Pittsburgh and UPMC (job market, neighborhoods, schools)

[Elder18]

Is anyone else disgusted by UPMC?

They offer $100 million dollars for kids to go to school and then say, "By the way, we'll only give this to you if you agree not to tax us forever."

Which is funny, because if they were taxed, the city would get like $250 million every single year.

And of course the idiot mayor you all re-elected things such an agreement is a great idea.

Perhaps Boy Mayor and UPMC discussed this during the little golf outing they sponsored that he went on earlier this year.

I know cities are cesspools of corruption, but this place really takes the cake.

Disgusting!

[Merge]

I haven't decided how I feel about this yet. I don't like that they asked to be exempt from their voluntary annual contributions. But they are indeed voluntary, unless the city somehow reclassifies the status of non-profits. The program itself does impress me. It would be great if more people felt comfortable sending their kids to the city schools. This is a plan that could actually make a difference. On the other hand, it does nothing to address the budget deficits the city has been racking up for awhile.

For the record, I'm not a Ravenstahl fan.

[O'Neil]

Personally, I don't think the program makes much sense. I think they'll end up wasting a lot of money sending a bunch of these kids to college who aren't prepared for it and will drop out. Of course though, I'd prefer they did that then give the money to the city government to waste in other ways.

[RockLobster]

Once again those in charge have made incredible choices. I keep telling myself to give Mayor Luke time to grow into the mayor's office. What else can you do when the voting public continues to empower these people. UPMC supporting the eduactional cause falls way short of what the UPMC taxing responsibility should be. You should not be allowed to swap one for the other. BOGUS BOGUS BOGUS

[guylocke]

Which is funny, because if they were taxed, the city would get like $250 million every single year.

If the city could tax UPMC it would be 8 million a year. Which btw, will STILL happen considering UPMC dropped it's bid for special tax consideration due to the Promise.

http://http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07361/844779-85.stm (broken link)

[simetime]

Hmm, On one hand give the city more money to do stupid stuff with it or provide a way to keep kids in school and hope that they continue on to college and THEN relocate to a city that can provide them with a decent job. Tough choice

[guylocke]

Nah, there's plenty of research that shows that a huge, huge, margin of students who do their higher education in Pittsburgh stay or at least have a desire to stay in Pittsburgh.

I'm sure they all can't stay due to the tightness of the job market, but I imagine the Pittsburgh Promise will really help the city a great deal.

And if the students move away for a "decent job," well, good for them, I'm just happy they got themselves a good education.

There are plenty of more than decent jobs in Pittsburgh. In fact, the "decent jobs" are also our fastest growing sectors. So we'll see what happens.

BTW, I guess enough bad press will even make UPMC think twice. I'm sure they didn't just drop their demands out of love. LOL. Oh-well, whatever works.

[globalburgh]

The best hope for the Pittsburgh Promise is reversing the migration to the surrounding suburbs. I'd seriously consider living in Pittsburgh proper if I knew that the college education for my children will be covered.

Tax base increases
Schools get better
Neighborhoods improve

My main concern would be the results of gentrification, pushing lower income families out of the city.

[guylocke]

The best hope for the Pittsburgh Promise is reversing the migration to the surrounding suburbs. I'd seriously consider living in Pittsburgh proper if I knew that the college education for my children will be covered.

I don't believe that. It could be very succesful. It may not be, either. Only time will tell. It could really have a fantastic ripple effect. I mean, a stronger education force, more students in local universities, and more graduates wanting to stay in Pittsburgh while spending money in the area could have much more pronounced impact than simply "a best hope of reversing migration to suburbs."

[globalburgh]

More graduates won't want to stay because of the Promise. Plenty of students already want to study at local universities (Pitt and CMU do an outstanding job of attracting students, particularly from outside the state). And Pittsburgh already has its fill of needed talent.

The primary problem that the Promise addresses is the untaxable base residing outside city limits. I don't see how the Promise will produce the "ripple effect" you describe.