Green Spring

If you think it's been quiet in this neck of the woods, you're right. But it's not because I haven't been blogging. Between Earth Day, Pittsburgh hosting World Environment Day, and general Spring feelings, I've been focusing my efforts on "Green is Good."

Check out the recent posts on Pittsburgh's air quality (bad but getting better if we keep fighting) and the state of rail in Pennsylvania.

Now go plant a tree.

"Green Is Good"

I've been asked to be a contributor to the Pittsburgh-based environmentally-conscious blog, "Green Is Good." So today, when I read the good news about the future of commuter rail in Pittsburgh, I blogged over there. Check it out.

This is Consolidation?

This past week, County Executive Onorato announced the appointment of a sustainability manager for Allegheny county.

If this man is actually serious about city-county consolidation, couldn't he have worked with Mayor Ravenstahl to perhaps create a partner for the city sustainability coordinator, Lindsay Baxter, instead of attempting to re-invent the wheel at the county level? In a time of contraction of jobs and supposed efforts to reduce duplication between the city and county, our illustrious leaders are showing that they have no desire to change going forward.

As a kicker (as the PGH Comet noted), the Allegheny county position is also being paid almost double the salary of the city coordinator - $85,000 starting salary versus $45,000.

Scorecard?

Pittsburgh - 2 for being ahead of the curve and more economically minded.
County - 0 for duplicating services and wasting taxpayer money. Dan, next time, look before you jump on the bandwagon.

When the green stimulus funds were announced and given directly to cities and counties, Dan Onorato said: "That allows us to be creative." A little too creative if you ask me.

Hello World

I'd be remiss in not shouting from the rooftops that:

Pittsburgh is hosting the G-20 Summit!

The city appears to have been picked because Obama likes the Steelers of our great economic recovery since the Steel collapse. One of the highlights is that the meeting is taking place in the largest green convention center in the country. Let's have some true green initiatives in place by the time the summiteers reach here. How about a green triangle? Or strict LEED-certified building codes? Or LED streetlights rolling out throughout the city? The world will be looking at Pittsburgh. Let's get serious.

Gas-Powered Rocket Science

Gas prices go up, we drive less. Gas prices go down, we drive more. Gas is averaging $1.50 less per gallon than last year and like clockwork, we Americans will be hitting the road and guzzling it up - though maybe with slightly older cars and slightly less SUVs.

At the same time, Rendell and company are beginning the fight for raising the gas tax and more tolls - as well as more standardized public transportation and roadwork funding. The gas tax hasn't been raised in 25 years and the 7,000 earmarks scheduled for this summer's transportation bill make Pittsburgh's repaving schedule look like a transparent, well-oiled machine. Clearly, this system of rewarding SUV drivers at the expense of bus-riders is broken. Finally, someone in power is seriously trying to fix it.

In the meantime, I implore you to continue thinking about the ramifications every time you fill up your car at the gas station, every time you drive to the nearby convenience store instead of walking or taking a bike, every time you're sitting in your car alone during rush hour. And maybe if you all can't be inspired to change your ways by retoric, some well-placed gas taxes will clearly help to deter your bad habits. Through education and taxes, cigarette smoking has sharply declined in this country over the past 50 years. Let's do the same with the vice of oil consumption.

Thank You to the Candidates

Congratulations to the winners of the Pittsburgh Democratic primaries.

To Mayor Ravenstahl: You have earned this victory through rampant spending and incumbency, but also through showing that you can work with Council over the last few months. I was very happy to see you parternering with Peduto and helping to institute some reform changes. Please continue to work with council. I'm sure that last night while you were at Hofbrauhaus, you made some flowery speech about the future of Pittsburgh. If you succeed in the general election this Fall, then I expect that in 4 years, we will have LED street lights, mandatory green building codes, the first tracks laid for a line between Oakland and Downtown, a manageable pension system, and real transparency in city contracting, city maintenance, and campaign donations. Please don't disappoint the constituents that have decided you are worthy of the Democratic nomination.

But most importantly, thank you to all that ran in this election. You make our election process respectable and responsible. Even if you didn't win, you are still contributing to the city by bringing new ideas to the forefront. I am glad that Dowd still has a position in the city as councilman. I hope that he keeps up hammering Ravenstahl when he disagrees with him. I also hope that he can work with Ravenstahl to make this city a better place. It is unfortunate that Carmen Robinson does not have a fall-back position in the city. I greatly admire her motivation and determination to become mayor of this city. I sincerely hope that Ravenstahl (or someone else in a position to do so) sees her connections with the community and initiative and can find her a position someplace in our city government. If not, Carmen Robinson, you must run for another position as soon as you are able.

Green Roof Request

A follow-up to yesterday's blog post. I mentioned Onorato's great new plan to have a green roof on the County building downtown. In a city that pride's itself on its skyline views, green roofs are the way to go. They improve views, help the environment, and lower operating costs all at the same time.

And where do we need a green roof the most? The South Side Giant Eagle. From above it is a giant bland box in the midst of old Victorian homes. My disdain for the Giant Eagle plaza on the South Side is large. It was planned before the age of pedestrian-friendly complexes and rivals Robinson Town Center for pedestrian unfriendliness. The crosswalks that do exist are inconvenient and where one wants to walk is where the cars have right of way. However, it's difficult to retrofit a shopping plaza. What is relatively easy to retrofit? The roof.

To be frank, Giant Eagle South Side ruins the view from my house and every other house on the South Side Slopes, so this is a partially selfish plea. But Giant Eagle has shown that they are willing to install green roofs in Shadyside. Let's see a green roof in an area where people will actually see it, and it will improve the lives of city residents. That's a lot more doable than windmills on Mt Washington and a lot more effective than one solar panel at a firehouse in a city known for cloudy skies.

What else is ruining views in the city?

Turning Over A New Leaf?

County Executive Onorato has been barking up the right tree lately. (Sorry, I couldn't resist the lame green metaphors. Maybe it has something to do with my recent visit to the Amazon.)

Onorato is moving forward with a Green Roof on the County Building while Ravenstahl is dragging his heals on plans to make the city-county building more energy efficient.

He is also touting the CCAC Green Institute - Preparing our workers to be "Green Collar" as well as educating county residents on making their homes more energy efficient are keys to continuing to succeed as a region.

And most importantly, Onorato is putting a renewed focus on transit projects for the region - especially Downtown-Oakland which could be a vital connector.

Good Day For Mass Transit

So I spend yesterday lambasting Onorato for creating schisms between county and city and today he goes and proves me wrong. Onorato wrote a letter requesting money for transit links between Downtown, Oakland and the airport. In fact the headline for the Post-Gazette article is:

Onorato eyes rail links to airport, Oakland

Of course, I have to look closer.

The "fine print" for this letter breaks down Onorato's requests as such:
$7 Million for downtown mass transit system design
$10.5 Million for commuter rail system design
------
Total: $17.5 Million

$25 Million for a road in Robinson
$32 Million for a road in Upper St Clair and Scott
$35 Million for the Mansfield Bridge which connects Dravosburg, Glassport and McKeesport.
$12 Million for a flyover ramp in Rankin and Swissvale
$4.5 Million for road improvements in Marshall
$2.5 Million for road construction in Monroeville
$7 Million for traffic improvements in Brackenridge near a steel plant
------
Total: $118 Million

So $17.5 Million out of a total $135.5 Million (about 13%) of his requests are for mass transit.

I understand that the elephant in the room here is the dreaded North Shore connector which is gobbling up a lot of funding right now.

I also understand that these transit projects will cost ultimately cost billions of dollars but they're only in the design phases right now and there's a limit to how much money you can request for design.

However, I seriously question the short-term vision of our local government who only finds these projects worth pursuing when they are in national favor. Imagine if someone a few years ago had the gumption and follow-through to initiate these studies and if we were ready to go on a spineline between Oakland and Downtown instead of working on a half-assed North Shore connector which no one is truly happy about. What happens in 4 years if Obama is no longer in power and our pathetic local leaders still are (and perhaps Onorato has his governor prize)? Will we then be left with yet more money being spent on highways and interchanges and more transit plans being curtailed and swept under the rug? Will we end up with a new tunnel to the South Side as a booby prize?

But in the meantime, I am very excited to see mass-transit plan being seriously considered even if it's local leaders jumping on the bandwagon. I like this bandwagon. I'd just appreciate some serious long-term regional commitment to spending time and effort on improving our transit systems because right now I feel like it could all disappear at the drop of a hat.

Earth Life

Last summer, oil prices were sky-rocketing and we were all thinking about downgrading our cars and taking more public transportation.

Last month, we had "Earth Hour" where everybody was supposed to shut off their lights on Sunday night. Let's be honest, none of us is willing to live without electricity. But it is useful to reflect on how many items you have plugged in around your house.

Today, it's Earth Day. What are you doing to celebrate?

As normal, "Politics and Place" is focusing on public transportation and recent train stories in the paper. Will we have commuter rail? Will we have more efficient buses? Maybe Luke-y will announce a new initiative today at his Market Square event?

"Green is Good" proclaims itself the green news of Pittsburgh and is my favorite blog to read for local green news. At the world-wide level, treehugger is the end-all-be-all. Any others?

Lastly, there's the new "Carbon Caps = Hard Hats" agenda being endorsed by US Steel. Yes, US Steel is advertising for carbon caps. Why? Because they (and many others) are starting to realize that taking care of our earth can be friendly to our wallets as well.

If there's one thing I've learned about environmentalism in the last 10 years, it's that it has to be profitable to be accepted by the mainstream public. You will always have hippies out there buying hybrid vehicles and biking to work 5 miles uphill each way, but for the rest of us, there needs to be an incentive to put in the extra effort - from corporations to families. For too long the incentives at the federal level have been for buying a bigger house or having more kids or buying a gas-guzzling vehicle. With Obama at the helm of the nation, the incentives appear to be drifting towards train travel and energy-efficient windows.

Personally, I've given up driving a car this month. Not because I'm sacrificing but because I'm in Peru and it's easier (and a lot cheaper) to not have a car. It's been oddly very liberating walking or taking public transportation everywhere I need to go, but that's because the cities of Peru make it stupid simple. There are cabs everywhere, frequent buses, and most of the shopping and nightlife is centered in a small area. Maybe because they've never had government incentives for sprawl? Can we turn back time in the USA? Can we progress towards a country of train-travel and central business districts and responsible utilities usage? And will Peru ever adopt serious emissions standards so their plentiful taxis aren't choking me to death? Today is the day to dream about it.

Less Waste in a Bad Economy?

After recent glowing reviews from the New York Times to Cleveland, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette appears to be picking up the happy Pittsburgh glow.

Latest breaking news? We ranked 14th least wasteful city. Of course, this ranking is out of 25 cities, which puts us (barely) in the bottom half of cities, or 12th most wasteful city. To put that into perspective, Detroit comes in at number 13.

Clearly, we'll never beat New York City in terms of public transportation usage, but there are a few things we should improve on to crack the top ten.

1) More library usage. We have a great resource in the Carnegie libraries and some of them rival Barnes & Noble for atmosphere, yet somehow Pittsburgh ranked 18th in library usage. Save some money, and visit your local library the next time you want something to read or watch. If you do this, and you realize, you're saving oodles of cash while feeling better about the environment, take Brian O'Neill's advice and give a little back to your library.

2) Less driving. We ranked 25th out of 25 in terms of driving instead of walking when you're going less than 2 miles. Spring has arrived, so get out of your car and put your walking shoes on. If you start walking more, you might even find you look better in a bathing suit this summer.

3) More energy efficient light bulbs. As a city, we came in at a fairly respectable number 15 in this category, but it's a joke to switch over to LED street lights, while we don't even change the lights in our home. Manufacturers are practically giving these bulbs away now. With their new styles and wattage options, there's no excuse for you to not have energy efficient light bulbs in every room of your house. Here in Peru, every light bulb is energy efficient. They're not doing it to save the environment. They're doing it save money. So stop whining about your electric bill and change your bulbs. I literally cut my electric bill in half last year when I switched out most of my bulbs.

Kudos to the Post-Gazette for a positive headline. Try it again the next time unemployment rates re-surface. At 6.5% for February, Allegheny County is well under the state unemployment rate (7.5%) and the national rate (8.1%). The 7-county region falls in at 6.9%. Yet the latest headline for the Post-Gazette regarding unemployment? "Local jobless rate increases at fastest pace since '80s"

In summary, don't get too happy about our environmental progress, and keep those jobless rates in perspective.

Cleveburgh vs Pittsland

This weekend, I roughly followed the dated 36 hours in Cleveland piece by the New York Times with some yelp help thrown in. I was drawn to the inevitable comparisons between the two struggling rust belt cities. Looking for the city's equivalent of Primanti Brothers left me stuffed at Cleveland's kitschy and charming Sokolowski's.

Oakland = University Circle a little further from downtown but more accessible via RTA
Bloomfield = Little Italy with less Thai food more Italian food
Tremont = a trimmed down Shady Side
Ohio's City's awesome West Side Market = our beloved Strip District
The Flats = Station Square

Deserted downtown = deserted downtown

My first impression of Cleveland in spite of the dirty piles of snow (they get about 20% more snow than Pittsburgh) was very positive. It reminded me of a European city with its wide boulevards, grandiose statuary, and classically styled buildings from the Convention Center to the Library.

The highlights of the weekend were definitely the West Side Market and the Great Lakes Brewery. The West Side Market is another European addition to Cleveland - a giant hall with everything for sale from bratwurst to pierogies to chicken gizzards to cannolis. The Great Lakes Brewery and Bar is an outstanding ambassador of the city. Not only is the beer great, they give hilarious tours of their eco-friendly brewery and have a packed-to-the-gills bar all adjacent to the West Side Market.





As rock music is not my biggest interest (and the $22 price tag a big deterrent), I steered clear of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Instead the Cleveland Museum of Art was a nice cap to my weekend. It's currently under an ambitious re-construction plan with only half of the galleries open to visitors - the rest re-open in June, but you can still check out their crazy collection of medieval armor and swords.

Things we can learn from Cleveland?

• Better bus shelters and bus lanes. They have special lights for their bus lanes which give them an edge over normal motorists. They have bus shelters that remind you more of getting on a light-rail line than anything else.
• Use light-rail judiciously to connect important places. They don't have a large light rail system, but it does connect downtown to the west side to university circle. They also connect their airport directly to a mall downtown which contains a hotel. How sweet is that?
  
• More city hotels - no visitor to the city should have to stay in Greentree unless they really really want to.
• Our own market - we even have the South Side Market House - invite regional butchers, bakers, and farmers to sell their wares in the winter months. Pittsburgh has an eating and cooking culture that can support multiple foodie-areas and being able to step inside the market on a cold day is a wonderful respite.
• More cheap parking - almost every downtown parking lot had super-cheap weekend rates - not just the ones owned by the city of Cleveland.
  

Things Cleveland can learn from Pittsburgh?

• More cohesive neighborhoods. Perhaps this can only come with time, but the only time I really felt I was in a full-fledged neighborhood was in the quaint Little Italy. Everything else just seemed a little too piece-meal - like our currently evolving Penn Ave district.
• A better alternative city paper. Our City Paper blows their Scene out of the water. I understand they have more pages to fill in the live music department but their Scene doesn't talk about politics at all. After the Short List, my favorite part of the City Paper is their off-beat take on local politics.
  
• More ethnic variation - aside from European offerings there was a dearth of international options at the West Side Market. Considering that Cleveland has 7 times the Hispanic population of Pittsburgh, I was disappointed to see only 1 booth of the 180 booths of the West Side Market selling tortillas. The Strip in Pittsburgh is a treasure trove with its Vietnamese, Korean, Chinese, Mexican, Italian, Greek, Middle Eastern, and Eastern European stores.
• More reasonable restaurants. Cleveland has PLENTY of over-priced hoity-toity food and a fair share of super-cheap college eats, but not enough in-between. Without my pre-trip yelp research, I would have been lost for a reasonable dinner in the city.
• Less Blight. Pittsburgh has its fair share of blight in certain areas but on the main route between University Circle and Downtown, there were more abandoned buildings than I could shake a stick at. It would greatly improve a visitor's first impression of Cleveland if some of those eyesores were demolished. How about turning mid-town into a nice big green space filled with cross-country skiing, biking and walking trails?
  

Overall, I had a great weekend in Cleveland. If you haven't been there, hop in your car and drive the scant 2 1/2 hours next weekend. As one Browns fan told me: "You have the Steelers, but we have Great Lakes [brewery]."

Disappointed?

Are you disappointed with the mayor's wish list for the city?

I understand your disappointment. There are no public transit initiatives on the list. And there are very few green initiatives. There ARE some crucial water and sewer improvements on the list.

In terms of public transit, it's important to keep some things in mind though.
Controversial as it is, we ARE currently working on the North Shore connector. There is a LOT of federal money contributing to that project. We are also working on Point State Park - which will be a major boon to the city when it's finished. I'm psyched about all the connecting parks that are in progress.

My question is why isn't Maglev to the airport on the list?? That is totally shovel-ready. A lot of money and time have been spent on this project already. I understand it's another controversial project, but it would clearly be a positive addition to the area (I refuse to comment on whether it's worth the money.)

In terms of becoming a city with nationally respectable public transportation, though, we need to connect Oakland and Downtown with something other than buses and cars. Light rail seems like the best option, but I don't know for sure. I'd be happy with a monorail if necessary. Unfortunately though as far as I know there are NO solid plans for this connection.

Also, there is a TON of resistance to the Oakland-Downtown line for some reason. I don't know why... It's disappointing to me to realize that that project is NOT shovel-ready.

Green is Good. Dan is Bad.

How sad is it that I read about a new initiative "AlleghenyGreen" and all I can focus on is this last sentence:

"The initiative, which will mostly be funded by government grants and private foundations, will be overseen by a manager to be appointed by Mr. Onorato."

Who are you going to appoint, Dan? Clearly not your brother as he's already in charge of Pittsburgh parking. Maybe you have a cousin? I hear Mr Ford is looking for a job...

In hindsight, the county also may have wanted to check that their catchy name wasn't already used by a romance novel.

(reference: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08260/912551-100.stm)

What next?

Green boats, green cars, what will they think of next? Green airplanes and trains? How about a light rail to the airport or an express train to Harrisburg??

Surely, we live in interesting times. Hopefully, Pittsburgh and Allegheny County can capitalize on them.

In other news, how's Port Authority's budget doing now? Just one bus, the 33X had an increase in ridership of 80% in June. The way I see it, that's a $60,000 (an extra $2 per ride at 1450 riders per week-day) bonus for June. If the lines for the buses downtown at rush hour are any indication of ridership, I believe that statistic. Hopefully, we can turn around and use this impetus to get some solid planning in for the future benefit of Port Authority. Speaking of which, everybody (all 1 of you), should visit and contribute to the pghwiki.

(reference: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08227/904188-53.stm)