Pittsburgh City Council held a public hearing yesterday on the merits of a property tax abatement plan that Mayor Luke Ravenstahl proposes to offer housing developers over 10 years Downtown and in 20 other neighborhoods.

Numerous representatives of the 21 neighborhoods and developers lauded the proposal while advocates of excluded neighborhoods took umbrage. Councilman Jim Motznik said his whole South Hills council district was excluded "and needs a shot in the arm."

Others questioned the criteria that included neighborhoods that have some momentum over those with none. Josette Fitzgibbons, a principal planner for the city, said two criteria were used. One was neighborhood ranking based on a vitality index of 11 indicators, a system that resulted from a year of neighborhood analysis. The other was sluggish property investment.

Council's next move will be to schedule a preliminary vote on the matter.