Thursday, October 30, 2003

By Timothy McNulty, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

A study group of young professionals tapped by city Councilman William Peduto to look into the city's budget crisis were led by one overriding principle, their leader, Patrick Clark, told City Council yesterday.

The city's problems are actually an opportunity to make profound changes, Clark said, and young people can drive those changes, not the industrialists and financiers of Pittsburgh's past.

"Richard King Mellon is dead. That's breaking news, I think, to far too many people in this city," said Clark, a consultant and activist who runs Peduto's annual Guyasuta Fellowship program. "There is no Richard King Mellon anymore, but there is opportunity."

Peduto named his fellowship program after the American Indian guide who led European settlers through the Pittsburgh region. This is the second year of the program, in which young people are paid city funds to research and write recommendations for improving city life.

This year's studies broadly followed the problems with the city budget, which faces an $80 million shortfall. Three fellows concentrated on fiscal strategies, tax increment financing and community development, using research, interviews, surveys and focus groups.

Seth T. Hufford said the city should follow a course of "fiscal regionalism" in which the city and suburbs cooperated on tax and economic development matters. He said they should adopt a "peaceful coexistence strategy" like one used in Louisville to keep municipalities from competing against each other.

He also said the region could pursue mergers of the city, county and its municipalities by building coalitions with towns bordering the city; promoting legislation to disincorporate municipalities; and consolidating borders by using the county's 43 school district lines instead of its 130 municipalities.

Abhisek Mitra hailed tax increment financing -- in which the bonds used to build development projects are funded by taxes created by the projects -- as a positive tool for rebuilding the city's old infrastructure, but said it could be used better.

He suggested adoption of a countywide TIF strategy to help plan for long-term development and allow municipalities and school districts to work together on the tax incentives, and to stress local business development along with national chains.

In community redevelopment, Alexandra Laporte stressed comprehensive community plans that prioritized citywide neighborhood projects, allowing city and neighborhood officials to work toward common goals.

Their full reports will soon be available on Peduto's Web site at www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/district8/.

Similar issues likely will be discussed at a town meeting from 7 to 9 tonight at the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland.

Admission is free and walk-ins are welcome.

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