Neighborhood of the week: East Liberty (Pittsburgh, Progress: house, tenants, school)

[xdv8]

In addition to the railroad tracks, Penn Ave (then called Forbes Road) was an early thoroughfare that quickly became a very well traveled route to Downtown. The Negley clan, who at the time owned the lands on each side of Penn through East Liberty, had the early foresight to widen the road to create a grander experience for those coming from further east. Jacob Negley tried to convince the land owners along Penn Ave to also cede their land for wider road but was unsuccessful. That's why this stretch of Penn is 100'. This was a major contributing factor to its early success. But the big boom came when the Pennsylvania Railroad line was laid through the Valley the connection to Downtown ensured massive growth. For 100+ years the area boomed. Some of the City's wealthiest people built homes and the center grew into a massive center for commerce.

The Federal Income Tax, introduced in 1913, the Great Depression a few decades later, and ultimately a migration to the suburbs left East Liberty looking for answers to a decline in business and the grand solution sweeping the nation took hold. 254 acres were demolished for urban renewal, 3/4 the size of Downtown and the rest is history.

I moved to East Liberty last year and being from the East End I was very familiar with how it was essentially destroyed by the urban mall idea and concentrated poverty. I think it's the most diverse neighborhoods in the City, and is the center of commerce for the East End. When the weather is nice enough I take the bus way from town and walk home, which as eschaton mentioned is about a 15 min walk to most of residential EL.

Right now, as is East Liberty's history, the neighborhood is in flux. A lot of new construction and displacement is occurring. I think the EL is healthy, and on the right track despite what you hear. The new buildings will have retail soon enough, and I really hope the neighborhood retains a mix of people and steady growth.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Geeo

I think the catalyst for the retail revival was the coming of Home Depot, which was a project of Mayor Murphy's and received a lot of criticism. Home Depot replaced a Sears that had closed and was empty for a few years.

I've heard the Home Depot project ended up destroying a fair amount of storefronts along North Highland that were roughly across from where FamilyLinks is today.

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

I also don't think there's anything wrong with Penn Avenue being replete with businesses "catering to a lower-income black clientele", for what it's worth. East Liberty can be successful while housing businesses patronized by both poor and rich, and by both white or black.

I didn't mean to make it sound like it was a problem. Honestly Penn Avenue is arguably one of only two remaining vibrant black-focused business districts in the city (I'd argue that East Ohio Street in Deutschtown serves the same function for the North Side as a whole). Regardless, East Liberty was historically a shopping destination not just for the wealthy, but the working class as well, so the current mixed-income business district is more of a return to form.

Originally Posted by grep

Besides a much more prominent location, The Ace has put on a lot of musical events including the multi-day VIA festival, while I'm not aware of any shows that have happened at Hotel Indigo. The Ace also has a bar that's a popular destination. Anecdotally, I've been to the Ace ~10 times for these and other reasons, but I'm not even sure exactly where Hotel Indigo is.

My wife and I stopped into the Ace Hotel for the first time the other week looking for its photobooth. I was surprised at how bumping the brunch at the restaurant was.

Originally Posted by grep

East Liberty Boulevard is notable for being one of the first streets in Pittsburgh to have a wide, continuous bike lane on both sides of the streets for almost the entirety of its length. However it doesn't connect to other bike lanes and has thus never been a primary bike artery, from what I gather. Still, there are plans to add a bike lane on Negley between Penn and ELB, and with the new bike path in Bakery Square and the coming expansion of bike share, ELB may see greater bike use soon.

I bike during the warmer months (which apparently have started...WTF!) and N Negley is an awful street to bike on. The intersections with East Liberty Boulevard is the worst by far - I've nearly been hit multiple times there.

Originally Posted by sky329

also some amazing new construction behind the old Peabody ball fields that are a exact match to the 43rd street new units

A new one just started going up across the street at the corner of Hays and N Beatty.

Originally Posted by sky329

not many houses seem to pop up on the mls unless they are complete junk or new construction making it harder for it to gentrify and new flips

Recently four or five of the Hays Street rowhouses went on the market for around $70,000, IIRC. Total gut jobs, but at least two of them are being gutted as we speak...er...type.

[wpipkins2]

Ventos pizza along with a record shop and i cant remember what else was in the block of victorian buildings. The buildings co existed with Sears not sure why they demolished them and replaced them with that cinderblock building.

[gladhands]

The only thing that keeps me from moving to East Liberty is the distance between the good housing stock and the commercial strips. For a neighborhood with so much commerce, it isn't really all that walkable for many of its residents.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by gladhands

The only thing that keeps me from moving to East Liberty is the distance between the good housing stock and the commercial strips. For a neighborhood with so much commerce, it isn't really all that walkable for many of its residents.

The thing to remember is East Liberty was not built out in the pedestrian era, but the streetcar era. Streetcar suburbs were never as walkable and urban as what came before them, at least in their outlying areas, because the expectation was you would take the streetcar into "town" for your shopping needs.

That said, much of what was lost to urban renewal wasn't the commercial core of the neighborhood, but residential areas just outside of it. The whole northwestern quadrant of Penn Circle - an area which is mostly parking lots - was originally filled with detached, mostly wood-frame houses. There used to be many blocks of houses where Penn Plaza is today as well. Given the lot sizes and the frame cladding they likely weren't rich people's houses, but it's a shame they didn't make it to the modern era.

If you wanted to live in East Liberty, own a house, and be in a more walkable area I'd suggest waiting it out for a house on Amber Street or Rippey Street. That said, it would be even more convenient to get a house on the 200 block of Lehigh in Shadyside and just walk across the S Highland bridge.

[selltheburgh]

I live in the northern part of East Liberty. Except for when it is very cold (2-3 months per year), I walk or bike to the business center or 4-5 times per week. That's Penn ave and south. It takes about 10 mins to get to Penn and Highland.

The western and northern part of the downtown area is going to be very different in 5 years, which will make the area north of East Liberty Blvd much more walkable than it already is.

The northern section is also very close to Bryant St. It takes less than 10 minutes to get to the market or the restaurants or Tazza D'oro.

[sky329]

I remember going to David's shoes on penn ave to get Jordan's back in 1995.. this was then peak gang time in Pittsburgh and east lib was a scary place back then amazing to see the transformation.. east liberty is actually the only originally primary black neighborhood in the city to see any kind of change or investment besides the lower hill... the gang back then was called "LAW" Larimar ave & wilkinsburg and they were a pretty unsavory bunch who rivaled local crips and bloods.. and with all the old homes there I don't see why there aren't more being marketed

[kettlepot]

Eschaton, I can't rep you again until I spread it around, however, I really want to commend you for putting in the Google Map links to illustrate some of your points. That's really helpful to people reading who are from Out of Area or New to Area who aren't familiar with specific streets.

[xdv8]

Originally Posted by sky329

I remember going to David's shoes on penn ave to get Jordan's back in 1995.. this was then peak gang time in Pittsburgh and east lib was a scary place back then amazing to see the transformation.. east liberty is actually the only originally primary black neighborhood in the city to see any kind of change or investment besides the lower hill... the gang back then was called "LAW" Larimar ave & wilkinsburg and they were a pretty unsavory bunch who rivaled local crips and bloods.. and with all the old homes there I don't see why there aren't more being marketed

East Liberty wasn't originally a black neighborhood, it became one in the urban renewal era 1960s -

[gladhands]

FWIW, I patronize a lot of businesses; both those which cater to yuppies and those which cater to "poor blacks". Black people, regardless of socioeconomic status, go to Black barbershops and beauty supply stores, and buy sneakers. That strip also houses medical/dental offices, community organizations, and the wonderful Kelly Strayhorn Theater.