Declining City Neighborhoods (Pittsburgh, Allentown, Wilkinsburg: real estate, crime, houses)

[PreservationPioneer]

I was thinking lately about all the Pittsburgh neighborhoods which are doing so well, and seem to be rebounding or are enjoying gentrification. Some great neighborhoods off the top of my head: South Side, Strip District, Downtown, Mexican War Streets, Deutschtown (west of highway), Bloomfield, Lawrenceville, Mt. Washington, Friendship, Shadyside, Regent Square, Squirrel Hill, Highland Park, Morningside, East Liberty. I think all of these areas are doing well.

But driving around and exploring the city, it's impossible not to notice the neighborhoods that are crying out for help. Here is my list. I'm afraid some of these neighborhoods just won't make it in the long run, as the housing stock is already significantly impaired in many. These, in my opinion, are Pittsburgh's forgotten neighborhoods.

East Allegheny (east of the highway on the North Side).

Calbride Place (North Side. Most of the housing stock is gone, and yet it's on the National Register of Historic Places).

Manchester (losing more houses day by day, to fire, neglect, and demolition. A city historic district, too.)

Esplen (what remains of the housing stock in this neighborhood, adjacent to McKees Rocks and W Carson, is mostly abandoned or in poor condition).

Bluff (again, this neighborhood between Oakland and Downtown has been hurt by widespread demolition of the historic housing stock. What remains appears to need a lot of love).

Spring Garden / Spring Hill (these neighborhoods just seem so neglected, and yet they have amazing potential, location, and views).

West End (again, a neglected neighborhood. I wonder if most Pittsburghers even know there is a West End).


I started thinking about how and why these neighborhoods became so deteriorated. They seem to be among the hardest hit by Pittsburgh's huge population loss since 1960. I think about all of the older people dying in Pittsburgh. I think many of them lived in these neighborhoods -- and there are no young people to replace them (they all move to the east end). These neighborhoods need to be discovered by younger generations before it's too late to save what is left. Most of these neighborhoods are in prime locations, and only Manchester / Calbride Place are known for crime. So what gives?

[hornet67]

I work with someone who lives in Carrick, and has done so for a long time. While not normally a complainer, she bemoans the general decline of her neighborhood. She and her husband would love to sell their house, and move to a better location, but home prices are very depressed there, and they would take a real hit in a sale. I feel very badly for her, and others in the same predicament.

[szug-bot]

some people just dont care about their neighborhoods. its a crisis of cultural values, where the individual is revered and celebrated more than anything else.

others in decline: beechview (slowly, but surely, it seems), fairywood, crafton heights.

[Drover]

There was a time a few years ago where West End looked like it would become the city's best hidden gem. But then the restaurant that anchored the would-be revival (used to be Temperanceville Tavern, then became Grill 412) got shut down because some a-hole stole their liquor license from behind the counter and then mailed it to the PLCB as proof that the restaruant was operating without it. That really seemed to take a lot of steam out of the West End renaissance before it could even get off the ground. I would occasionally hang out at Temperanceville Tavern back in the late '90s, and in all honestly it was pretty creepy. Not the tavern, but the whole neighborhood. The West End defines the "isolated neighborhood" sensation you get in some of the hilly parts of town. In fact it feels like its own little holler village; someone who wasn't familiar with Pittsburgh would have no idea they were less than a mile from downtown if they were knocked unconscious and dropped off in the West End.

What surprises me is that so many of the T-line neighborhoods are in such marginal to outright bad shape. Beltzhoover, Allentown, Arlington... these places should be prime real estate with easy access to the South Side, downtown, and some really sharp city views. I started a thread asking about Beechview a few months ago. All the information I can gather from a distance suggests it's still a pretty safe and stable neighborhood, but the business district looks like a ghost town despite the fact that the T rolls right through it. It baffles me how these assets are all but taken for granted. The upside is that if you don't have to live in a tidy, sanitized neighborhood but you still want a safe quiet area, you can get a fully renovated 4/2 in Beechview right off the T for about 125-150 grand. If you want to do the renovations yourself and want a solid home to start with, you can pick one up for less than 70 grand.

[jimmyev]

Originally Posted by Drover

What surprises me is that so many of the T-line neighborhoods are in such marginal to outright bad shape. Beltzhoover, Allentown, Arlington... these places should be prime real estate with easy access to the South Side, downtown, and some really sharp city views. I started a thread asking about Beechview a few months ago. All the information I can gather from a distance suggests it's still a pretty safe and stable neighborhood, but the business district looks like a ghost town despite the fact that the T rolls right through it. It baffles me how these assets are all but taken for granted. The upside is that if you don't have to live in a tidy, sanitized neighborhood but you still want a safe quiet area, you can get a fully renovated 4/2 in Beechview right off the T for about 125-150 grand. If you want to do the renovations yourself and want a solid home to start with, you can pick one up for less than 70 grand.

Perhaps the city has too many of these neighborhoods right now. The same you said about the T-line neighborhoods can be said for the communities off the East Busway - Wilkinsburg and Swissvale - and the West Busway - Carnegie and Sheridan. In some of those spots, you can get a solid house only needing cosmetic remodeling for less than 30 grand. Then there are other cheap areas with just as frequent bus service like Millvale, McKees Rocks and Brighton Heights.

I lived in the West End for a Summer a few decades ago. It was like living out in a small town in the forest. We would get endlessly lost in the woods just hiking around. And there were all kinds of abandoned things hidden in the woods to explore.

[BrianTH]

I agree the basic problem is too many similar neighborhoods, and not enough new money and new people to go around. I think eventually we'll get around to redeveloping most of these areas, but eventually could take quite a while.

[Rebelution]

I used to live in the Hill district of Pittsburgh. It wasn't the worst place in Pitt but I think a lot of people ignore it. Which is sad because it could be beautiful. But that's besides the point.

The reason I wanted to comment to was to agree with your choices of good sections, and personally my favorite is the South Side. Love it to death and really want to move back to Pitt and specifically into that section of the city.

[Aqua Teen Carl]

Originally Posted by hornet67

I work with someone who lives in Carrick, and has done so for a long time. While not normally a complainer, she bemoans the general decline of her neighborhood. She and her husband would love to sell their house, and move to a better location, but home prices are very depressed there, and they would take a real hit in a sale. I feel very badly for her, and others in the same predicament.

The neighborhood has been in decline since I was a kid. I remember it as a great city neighborhood where no one bothered you and everyone was friendly. Now it's crime ridden and the general population seem to be sub human. I really started to notice the change in 1999.

I guess the word spread about how bad the neighborhood was getting because once I got to college, my buddies in the dorms (who were from the suburbs) thought I was some sort of "gangsta" because I was from Carrick.

Another neighborhood who's suffering the same fate is Brookline.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Racheallee

What's interesting is that Allentown is going through a revitalization next year and being redeveloped . . .

You state this as if it's a foregone conclusion, like you can just schedule a revitalization and it will happen according to plan. If neighborhood revitalization were such a risk-free proposition, there probably wouldn't be any such thing as a dilapidated neighborhood. I hope Allentown becomes a success story, but it's worth keeping in mind that revitalization efforts sometimes don't pan out. (See: Bernardo Katz/Beechview)

[PreservationPioneer]

What declined neighborhoods have the most potential? I think the West End, particularly Sheraden, West End Village, and Elliott, could be gorgeous. I think the appeal there is the slower pace and the feeling of country in the city. Plus, there's just no traffic at all. Perhaps I'm being too harsh when I say these are declined neighborhoods, because they really aren't all that bad, just neglected.

I also think Mt. Oliver has a great business district, and would be gorgeous if it was ever revitalized.