What's Pittsburgh Really Like? (Oliver, Oakland: houses, neighborhood, law school)

[docwatson]

Thanks, all, for the insights into Pittsburgh. Hope to make it out there sometime. I certainly enjoyed my time in the Finger Lakes region and hiking in PA. Hmm ... probably still looking at the NW for now, though. Similar weather, closer to the coast and more asian-american influence. If we ever think of the East Coast, Pittsburgh will be on our list, though.

[SteelCityRising]

As someone who is currently in the process of relocating from Northern Virginia/DC to Pittsburgh I can safely say that the only things that I feel as if the Steel City will be "lacking" are:

1.) Diversity: Where I live in Northern Virginia I'm the minority as a Caucasian male. I've dated outside my own race, faith, and ethnicity here for the first time in my life. I've honed in on my Spanish-speaking abilities. I've enjoyed all of the ethnic dining options very much. I feel as if I've become more tolerant myself towards differences in others because of this. Pittsburgh isn't entirely "vanilla", but it is certainly nowhere being near the melting pot Northern Virginia/DC is.

2.) Cultural Opportunities: Pittsburgh has professional sports, the cultural district Downtown, the Warhol Museum, an aviary, aquarium, zoo, and a few other museums, but DC blows Pittsburgh out of the water in terms of cultural offerings, namely due to the presence of the Smithsonians.

3.) Weather: I've heard that Pittsburgh is constantly overcast. I thrive in sunlight, sort of like a plant, so this concerns me. Then again DC is disgustingly humid in the summer, so much so that I'll sweat while just sitting still, so hopefully Pittsburgh will be marginally better in that regard.

4.) Air Travel: Pittsburgh's airport is undoubtedly smaller and offers less international destinations than the ones in/around Metro DC. This means a long drive to DC for direct flights or paying more for a connecting flight from Pittsburgh to DC (or Philly or NYC I suppose) for international flights. I've never traveled abroad, but for those who need to do so on business I can see that getting very old very quickly.


Pittsburgh offers a lot of edges over DC, too, and these are too good for me to pass up.

1.) Affordable housing: My dream home is currently listed in Braddock Heights for $94,500. A similar home in DC or its inner suburbs would cost $450,000, if not even more. DC is a city oriented towards dually-employed upper-middle-class earners, so if you're single by choice or through no fault of your own you're out of luck in terms of buying a decent home. As a young professional I can buy a very nice home in Pittsburgh at age 25. In DC? I'd have to wait until I was at least in my mid-30s, and I'd have to "trade-up" to get there (i.e. 1-BR condo in need of TLC then selling for a townhome then selling for another home, etc.) Life is too short to wait around until you're pushing 40 to start being happy.

2.) Friendlier people: Many people in Pittsburgh may be a bunch of "woe is me" Debbie Downers who hate the city they live in, but they're undoubtedly much more down-to-earth and friendlier, overall, than the people of DC. People move to DC to try to change the world. They want to prove to others or maybe to themselves that they're a "somebody." They want to be mover or a shaker. They want to be noticed, and they won't think twice about throwing their next of kin under a bus to get a promotion or to score some other sort of incentive. I was the victim of this, and it traumatized me so terribly I nearly killed myself earlier this year. I refuse to raise my own family someday amongst such selfish, aggressive, and career-focused people, so Pittsburgh wins for me.

3.) Historic charm: Pittsburgh has actual cohesive neighborhoods where people genuinely care about who lives next-door. Northern Virginia has HOAs where everyone lives on a cul-de-sac, doesn't know their neighbors very well, and hops in their SUVs to drive a half-mile to the big-box store or chain restaurant of their choice. Pittsburgh is a city built for walking and exploring on foot, and I've always loved that. The city's architecture is truly outstanding. Even the distressed and blighted areas possess an odd charm because you can just feel the nostalgia pulsing through your veins.

4.) Low congestion: Pittsburghers whine all the time about traffic, but I was stuck in one of their "jams" once and couldn't stop laughing. You want bad traffic? It took me nearly three hours yesterday to drive from Reston, in Northern Virginia, to Catonsville, in Maryland, via the Beltway, and there wasn't an accident or construction. It was just sheer congestion. I could have biked there more quickly. I also can't really say I have a lot of sympathy for people who choose to live in Plum, Monroeville, or points further east and then commute Downtown for work because they didn't "need" to live in the suburbs. They could afford a nice home within walking distance of their workplaces if they so chose.

[docwatson]

Thanks, Reston. I think a lot of the reasons you mention drew me to Pittsburgh - the beauty of both the historic neighborhoods and the outdoors, the low cost of housing ... I lived in DC for a summer and while I can appreciate some of it, I think it's unfortunate how many cities are becoming the kind of place where only ambitious two-income families can afford a house. I know some people truly love their career, and for others there's a certain smugness in achieving a certain level of owning things, but for the most part I see people struggling to balance career, commuting, family and financial pressures while smiling and assuring you they wouldn't have it any other way ... congrats on getting out of the rat race and establishing some equity! Get that house paid off and then you no longer have to be a wage slave!

I think the challenge for me is finding a place that is affordable, but that also has a reasonably educated population, nice amenities (both city-wise and outdoors) and some career options. It seems to me Pittsburgh, as well as Portland, offer all of these.

[BrianTH]

Best of luck in the NW! After growing up in the Detroit area, I ended up in Pittsburgh, and my brother decided to move to Portland, and now my sister, who originally moved to Colorado, has joined my brother in Portland. We have often commented on the similarities between the cities we chose--although Portland and Pittsburgh have taken VERY different paths to get to a roughly similar point.

[Sideblinded]

Brian,

It must be made clear that Sci-Tech is not the same as CAPA. The highest ranking kids in science and math do not get in. (automatically, or at all.) At CAPA the best at what they do get accepted.

Sci-Tech is a lottery not an audition. All a kid has to be is proficient, not one extra point for exceeding.

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by jay5835

Pittsburgh is not near the water. You're a good six hours from "down the shore" in New Jersey. While I'm glad I chose Pittsburgh, in terms of weather and closeness to the coast, Portland is by far your better deal.

Portland would be better in that it has the coast. However, having lived in Portland for a year, the coast is way too cold ALL-YEAR round. You would never do the swimsuits and jetskis or whatever else kind of thing.

The Oregon coast is best for a long drive. It also rains significantly more along the coast than Portland as well - and Portland always has a drizzle all the time. I think that is the reason that the population is so incredibly rural along the Oregon/Washington coastline - combination of way too cold and even more rain than that valley that Portland, Salem, Eugene sits in, etc.

I also found it rare to take that coastline drive from Portland as well. It's still a major effort to drive over to there, and outside of driving and looking at the view, there isn't any beach scene, ever, that you couldn't wait to get to.

In that regard, Pittsburgh to Erie PA, at least you'd have a beach scene and beach weather for a couple months of the year

[paladinking]

Originally Posted by Aqua Teen Carl

True, but you must not forget when it does melt many times it refreezes causing everything to be covered in ice. Also, it seems that ice storms have been very prevalent over the past few years. Is there alot of that going on in alot of places in the US? I don't hear too much about it anywhere else.

[rhondee]

Originally Posted by paladinking

Yes,

Portland,Ore. in '04
the Midwest in '07 and '09
Arkansas in '09
N.Carolina in '09

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Sideblinded

It must be made clear that Sci-Tech is not the same as CAPA. The highest ranking kids in science and math do not get in. (automatically, or at all.) At CAPA the best at what they do get accepted.

I agree that is worth making clear. However, I don't think that means Sci-Tech couldn't end up a desirable school.

[mike02]

[quote=RestonRunner86;16287661] 3.) Weather: I've heard that Pittsburgh is constantly overcast. I thrive in sunlight, sort of like a plant, so this concerns me. Then again DC is disgustingly humid in the summer, so much so that I'll sweat while just sitting still, so hopefully Pittsburgh will be marginally better in that regard.


Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you are from the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area. So you can't call Pittsburgh overcast. The weather is the same for sunshine and overcast between Pgh & ScrWB. Maybe winters in ScrWB have a couple days more sunshine per week, but no improvement. Equally gray, equally sunny.

And for the record, I grew up in Scranton, lived in Philly, and now live in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh had the cloudiest winter while Philly had the sunniest. The other seasons were rather similar between the three, although I remember many crappy, overcast, rainy summers in Scranton. Pitt and Philly usually have nice summers, but Philly was too humid. All three cities don't have tons of sunshine for summer weather (I would prefer SoCal), but they are liveable.

Side Note: Many people I've talked to who moved from NYC to Pittsburgh, thought the weather was similar for sunshine except the winter. Scr/WB not much better. This topic is constantly talked about. Maybe someone should write about the daily weather in Pittsburgh so this can be put to rest.