Neighborhood of the week: Brookline (Pittsburgh, Mount Lebanon: hair salon, houses, neighborhoods)

[eschaton]

Brookline is one of the largest Pittsburgh neighborhoods, both in terms of land area and population. An outer-ring neighborhood located at Pittsburgh's southern fringes, in many ways it is more closely tied into southern suburbs like Dormont and Mount Lebanon rather than other portions of the city due to topographical constraints - narrow ravines which formerly had major surface streams, but which now house state routes 19 and 51, meaning few people walk (or bike) in or out of the neighborhood from elsewhere.

Brookline is a neighborhood where the housing vernacular ranges from streetcar suburban to actual suburban. The areas built out first - on the back streets around Brookline Boulevard, and along Pioneer Avenue - contain a number of houses built out in the first decade of the 20th century. Even by the early 20s however much of to core of Brookline hasn't been fully built out - the true housebuilding boom for the neighborhood was from the 1930s through to around 1960, with many individual areas of the neighborhood "postwar" in built form.

Brookline Boulevard has a very extensive business district, which curiously is almost entirely located on the southwestern side of the street, with the northeastern side mostly residential. The business district contains all the basic essentials needed for walkability, including a coffeeshop, pizza places, chinese, deli, hair salons, banks, dry cleaning, bakery, library, Wine and Spirits, and neighborhood bars. Besides a few ethnic eateries which draw from a wider area like Pita Land, however, Brookline has few destinations businesses in its business district - no antique stores, no bars above "shot and a beer" type places, and (AFAIK) no restaurants which are at a higher level than takeout with a few seats. Still, I think it's fair to say that Brookline has the best "neighborhood business district" (as in, one catering to the neighborhood solely) in Pittsburgh.

Brookline has long been viewed as a "stable" neighborhood. It has had the typical population decline due to declining household size, but the neighborhood never had a whiff of urban flight, and remains one of the whitest neighborhoods within city limits. Brookline's local K-8 school is pretty well regarded - again being a neighborhood school which is still heavily used by local residents.

The neighborhood has relatively limited transit options. The core of the neighborhood is served by the 39, a bus which runs frequently during the day, but ends service relatively early (around 8, IIRC). Far eastern portions of Brookline are walkable to some Blue Line T stops, like South Bank Station.

Is the neighborhood gentrifying? Probably not. There has been a small influx of younger professionals into the neighborhood in recent years (some of which post on this forum) drawn by affordable prices, decent housing stock, and the functional but not trendy business district. There are too many other neighborhoods this same demographic is also examining as it is priced out of the East End however, so it's unlikely a critical mass will be built up. Even if it was, Brookline is a large neighborhood geographically, with many areas functionally just "a suburb in the city" so it's likely that many of the outlying portions of the neighborhood will not change substantially in the near future.

[ferraris]

The limited transit options boggles me. It seems like the demand for more frequent & longer running service would be there. Is it?

[Geeo]

It's a great stable neighborhood. Lots of choices in housing stock, from 1920s bungalows to 1960s mid-century. A few of the streets are brick and tree-lined, and the business district is strong. The recent renovation of the street has made it easier to get around and for pedestrians.

Although housing prices are up, it's still within reach of middle class buyers, and the local schools are good and have a pretty substantial immigrant population.

[lprmesia]

+1 for Las Palmas.

[steindle]

It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that the bus to Brookline stops at 8, but not that much of one. There are three buses from Downtown to Brookline starting at 8, but they come every NINETY MINUTES, ending at 11:06. And the last bus from Brookline to Downtown is at about 10:15, and there are only two of those after 8. It is kind of stunningly minimal bus service for such a large and relatively well-populated area.

[grep]

Looking For Group is a gaming establishment that draws people from outside the neighborhood.

This report about Brookline is full of great facts. On average, Brookliners are notably older, whiter, richer, better educated, and more likely to drive to work alone than the average pittsburgher.

[JLeigh2182]

We bought our first house in Brookline in August and are loving our decision so far. Our street is quiet, the neighbors are friendly, and we are about a 10 minute walk from the Boulevard. I take the bus into town for work every day and haven't had any issues so far.


We are expecting a baby this winter and I'm excited to learn more about the schools and other activities offered for children. We plan on staying in our house for at least a few years.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by JLeigh2182

We bought our first house in Brookline in August and are loving our decision so far. Our street is quiet, the neighbors are friendly, and we are about a 10 minute walk from the Boulevard. I take the bus into town for work every day and haven't had any issues so far.


We are expecting a baby this winter and I'm excited to learn more about the schools and other activities offered for children. We plan on staying in our house for at least a few years.

YAY! Welcome to the city! If I remember you correctly you used to live in Mt. Lebanon, correct?

[JLeigh2182]

Originally Posted by SteelCityRising

YAY! Welcome to the city! If I remember you correctly you used to live in Mt. Lebanon, correct?

Correct. In the past 3 years I've lived in Mt. Lebanon, Mt. Washington, and now Brookline.

[SteelCityRising]

Originally Posted by JLeigh2182

Correct. In the past 3 years I've lived in Mt. Lebanon, Mt. Washington, and now Brookline.

So now Brookline has you and PghYinzer. Seems like the cool nabe now. I might have to jump on the bandwagon, too! Most of my colleagues already live in the South Hills city 'hoods anyways.