Suburb(s) of the Week: Baldwin Borough and Township (Mount Lebanon: neighborhoods, inspectors)

[eschaton]

I'm doing another twofer this week, considering both Baldwins at once - the larger Baldwin borough, and the smaller, lesser known Baldwin Township, tucked between the city and Castle Shannon.

My understanding of how the Baldwins got their shape is basically as follows. There was once a giant Baldwin township which included much of the South Hills. Over time Brentwood, Whitehall, and Castle Shannon incorporated as boroughs, and the city annexed a "finger" of property into the neighborhood of Hays (which is why Baldwin has a weird border with the city. Finally most of the old Baldwin Township decided to incorporate as a borough, leaving the a little exclave to remain as Baldwin Township.

I know the most about Baldwin Borough because I have known a few people who have lived there. There's a pretty stark division between "upper Baldwin" and "Lower Baldwin." The two actually share no road connections at all due to the long twisted shape of Baldwin - Brentwood Road traverses an undeveloped gap but doesn't connect to Lower Baldwin at all. Upper Baldwin is more closely culturally linked with Brentwood and Carrick, and more working class white, almost feeling backwoodsy in places. Lower Baldwin is more typical South Hills suburbia. Baldwin is also notable for being one of the places closest to the city without bus service, much to the local's chagrin. Last I checked, buses travel through Baldwin, but will not stop there.

I don't know much about Baldwin Township. Since it was basically made up of leftover bits, it doesn't really have a distinctive street pattern, with different streets operating more like extensions of Brookline, Overbrook, Castle Shannon, or Mount Lebanon than feeling like their own thing. Most of the McNeily Road commercial area is in Baldwin Township, which means there are some local amenities, even if they aren't walkable.

[guy2073]

In my opinion both Baldwin's rank tied at the top of my list for worst building inspectors. I really like Baldwin Twp, it has some nice neighborhoods. I know my post is not constructive but it is all I've got.

[Goinback2011]

Zzzzzzzzzz.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by Goinback2011

Zzzzzzzzzz.

If we're going through alphabetically, there's bound to be some boring ones.

One great business in Baldwin is Oddball Pets & Aquariums. I've not had time to be very active in the fishkeeping hobby for years (basically, since my kids were born) but I continue to go there from time to time to stock the tank here at work. Top notch people with a great selection who actually treat their stock like living beings, not like disposable products.