Happenings in Pittsburgh!! (Philadelphia, Liberty: credit, loan, relocate)

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Pittsburgh could be poised to be a major player in yet another technology, cosmology. Bill Gates and Charles Simonyi Fund has given a total or 30 million dollars to 22 institution partners to create the world's most powerful telescope. Pitt and CMU are both playing large roles in the program.

For the many Pittsburgh researchers that will be pulled into this endeavor, the project has the potential to make our region a premier research center in this field.

"What we hope is that Pittsburgh will become a research center for cosmology," says Jeffrey Newman, a nationally recognized expert on large survey astronomy and Pitt assistant professor. "Both Pitt and CMU will be hiring 2 people each in this field. It places us right at the forefront of physics and astronomy. We will be data experts for access to the LSST data."

The LSST will be the largest digital camera ever built, at 3 billion pixels, and will be perched on Cerro Pachón, a mountain in northern Chile where it will generate 30 trillion bytes of data per night. The detailed footage will provide a colorful, movie-like view of the cosmic activity and dark forces behind the universe’s expansion, making it the largest public database ever built.

Pitt, CMU and partners receive $30M gift to construct world's most powerful telescope, hiring (broken link)

[fleetiebelle]

Update on post#347: Hotel, offices, condos planned for Don Allen site

A development partnership with offices in Pittsburgh, Chicago and Fort Myers, Fla. announced plans today for a major redevelopment of a three-block area on the Shadyside-Bloomfield border, replacing the Don Allen Auto City site with a mix of townhouses, condominiums, a 120-room hotel, office, medical and retail space.

The development, spanning three blocks, will include 350,000 square feet of "boutique" retail, 58,000 square feet of street-level "commercial" retail, 300,000 square feet of office and medical space and a 120-room hotel with the upper levels reserved for 150 condos and townhomes. Parking will be on the lower levels, mostly underground.
A park will also be part of the new project.

[vwscottie]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

Update on post#347: Hotel, offices, condos planned for Don Allen site

That will really make that location nice. There is a nice Marriot right across the street too that will accentuate that.

[fleetiebelle]

Prosit! German-style beer hall OK'd for SouthSide Works

When the Cincinnati Reds played at home, owners of the Hofbrauhaus, a German-style beer hall in nearby Newport, Ky., noticed that business was very good. But when the Pirates came to town, they found business to be even better.
Thus, the seeds were planted to build only the third Hofbrauhaus in the United States, in Pittsburgh at the SouthSide Works.
After lengthy delays, including concerns about the impact of Allegheny County's recently enacted 10 percent drink tax, the city Urban Redevelopment Authority board cleared the way yesterday for construction of the restaurant, which will be built behind the Cheesecake Factory, facing the Monongahela River.

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Prosit! German-style beer hall OK'd for SouthSide Works

That's AWESOME!! I believe they were very right about Pittsburgh being a good location. There is a very large German descent population. I know I'm excited about it!!

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More stuff coming to the North Shore!! The club-theater plans are back on the table to build a venue complex and got the green light!! A hotel is also planned along the waterfront.

KDKA Investigator Andy Sheehan has learned the Steelers have formed a partnership with an entertainment giant AEG to build another type of venue described as a theater-nightclub to bring top flight music acts to the North Shore.

They've enlisted stadium architects HOK of Kansas City to design it.

the building will be able to accommodate between 2,000-3,000 patrons and even host larger outdoor shows in the summer.

The club-theater will also go a long way to making the North Shore a year-round entertainment destination. The concert dates will help nearby bars and restaurants which are often packed on Steeler or Pirate game days but not so much when the stadiums are dark.

Steelers To Build North Shore Theater-Nightclub

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Pittsburgh made the top 10 list from kiplinger.com's Top 50 Smart Places to Live. They consider smart to be, "Fun, Vibrant, and Affordable."

Hollows and streams in the surrounding hills carve out distinctive neighborhoods that are linked by more than 700 bridges. Steeples of 19th-century churches dot tree-lined streets. Glittering skyscrapers cluster at the Golden Triangle, where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet to form the Ohio.

Inside is the Entertainment Technology Center, in which students who are candidates for master's degrees from Carnegie Mellon University create new devices, such as a touch screen that lets children in hospital waiting rooms color in 3-D characters that move. Steady prosperity is expected to bring 10% more jobs to the city by 2010.

50 Smart Places to Live

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The Economist ranked 127 cities around the world in their Best and Worst Cities for Business Travel. Pittsburgh made the top 10!! It actually came in 11th place, but there were two sets of two-way ties at rank 6 and 9, so technically speaking, adjusting for ties, it made 9th place.

They ranked cities based on several factors: stability (crime), healthcare, culture & environment, infrastructure, and cost.

Canadian cities made the top 3 spots, go Canada! The number one city will be my neighbor by the end of year!! Go pacific northwest and Vancouver!!

Best and Worst Cities for Business Travel

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I realize Pittsburgh is trying to revive it's youthfulness and statistically speaking we have one of the highest elderly populations in the country, but Pittsburgh also made the top 10 list from kiplinger.com for Best Cities for Retirees and Empty Nesters.

I know my extremely well-off cousins are coming back to Pittsburgh from DC in less than a couple years once they retire and are bringing their wealth with them. That's a good thing!

Best Cities for Retirees

Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh? Yes, the former steel city not only is picturesque -- built on green hills -- but also is very affordable and filled with museums, great restaurants, and interesting neighborhoods. Best of all for retirees, its economy now is driven by "eds and meds." This combination of education and medical facilities means health-care options and continuous learning.

Best Cities for Retirees
And Empty Nesters, Too!

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Don't ask me HOW, lol, but E. Carson St is about to get some major upgrades, with one mile of the hot spot destination to become 4 lanes with 7 turning lanes being added.

Construction is to begin this fall to widen the street to four lanes and provide turning lanes at seven signalized intersections from 25th Street to a half-mile west of Becks Run Road. The project also will mean new sidewalks, street lights, trees and landscaping.

Officials said the East Carson Street widening will improve safety for pedestrians as well as help with traffic on the busy thoroughfare, where economic development has mushroomed over the past four years.

East Carson Street to be upgraded