Allegheny Riverfront Vision

Allegheny River Kayak Trip, August 27,2009 | 4:30 p.m

2009-10-07T08:45:00.007-04:00

Venture Outdoors and Friends of the Riverfront led a kayak trip down the Allegheny river. Participants got some exercise and enjoyed beautiful views of the sunset, while observing the riverfront from a different perspective, the river.

Design Charrette, September 21,2009 | 3:30 p.m.

2009-10-02T14:36:00.010-04:00

A group of regional stakeholders for an exciting design charrette hosted by Perkins Eastman and the planning team. Design focus areas included Doughboy Square, the riverfront trail, potential green connections throughout the study area, Smallman Street and the intersection of 40th Street and Butler Street. The outcome of this charrette will be presented at a community meeting in October 2009.

Heth's Run Ice Cream Social, Sepetember 9,2009 | 6:00 p.m

2009-10-02T14:11:00.009-04:00

The Morningside Area Community Council, the Highland Park CDC and the Pittsburgh Zoo organized an ice cream social where stakeholders also got to learn about the Heth's Run Restoration Project. We enjoyed ice cream and river views while discussing strategies for the future of our riverfront. We also brainstormed ideas about how to reconnect the East End to the Allegheny River through the Highland Park/Heth's Run greenway.

Riverquest Boat Tour, August 25,2009 | 3:30 p.m

2009-10-02T13:44:00.010-04:00

The Advisory and Steering committees of our study, joined the URA, City Planning and Riverlife for a Riverquest boat tour down the Allegheny River. Stakeholders got to experience both sides of the river from a green vessel while learning about the ecology of the river's edge from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

Allegheny River Dragon Boating, August 21,2009 | 6:00 p.m

2009-10-02T12:22:00.010-04:00

If you have never seen the Allegheny River or the downtown skyline from a bench on a dragon boat, you've missed a great experience! Dragon boating, which is a world-wide sport, is also a fun way to be out on the river with no expertise or special equipment. The long wooden boats have ten benches for twenty paddlers, along with a drummer and steersman, and, unlike the narrow rowing shells, are very stable in the water. Rowers went for a sunset paddle with the paddlefish, enjoying great river views.

Strip District and Lawrenceville Historic Bike Tour, August 22, 2009 | 11:00 a.m.

2009-10-02T09:37:00.009-04:00

Bike Pittsburgh and Venture Outdoors organized a historic bike tour through the Strip District and Lawrenceville led by Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. The tour included plenty of stops to point out historic architecture. Cyclists enjoyed views of the riverfront, discussed planning strategies, and talked about innovative way to reconnect this important corridor.

Click here for more photos from the event

First Community Meeting Review

2009-08-20T14:21:00.003-04:00

On June 25, 2009 we held the first Community Meeting.

Click Here to view the first Community Meeting Presentation (13.7mb PDF)

Click Here to view the first Community Meeting Notes (137k PDF)

Trib Report on 1st Meeting

About the Allegheny Riverfront Vision

2009-07-13T09:03:00.001-04:00

For decades, Pittsburgh’s riverfronts were used as transportation corridors for industrial production. With few exceptions, the street grid was vacated from this zone to support larger contiguous footprints required by industrial uses.

Today we recognize the riverfronts as natural treasures that have the potential to become valuable amenities and assets for the public and the neighborhoods along them, including opportunities to reconnect neighborhoods back to riverfronts, reclaim the waterways as amenities, and provide recreation. The Allegheny Riverfront Vision Plan seeks to achieve this by creating a comprehensive and unified vision for the redevelopment of 6.5 miles of the Allegheny’s south shore stretching from 11th Street in the Strip District to Highland Park and a small area on the north shore at the 16th Street bridge. The study area involves hundreds of parcels, both publicly and privately owned. The project will examine ecological systems, market-based land uses, neighborhood connections, open space, infrastructure and pedestrian and transit opportunities.

The planning effort which began in April 2009 and continues over the next 12 months, is led by Perkins Eastman for urban design and planning, along with a team of ecological and landscape designers (CH2M HILL, Viridian Landscape Studio and Continental Conservation), transportation (Clear View Strategies and Trans Associates), and market consultants (GSP Consulting).

A 16-member Steering Committee that includes representatives from the URA, the mayor’s office, Riverlife, property owners and community organizations will oversee the effort with the support of a larger advisory committee. The public is invited to participate through community meetings, workshops and special events. Recommendations are expected in about a year.

Who Our Members Are

2009-06-26T19:53:00.002-04:00

Please download these PDFs to see who our members are:
Click Here to View

Comments

2009-04-28T15:00:00.002-04:00

Leave comments here for general project comments or comment directly on any post on the blog: