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Letters: Getting there and parking is a problem
Sunday, December 31, 2000
Parking a must
I am a 30-year-old male from Shaler Township. I do enjoy the city life and visit on a regular basis.
Parking solutions are a must! Why should I pay parking when I can pull up outside of Ross Park Mall Kaufmann's and go in for free? I can shop several shops in one stop.
In Cleveland, shuttle bus access is easy and gets you to the city's hot spots quickly. The shuttle bus that was tried in late October/early November would be a good idea. Charge $15 for monthly unlimited access and another fee for a one-night use. The buses will run from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. The shuttle buses would go to areas that PAT typically does not go. Prompt pickup would be a must. People don't like to waste time, and the Pittsburgh taxi service is terrible.
Incorporate new housing concepts, but keep it affordable. Washington's Landing is nice, but anyone with a salary under $50,000 can't afford it along with the maintenance fees and taxes. The professional 30-something group would most likely be potential tenants. Base housing costs around a typical salary range for most Pittsburghers. Strip District condos are expensive also.
Attractions that would be nice would be a park setting with an outdoor ice rink that can be used for roller blading(connect it to city areas for blading, biking and jogging) and farmer markets and other markets in the summer.
We need an indoor amphitheater that can replace the old Grafitti Club in Oakland. Blues music is big in Pittsburgh. Metropol has these shows, but the stage layout is terrible (limited visibility) and sound quality is not as good as other places.
Have a good mix of original stores and new stores. The people that have been there for years deserve to stay for the improvements. Achieve a Ski Town USA look!
Keep out big chain stores. We have plenty all outside the city. We need uniqueness. Station Square, Tin Can Alley in Detroit and the building that houses TGIF Fridays in Cleveland are all very unique and worth the travel.
What attracts people to The Strip on Saturdays? A unique atmosphere and good prices. This concept should be applied to the Fifth and Forbes project.
WAYNE KOENIG
Better parking
Those of us who do not work Downtown face a major challenge trying to park there during the regular workweek. It is not unusual to pay more than $10 or spend more than 30 minutes looking for a spot. (My personal "best" is $14 for two hours in the Kossman Building, and that was on top of the $12 "early bird" special that I paid to park there for three hours that same morning. To add insult to injury, I had to wait 30 minutes for the attendants to dig my car out of the crowd.)
I've been tempted to turn around and go home without stopping on more than one occasion. It's not that there aren't plenty of parking lots and spaces (I even know where they all are, after much searching), and no one wants to see more valuable Downtown space go to parking lots. It's just that what there is happens to be horribly expensive, inconvenient and more often than not, full when you need it. I hope this issue will get a lot more attention, as it is the No. 1 complaint I share with many others. Unless the parking problem is addressed, I am convinced that it will be a significant impediment to the success of Downtown redevelopment plans.
PAMELA E. ROLLINGS
Pedestrian zones
At the risk of stating the obvious, and although things are improving, I feel they are improving at a snail's pace. We need attractions to draw more people Downtown after a workday or to keep them there following work.
Granted, there are restaurants, theaters, music and other events, but I feel it would be nice if I really had to ponder where to go; I'm presently living overseas (on a temporary assignment) where there's numerous things to do.
For example, there is a monthly brochure published and distributed -- and available at all hotels, etc. -- listing all the music events, all the theater events and the sports events (there are not that many in this city, though) listing who's playing where, ticket prices, etc. This applies to all the museums and exhibitions, too.
Another feature I like about my temporary residence city is the numerous sidewalk cafes, where anybody can go and enjoy a nice dinner or dessert during the warm weather, and street musicians, making the city livable.
One of the features of this place are pedestrian zones -- no auto traffic at all -- so people can stroll and enjoy their city. But to do this, this city has an effective public mass transit system, something lacking in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County.
And even where automobiles are a way of life, good parking, especially at reasonable or cheap after-hours rates, is needed. And I wouldn't mind walking several blocks if I felt safe. Not necessarily completely safe, but more than reasonably safe.
JIM YUSKO
Cheaper parking
The way to improve Downtown parking is not to provide additional parking spaces, but to provide a price that will enable the city to fill what they currently have available. I have stopped coming into Downtown for some time now because I no longer will submit to the outrageous prices. One hour and 20 minutes cost me $8.75. I wrote the mayor to relate my concern that high prices will choke the Downtown businesses from being competitive. My concern did not garner the slightest response. His indifference is so puzzling to me, because I know many people who feel the same. Letters to the Post-Gazette are continually voicing the same unending concern.
JOE DE STEFANO
How about free Downtown parking?
NICHOLAS PALSO
More free parking
The main difference between shopping Downtown and shopping at one of the outlying malls is plenty of parking -- and it's free. I would venture to say that the majority of those who shop Downtown are either already down there, because they work there or happen to have some other reason for being there; they lack a vehicle; or they prefer to use public transportation. All bus lines lead to Downtown, a factor in the plus column for the Downtown area.
GARY MYSELS
Parking fees OK
The concept that affordable parking is not available downtown on evenings and weekends is more myth than reality. There is at least one centrally located garage (Mellon Square) that charges only $3 during these off-peak times -- even overnight! Various promotions and discounts can reduce that cost even further. With the addition of garages at Lazarus and the new bank operating centers, it will be a rare occurrence that affordable parking is not available.
What would benefit the visitors less familiar with Downtown, and who often get stuck paying more, would be a long-term, visible, and easy-to-understand communications campaign that identifies where the less costly garages are, and the cost of parking there. This has been tried to a certain extent before. For example, Pirate flags have been flown to identify garages as game day parking locations. However, these previous communication efforts have lacked a consistent and enduring theme and have not been frequently reinforced.
Although even cheaper parking would be ideal, the rates currently in effect on evenings and weekends are generally reasonable. I would much rather incur the minimal expense of parking Downtown to eat or shop than to fight the traffic near the suburban malls, especially around the holidays.
ROCCO MANZO
Transportation vital
Going Downtown has always been special to me. My sister and I and our Mom and Dad immigrated from Italy to the North Side in the early '50s. Back then, we would pinch our pennies and put on our best clothes and walk into town, saving our bus fare to spend on a lavish and exotic (to us) lunch of grilled cheese and french fries at the G.C. Murphy store.
Now, having lived in the Cranberry area for the last 30 years, I intentionally chose a Downtown hair salon and hairdresser so that at least every seven to eight weeks I have a reason to be Downtown. My friend, also from Cranberry, and I relish our trips to get our hair done, do a little shopping, and then afterward, eat at a favorite Downtown restaurant.
As for revitalizing the area and making it more attractive to others, I think that the Downtown area is too small for the thousands of vehicles that try to navigate its narrow streets. If inexpensive and safe parking could be provided in the perimeter of the city, along with consistent and dependable public transportation, more people would make the effort to take advantage of the shopping and cultural events in the city.
I recently spent several days in Berlin, Germany, in awe of their public transportation system. We were able to go wherever we wanted whenever we wanted, easily and cheaply. Even not knowing the language, with the map of the subway system in hand, it was not a problem.
The Downtown area of Berlin was vital and jampacked with people shopping and sightseeing. Even on Sunday, a day when only the eating places were open, thousands of people filled the sidewalks, touring and window shopping and eating.
Not any one store or attraction will have the wide appeal to draw the crowds in; there are many things that combined will contribute to a lively and profitable Downtown, but in my mind, getting in and out of the city easily is paramount.
CLARA L. HANNY
Parking too costly
Recently I had to go to Oakland to see an eye specialist. The parking cost was $9, discounted price.
The cardiologist I see is in the Mellon Building on Grant Street. It cost me $5 for the visit, and $6 for parking. Add one and one and your parking cost is out of this world. I do most of my shopping in Monroeville.
FRANCIS J. BRUNNER
High speed commuting
Improve transportation into Downtown. Downtown can improve to the hilt but without an easy way to reach it my family and I will stay away.
For example, I used to travel into Downtown for work from my home in Edgeworth/Sewickley. The most direct route is Ohio River Boulevard. What a disgrace.
And why? Poor road condition, too narrow a road -- dangerous when trying to share space with a truck -- light after light, crappy little hole-in-the-wall businesses along the way.
I would love to see more plays, take in an evening listening to the symphony, and eat at some finer Downtown restaurants. However, as long as I have to travel along Ohio River Boulevard, I will not. No way.
As far as shopping, I would much rather go to charming upscale shops of Downtown and get great food at the Strip market or other fine food shops than hit the suburbs' shopping malls. But again, only if I can access easily from my town a safe and efficient high-speed train system. Or, totally reconstruct Ohio River Boulevard to accommodate high volume traffic, up the speed limit to 55 and provide easy access to Downtown parking that is affordable if not free.
ELIZABETH PRUGH
Better transportation
One suggestion I have is to work on the Downtown transportation. Figure out how to expand T coverage, and see what can be done about getting that proposed monorail.
A movie theater would be nice since the area is lacking. (The Waterfront might be a little too far away for some people.) Find some room for a new hockey arena. Maybe you could plan on putting a Wal-Mart in the Igloo's place once it's gone. I know it sounds crazy, but since it seems like [Mayor Tom] Murphy wants to make Downtown more mall-like, that would add the perfect touch of suburbia.
ANDY TERRICK
Ugly street corners
As a commuter, I say get all the newspaper boxes off the corners/streets. They are so ugly and leave little room for boarding/unboarding buses. What happened to the newsmen on corners?
Eliminate all cars and buses from Forbes and Fifth avenues allowing pedestrians walking space up and down streets. Plant trees and containers of flowers along those streets making it more friendly and beautiful. Have trees lighted at night all year -- not just holidays -- for beauty and safety.
Insist all owners of stores dress windows attractively and keep sidewalks clean at all times. Most windows look like junk stores. Kaufmann's should look at what Dayton's has done in Minneapolis with its basement.
It's wonderful for commuters with large delis where you can pick up something to eat and/or take it home for dinner, bakeries, candies, specialty foods, fresh produce, kitchen ware, restaurants, etc. It's better than food courts. A lovely place to spend your lunch hour (similar to Harrods in London). They sponsor a light-up Christmas parade every night from Thanksgiving until Christmas Eve. It really draws the people Downtown.
DONNA C. MILLS
Bus loop service
1. Bus loop service would be great for shoppers for $1 a day, which would connect South Side, Downtown, the Strip and the North Side. We should connect perimeter parking lots and busway-subway stations with stores, city entertainment, educational, cultural and governmental locations. Maybe there could be bus service from the various malls that would take their riders to a hook-up place in town. The service would need to be frequent and have lots of stops and run from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. so that people going to and from work could also use the service and stay later to shop. A light transit service should connect Oakland with the Mon Valley, the South Side, Station Square and the North Side, allowing for people to go to The National Aviary, the Pittsburgh Children's Museum, The Andy Warhol Museum, as well as the sports facilities, Convention Center, the Strip or the Mellon Arena. I see the possibility for a large park and ride on the Mon where the new Mon Highway comes into the already overcrowded Parkway.
2. Parking Downtown is impossible after 9 a.m. and much too expensive when it is possible. No mall shopper will ever come Downtown when parking is free and dependable at the mall or in one's local neighborhood.
3. Build a Downtown neighborhood with affordable housing; normal kinds of shops for food, hardware, booze and books; natural gathering places; exercise opportunities; facilities for children to play; and community events. These people will not need to commute to the stores; they will already be there.
4. Never mind the arena-to-Grant-Street project. Give us a subway under each of the three parkways into Downtown with the one under the Parkway West going to the airport and have them all connect with our existing subway.
So, how about taking the Fifth and Forbes block and using the ground floors for shops and the upper floors for apartments or non-retail businesses and building an atrium in the center with a parking garage under it for tenants and a park on the ground floor for use of the tenants only. This area could have one track for jogging, another for rollerblading, and another for children's bikes and big wheels.
SUSAN PRENTISS
More free parking
Even if you provide ample parking Downtown, why go there when the malls have free parking? If parking were plentiful and free, there would be much more incentive to shop Downtown.
Also, the groups of teens loafing on street corners and blocking our paths must be removed.
I would like to see shops catering to various income levels such as Brookstone, more shoe shops, Sears, beauty salons, liquor stores, taverns, dress shops, farmers markets, meat and produce markets, Altmeyer's, furniture stores, appliance stores, sports stores, restaurants including Chinese, etc.
Also, fining people for jaywalking should be stopped. When the shop we need to go to is directly across the street, why should we have to walk a full block to the crosswalk and then backtrack? If there are no vehicles approaching, I see no reason not to cross. If I received a fine, I would not return to Pittsburgh to shop, nor would I pay the fine.
VICTORIA IMPAVIDO
Better mass transit
Twice a year I make a trip to New York City and spend a significant amount of money on the theater and restaurants. Why not spend my money in Pittsburgh? Two big reasons: transit and safety.
I live in Brookline. Everyone thinks that we have great service because of the T. That's true if you live along the T line, but I don't.
We live in a city that has been rated as having the ninth-fattest population. Why is the mayor spending so much time on finding ways for cars to get into the city? Why can't I walk down West Liberty Avenue and into the city? It should be an easy straight shot. It isn't unless I'm in a car. In New York I can walk from 47th to 10th and usually do. My husband and I walk from West Liberty Avenue at Pioneer in Dormont to dinner on Washington Road in the heart of Mt. Lebanon. I should be able to walk right into town also.
Now while I'm out doing all this walking in New York, the city's finest are very, very visible. The police are on street corners, in cars, and in the middle of Times Square, there is a police station! In Pittsburgh I am far more wary of walking from Heinz Hall or the Benedum to a bus stop near Point Park. I would much rather leave the theater in New York at 10:30 p.m. than Pittsburgh.
I can hail a cab to get back to my hotel or walk in New York. What a novel idea! In Pittsburgh, I can walk down to the Hilton or up to the William Penn to get a cab. If I call for one, the wait can be very long. In fact, the dispatcher has suggested that I walk down to the Hilton or the William Penn.
So what's the point?
Like they say, build it and they will come. In this city, the first item on the agenda to build is the means to get there. All the stores and restaurants and boutiques won't bring anyone if they can't get there and get home.
PAMELA GRABOWSKI
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