Hill District then and now (to live, area, place)

[simetime]

Originally Posted by raubre

What are they doing with the building anyway? Is it going to be a theater again?

The last time that I was home, I seen that they have gutted it and were waiting for some funding to complete the project. It is going to be some sort of theater for performing arts

[simetime]

Originally Posted by raubre

I think it was closed before I was born (1973) so I don't know if it ever had anything there but movies. I think it would be better used as a performance space.

I remember going there and watching Bruce Lee flicks and dodging the rats (the year before it closed) scurring under the seats From my understanding turning it into a performance arts theater is the goal

[simetime]

Originally Posted by wpipkins

Most suburban people travel to the grocery store by car. In this neighborhood the demographics are alot different and most people do not own a car. That is why there was a push to get this thing built. Some residents on the Hill had to either catch multiple buses to and from the grocery store or use jitney service. If you do not have access to a grocery store, this can lead to unhealthy eating habits. This is a nationwide epedemic that is being address in Pittsburgh.

Hill district residents went to the Gaint Eagle on Centre Ave before it closed but mainly they had to catch a jitney over to the Southside to get groceries (for the longest buses did not run from the hill to the Southside). But you are right this will promote a healthier lifestyle and save the residents alot of money in the long run

[Herodotus]

There were several groceries on the Hill before the riots, but the rioters looted and burned all of the stores. The Hicks family opened a Shop and Save at Centre and Dindiddie in the late 70's. but the many junkies in the area, stole them blind, and they had to close. Hopefully the new owners will have a good plan in place to minimize this, as the drug addicts are still nearby.

[Uptown kid]

[quote]There were several groceries on the Hill before the riots, but the rioters looted and burned all of the stores. The Hicks family opened a Shop and Save at Centre and Dindiddie in the late 70's. but the many junkies in the area, stole them blind, and they had to close. Hopefully the new owners will have a good plan in place to minimize this, as the drug addicts are still nearby.[quote]
That's a shame!!! In the inner-city more often then not there are junkies & or alcoholics loitering infront of black owned businesses!!!

PS: Back in the day didn't the Hill have way more business streets than just Centre./?

[I_Like_Spam]

Originally Posted by Herodotus

There were several groceries on the Hill before the riots, but the rioters looted and burned all of the stores. The Hicks family opened a Shop and Save at Centre and Dindiddie in the late 70's. but the many junkies in the area, stole them blind, and they had to close. Hopefully the new owners will have a good plan in place to minimize this, as the drug addicts are still nearby.

I'd be more concerned about whether the new store can generate enough sales, modern supermarkets can use modern methods to limit theft.

The new store probably needs $300,000 or more a week in sales considering its size to maintain profitability and people can only eat so much. The Giant Eagle stores at Southside and Market District probably have most of the Hill District residents food business and they aren't going to sit by quietly and not compete for that business, particularly among those Hill residents that don't live real close to Shop n Save.

[I_Like_Spam]

[quote=Uptown kid;21518462]

PS: Back in the day didn't the Hill have way more business streets than just Centre./?

Back in the day, there were groceries and food stores all over the place in every neighborhood.

Between the dominance of the automobile and people's increased mobility, as well as the economics of scale, groceries and stores have got big and bigger.

Even though many small groceries on the Hill bit the dust after the riots in the 60's, they still couldn't have survived to the present day- lots of smaller stores throughout the city got run out of business in the 70s and 80s which weren't affected by rioting.

[simetime]

Originally Posted by Herodotus

There were several groceries on the Hill before the riots, but the rioters looted and burned all of the stores. The Hicks family opened a Shop and Save at Centre and Dindiddie in the late 70's. but the many junkies in the area, stole them blind, and they had to close. Hopefully the new owners will have a good plan in place to minimize this, as the drug addicts are still nearby.

I went to school with the twins! I did not know that they owned the Shop n Save, I knew that they owned a small grocery store on Centre across what is now a senior citizen living facility

[wpipkins]

I walked up Centre Avenue yesterday. The foudation of the shop and save is being laid at the moment. The Irene Kauffman renovation and addition looks amazing. I was most impressed with the size and quality of the Thelma B. Lovette YMCA. It is huge and interacts well with Centre Ave. The Dinwiddie Street infill project looks amazing as well and leads down to the renovated Fifth Avenue High School.

Once all of the projects are completed, we will have a continuous developed stretch of the Hill. This will be the first time since the riots of 1968.

[simetime]

Originally Posted by wpipkins

I walked up Centre Avenue yesterday. The foudation of the shop and save is being laid at the moment. The Irene Kauffman renovation and addition looks amazing. I was most impressed with the size and quality of the Thelma B. Lovette YMCA. It is huge and interacts well with Centre Ave. The Dinwiddie Street infill project looks amazing as well and leads down to the renovated Fifth Avenue High School.

Once all of the projects are completed, we will have a continuous developed stretch of the Hill. This will be the first time since the riots of 1968.

The interesting thing about it once they finish, the people who were there in the 80's will not be able to afford to live there anymore