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Some people (myself included) wouldn't mind living near an industrial factory or plant or two. I love Pittsburgh's industrial heritage and history and would actually think it would be cool to live by a concrete plant. I don't hear about people in the Strip in places like Lot 24, Cork Factory, or Otto Milk complaining about the industrial activity around them. Noise is part of city life.
I know 43rd Street Concrete in Lawrenceville has been pressured to move out of the neighborhood for a while now, but I think that's a shame. Maybe force them to sell (or donate) the parcel of their land immediately adjacent to the river so that the river trail can squeeze by, but otherwise that plant (and its trucks) were there long before the new yuppies of Lawrenceville moved in. We moved to Brereton Street with full knowledge that when the church is having events (especially during Holy Week) and when Gooski's has a band, there's literally nowhere to park. It's fine. City life is all about trade-offs.
There are very vocal pressure groups against industrial activity in residential neighborhoods. Most of the complaints are about air quality, not noise-related complaints.
There are many organizations complaining about the McConway & Torley plant and the Sunoco facility in Lawrenceville.
McConway & Torley has been in operation in its current location since the 19th century, but the yuppies moving in now are complaining about it. Heck, even Millvale's sustainability coordinator is complaining about McConway & Torley - its utterly ridiculous.
There are very vocal pressure groups against industrial activity in residential neighborhoods. Most of the complaints are about air quality, not noise-related complaints.
There are many organizations complaining about the McConway & Torley plant and the Sunoco facility in Lawrenceville.
McConway & Torley has been in operation in its current location since the 19th century, but the yuppies moving in now are complaining about it. Heck, even Millvale's sustainability coordinator is complaining about McConway & Torley - its utterly ridiculous.
These industries have always been polluting of course. But the tradeoff was worth it when the plants employed hundreds to thousands of people - all of which happened to live in the neighborhood. Now that employment levels are often less than a tenth of when these plants were at their height, and almost none of the workers live in the neighborhood, there's a lot less reason for the locals to fight to keep them there.
These industries have always been polluting of course. But the tradeoff was worth it when the plants employed hundreds to thousands of people - all of which happened to live in the neighborhood. Now that employment levels are often less than a tenth of when these plants were at their height, and almost none of the workers live in the neighborhood, there's a lot less reason for the locals to fight to keep them there.
"McConway & Torley has been tucked back on 48th Street since 1868 when William McConway bought Eagle Gray Foundry. "
"McConway & Torley, a nonunion shop, employs about 325 hourly workers and has about 100 on salary, Mautino said. Entry-level employees make $15 an hour plus benefits. The average salary is $19.50 to $20 an hour."
- But here, over 400 people are employed. Starting salaries are $31k per year with benefits. The people who moved in to this neighborhood can pound salt if they didn't do their due diligence. If they didn't want to live next to a plant, then they shouldn't have bought or rented in the vicinity of one - given the plant has been operating in that location since the time our great-great-grandparents generation was working there. It would be one thing if they were trying to build a new foundry in a residential area, but thats not the case.
It would be like if I complained about the Allegheny Valley Railroad's train whistles blowing at night. The house I bought is two blocks from the tracks in Etna. Guess what? I realize the choo-choo was here before me, so I deal with it instead of whining about it.
Guess the steelworkers should give up their good jobs and take some BS job for the "new" Lawrenceville economy like bicycle repairman, or barista, or overpriced hipster barber, or artisan soap maker...
For all of the complaints about the stagnation of job creation in this region, why are people so unsympathetic to preserving hundreds of good-paying jobs in a proven industry that has had long-term success?
Having industry in the heart of a residential area is just not a good long term situation, and eventually McConway + Torley will need to relocate. There are two options as I see it:
(1) Do nothing, and it will just be a matter of timing when the market pressures eventually incentivize the property sale over continued operations. As the real estate development continues, and political and economic capital of Lawrenceville increases, eventually the market pressures will flip and it will make more economic sense for the owners of McConway + Torley to sell their property for millions of dollars in a red hot real estate market.
Its not about hipsters, it is about wealth, power, and influence. When McConway + Torley was doing their thing in a less affluent neighborhood in the decades past nobody had the voice or the clout to challenge them. Now, the same neighborhood is one of the hottest real estate markets around and the people who are investing many millions of dollars into the properties realize that people do not want to pay $500k for a newly renovated house and deal with the pollution.
The young hipsters that people on this thread love to make fun of, are definitely not the ones able to afford these homes. We are talking about full blown, rich adults here as well as massive business investment in the real estate market and as well as regular people who have lived there for a long time and just want to protect their investments as well as their personal and family health. I know there is a lot of "love it or leave it" sentiment on this thread but there is a third option..."change it"
(2) "Change it" the best option that I see is looking at reality, and removing opinion. First, among folks fighting to close McConway + Torley there is a lack of understanding of the jobs impact and also the lack of putting forth plans to address the pollution issues while keeping the jobs in tact. Second, among folks fighting to keep McConway + Torley open there is a lack of admission that there are hundreds of jobs that are being created thanks to the construction and business boom in Lawrenceville, and an attitude that people just have to accept the situation or that they are whiners. Meanwhile there is a way to create a win - win situation...its called relocation of the facility into an area in our region that is not a residential part of town, which could be jointly funded by a combination of the owners selling the property + tax credits + local/County/State government incentives (I mean our taxes paid for Heinz Field and PNC Park...). I see this as the only long-term way to ensure the future of these jobs in our region.
Just my read of the situation, and is my attempt at a solutions-based conversation that I do not hear anyone having...
Does anyone know how/when this plant went non-union?
I took a quick glance in the newspaper archive, and there seemed to be an almost 100 year history of unionism at that plant:
1913 article, 500 of 650 men walk out on strike. William McConway Jr. says, "no strike here, and plant operating as usual".
1948 article, castings business, which wasn't purchased by McConway until 1944, is moving from Baltimore to Pittsburgh.
1970 - '71 - the company experienced an "almost disastrous," six-month strike.
During the strike, the employees apparently rejected an interesting management proposal for a four day work week. Other documents suggest that McConway did implement the four day week for a time in the 1970s, but that it was not successful (productivity increased, but workers feared that wages were being depressed).
August 1977 - two employees of McConway were hit by a pick-up driven by a foreman who was "trying to bust through a labor dispute with a ton of steel".
January 20, 1980 -- the majority of the 450 workers at the plant ignore a federal court's "back to work" order (the article notes that the "national" union had actually urged the men back to work, but they ignored its pleas). The employees returned to work after 1 day.
A 1990 article notes that the workers at the plant had been represented by the USW until 1983, when the plant closed. The plant was re-opened in 1986 under new management, and most of the workers were re-hired under new management (and presumably no union). The article reports that the 116 production workers at the plant had just voted 57 - 47 in favor of joining the USW. Another 1990 article reports on a fire at the plant and notes that it just re-opened, "last year".
The company was purchased by Trinity Industries in1998 -- Trinity owns manufacturing facilities in (approx.) 29 states.
A 2013 article reported on the fact that McConway's Kutztown, PA plant, in operation for nearly as long as (in one form or another) Pittsburgh's was just shut down -- some say in a union-busting effort by parent company, Trinity.
The young hipsters that people on this thread love to make fun of, are definitely not the ones able to afford these homes.
I'm always curious about what caused some people to think a young person in hock to Sallie Mae or whatever for 200K (for some real sticker shock, look at CMU's 2016 undergad tuition rate), and in more than half of cases, working for wages that are below that of many high-school grads, is financially capable of gentrifying. Usually, the response is "trust funds." Right. People who've inherited millions of dollars took out nondischargeable debt for the kick it gives them and are eating Ramen and pooling resources to save money as an amusing hobby. I guess they are all just slummin' it or heard Pulp's "Common People" as an instruction manual instead of a slam against rich kids playing poor.
I'm always curious about what caused some people to think a young person in hock to Sallie Mae or whatever for 200K (for some real sticker shock, look at CMU's 2016 undergad tuition rate), and in more than half of cases, working for wages that are below that of many high-school grads, is financially capable of gentrifying. Usually, the response is "trust funds." Right. People who've inherited millions of dollars took out nondischargeable debt for the kick it gives them and are eating Ramen and pooling resources to save money as an amusing hobby. I guess they are all just slummin' it or heard Pulp's "Common People" as an instruction manual instead of a slam against rich kids playing poor.
For me personally I would find it silly to not take out a mortgage now even if one had the means to purchase outright given the low rates. My money most certainly makes more then I pay in mortgage interest rates. & yes, I'm one of those despised millennial gentrifiers.
For me personally I would find it silly to not take out a mortgage now even if one had the means to purchase outright given the low rates. My money most certainly makes more then I pay in mortgage interest rates. & yes, I'm one of those despised millennial gentrifiers.
And statistically in the minority. Probably not a very effective gentrifier either, given you are not an investor or developer. Though if you like considering yourself an agent of gentrification, that's cool.
I'm sure you are aware as well that there continues to exist people, including people much older than you, who see the low interest rates and still decide against homeownership for a variety of reasons.
. I'm sure you are aware as well that there continues to exist people, including people much older than you, who see the low interest rates and still decide against homeownership for a variety of reasons.
& in Pittsburgh, unless you only plan to stay short term or can't afford a downpayment, this makes zero sense to do as the housing cost of rents are very lopsidedly high compared to the costs of purchasing.
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