Can you tell me about Pittsburgh (Philadelphia, Allentown: rental, townhouse, elementary school)

[eschaton]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

1. There's plenty of places I like more than Pittsburgh.
2. They are all ridiculously more expensive in terms of housing costs.

[fleetiebelle]

Originally Posted by eschaton

I've said it before, and I'll say it again.

1. There's plenty of places I like more than Pittsburgh.
2. They are all ridiculously more expensive in terms of housing costs.

Yeah, I don't think anyone who says that you can live a decent life in Pittsburgh means that it's the only place you can live a decent life, or that it's the best city in the world. It's just that, depending on individual priorities, when you weigh the pros and cons Pittsburgh can score pretty well. Like any other place, it's not for everyone.

[gortonator]

Originally Posted by fleetiebelle

Yeah, I don't think anyone who says that you can live a decent life in Pittsburgh means that it's the only place you can live a decent life, or that it's the best city in the world. It's just that, depending on individual priorities, when you weigh the pros and cons Pittsburgh can score pretty well. Like any other place, it's not for everyone.

I'm very disappointed. This post is far too sensible and non-controversial

A perfect conclusion to the thread perhaps?

[zman63]

Originally Posted by Copanut

What field are you in? I spent last night with 6 good friends and all are doing well. If this area is so bad for you, move.

I am doing very well. I am posting this because I care about the region and I want to see it grow. I have a house and a good job. It is a lot more than most people have. Especially under the age of 40.

This is the issue I have with the status quo attitude. We get named most livable city in 2007 and all of a sudden the wrongs and mistakes of last 50 years magically go away? We were also named most livable city in 1985. We did not learn then. The 80's, 90's, 00's and up till now were not kind to the region. After 50 years of losing population it has finally leveled off in 2010. Yet the government structure and companies in the region mostly remains the same.

It would be wonderful if the region could do a better job encouraging college students to start their own businesses and diversify the local economy. All of those jobs and businesses add up to one big corporation, but if one fails you don't have all of your eggs in one basket. Aquion Energy is a good example, but we need more like it.

Having fortune 500 companies and large corporate HQ is nice, but if it goes bankrupt or moves you lose hundreds to thousands of jobs right there. Pittsburgh is putting all of its eggs in the UPMC and university job basket. Anybody remember what happened to the steel industry here in the 70's and 80's?

Lets all just relax with this positive press and not make any further corrections, consolidation or progress forward.

[politiker]

Originally Posted by zman63

I am doing very well. I am posting this because I care about the region and I want to see it grow. I have a house and a good job. It is a lot more than most people have. Especially under the age of 40.

This is the issue I have with the status quo attitude. We get named most livable city in 2007 and all of a sudden the wrongs and mistakes of last 50 years magically go away? We were also named most livable city in 1985. We did not learn then. The 80's, 90's, 00's and up till now were not kind to the region. After 50 years of losing population it has finally leveled off in 2010. Yet the government structure and companies in the region mostly remains the same.

It would be wonderful if the region could do a better job encouraging college students to start their own businesses and diversify the local economy. All of those jobs and businesses add up to one big corporation, but if one fails you don't have all of your eggs in one basket. Aquion Energy is a good example, but we need more like it.

Having fortune 500 companies and large corporate HQ is nice, but if it goes bankrupt or moves you lose hundreds to thousands of jobs right there. Pittsburgh is putting all of its eggs in the UPMC and university job basket. Anybody remember what happened to the steel industry here in the 70's and 80's?

Lets all just relax with this positive press and not make any further corrections, consolidation or progress forward.

Healthcare is a much safer basket than steel though no? UPMC might not be the best at it though.

[zman63]

Originally Posted by politiker

Healthcare is a much safer basket than steel though no? UPMC might not be the best at it though.

Maybe, but if you read these articles it may change your thinking....

Hospital costs higher here - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Hospitals do employ a lot of people (hundreds), but also require a large flow of sick people to fill them. The jobs are nice, but it doesn't say much about the overall human "health" of the region.

There were also articles saying that Pittsburgh is more quickly to admit people into the hospital than other cities. We also spend less money in preventative care because there is not as much revenue in it as hospitalization.

Regional Insights: Less health care could be better for us - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Right now West Penn Hospital system employs 8-10k people in the region. It is on shaky ground. What if it went under? Where would all of these people go to find work? Im not just talking about nurses and doctors. What about the food, maintenance, call taker, cleaning, engineering workers they employ?

UPMC employs 40-50K people. The new health care laws promote the need for preventative care. If UPMC closes a few of its hospitals due to over saturation of the market you are looking at a few thousand people out of work. UPMC has also stated they will freeze most hiring for the foreseeable future.

UPMC to reduce hiring pace and reorganize staff with reimbursements expected to be cut | TribLIVE

[MathmanMathman]

Originally Posted by zman63

This is the issue I have with the status quo attitude. We get named most livable city in 2007 and all of a sudden the wrongs and mistakes of last 50 years magically go away? We were also named most livable city in 1985. We did not learn then. The 80's, 90's, 00's and up till now were not kind to the region. After 50 years of losing population it has finally leveled off in 2010. Yet the government structure and companies in the region mostly remains the same.

I'm not convinced though. Historically, during Pittsburgh's decline, the population drain has been stanched by recessions only to resume afterwards. We had a very bad recession and its effects have been long lingering. Pittsburgh's "turn around" might really be more symptomatic of there not being jobs in the rest of the country to leave Pittsburgh for.

Personally, I think Obama, like Roosevelt before him, has had more of a negative effect on the recovery because of his policies making it last much longer than it should. The result is a false sense of a resilient and growing economy in Pittsburgh and may last for as long as the Obama administration. Hopefully our country hasn't fallen into a long and protracted economic slump like Japan.

[zman63]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

I'm not convinced though. Historically, during Pittsburgh's decline, the population drain has been stanched by recessions only to resume afterwards. We had a very bad recession and its effects have been long lingering. Pittsburgh's "turn around" might really be more symptomatic of there not being jobs in the rest of the country to leave Pittsburgh for.

Personally, I think Obama, like Roosevelt before him, has had more of a negative effect on the recovery because of his policies making it last much longer than it should. The result is a false sense of a resilient and growing economy in Pittsburgh and may last for as long as the Obama administration. Hopefully our country hasn't fallen into a long and protracted economic slump like Japan.

I have mentioned the population "turn around" in the same manner as you. I feel it is most likely people staying put due to the nationwide economy. If you and i are correct the population stabilization numbers will shrink again due to the improving economy elsewhere. I am on the same page as you.

I dont think you blame this president or past ones. Just like you cannot blame the senate and congress. The economy is an idea made up of 300 million residents. We have nobody to blame but ourselves. You have people that want to sit at home and do nothing. Then you have a small number of people that make up most of the wealth in this country and they too want to suck the system dry. Americans have developed the me me me way of thinking. 300 million of us need to look no further than ourselves in the mirror to see what the problem is. Unless a majority of attitudes change for the better this is how it will be.

[MathmanMathman]

^ True, but a president's policies can have a chilling effect if it is not pro-business. Business is not very fond of Obama's policies and despite really low interest rates, business hasn't shown great confidence and has been slow to take advantage of it by investing and expanding.

Atlanta has scored some coups by attracting companies to relocate there, the latest being PulteGroup Realty moving from Detroit to Atlanta as well as other IT companies such as GM opening an IT Center and will hire 1,000. Texas has been taking advantage of California's woes by poaching some of its companies. By contrast I haven't seen much similar announcements in Pittsburgh.

[zman63]

Originally Posted by MathmanMathman

^ True, but a president's policies can have a chilling effect if it is not pro-business. Business is not very fond of Obama's policies and despite really low interest rates, business hasn't shown great confidence and has been slow to take advantage of it by investing and expanding.

Atlanta has scored some coups by attracting companies to relocate there, the latest being PulteGroup Realty moving from Detroit to Atlanta as well as other IT companies such as GM opening an IT Center and will hire 1,000. Texas has been taking advantage of California's woes by poaching some of its companies. By contrast I haven't seen much similar announcements in Pittsburgh.

We have thousands of college students graduating in the city/county/region every year. Yet the population of the city/county/region has been on the decline for years. Why? Is it because we are an isolated city? Bad weather? What have we been doing wrong?

I say this because Columbus, an isolated city 3 hours west, has grown and continued to grow the last 50 years in city, county and region. Yes they have OSU, but Pittsburgh has a lot of colleges as well that equal at least half of what OSU pumps out each year.

What does a city like Columbus have that Pittsburgh doesn't? What makes people want to stay there, have families and start businesses? It does not have a light rail system. The weather is quite the same. The airport is smaller and serves a million less passengers than Pittsburgh each year. Only one pro sports team.

I have heard arguments that it is the state capital. Well look at Harrisburg... It is bankrupt. Also, PA is a larger state than Ohio.