDINATOR as social housing, gentrification, development for the global Page 3 Continued from previous page low sewage to be dumped into the rivers below the water in- State and federal politicians of the region have rushed to take pipes in violation of state regulations. Other regional com- their respective governments for grants to study, repair, and munities adopted their own solutions to their sewage disposal, improve flood control measures. As well intended as these ef- including dumping in the rivers by towns upstream from city forts may be, they cannot alone solve the problem without also intake pipes. Finally, between 1946 and 1956 the Allegheny addressing the land use issues of an entire tributary stream County Sanitation Authority [ALCOSAN], established under watershed. And, since watersheds encompass many communi- state legislation, brought together many, though not all, county ties, regulation of development and land use will require re- municipalities and the city into a central sewage collection and gional cooperation and planning.