Striking the wrong chord?
Downtown group rethinking ideas for making Liberty Avenue more engaging
A proposal to install small pavilions with a piano, wind chimes and a xylophone made of wood to help enliven the sidewalk in the 900 block of Liberty Avenue has hit a sour note with some merchants and property owners.
In fact, the idea raised enough of a concern from some stakeholders after it was floated at a Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership meeting last week that the PDP has gone back to the drawing board to try to craft a more appealing plan.
“I would say we’re not going to build [pavilions] unless people want them there,” said Jeremy Waldrup, PDP president and CEO, adding the idea has been shelved.
In a letter sent after the meeting, Mr. Waldrup wrote that based on the discussion and follow-up conversations with some participants, “It has become clear that we need to re-engage as a group with the designers and discuss some overall goals and to create a design that better reflects the interests of the various stakeholders.”
Part of the plan presented during the meeting involved the construction of four small open-air pavilions on the sidewalk along the 900 block of Liberty.
Based on the presentation, a working
piano would have been placed inside one of the pavilions. Wind chimes would have hung from another. A wooden xylophone would have been strung across a third, and a fourth would have contained seating.
Mr. Waldrup said the idea was an outgrowth of efforts to try to soften up an area that is “not a terribly friendly block to walk down” compared to nearby Penn Avenue.
What was presented last week was merely a concept, Mr. Waldrup stressed, adding that additional meetings would be held to try to reach a consensus among merchants and property owners.
“This was not meant to be a fully cooked concept. This was meant to spark feedback. It wasn’t like we were showing something that was done. This was a process of community engagement,” he said.
Mr. Waldrup acknowledged that the idea of putting a working piano on Liberty in an area that includes housing hit a wrong chord with him.
“The first thing I thought is that if I lived there I’m not sure I want someone playing the piano at 2 a.m.,” he said. “I don’t think the piano is going to make the cut.”
One merchant who spoke out against the idea of the pavilions was Gary Van Horn, the owner of Images, a bar at 965 Liberty. He feared the structures could block storefronts, attract homeless people and create disturbances if there were musical instruments involved.
While Mr. Van Horn is all for sprucing up his block of Liberty, he said the PDP should take care of basic needs first, including infrastructure. He said Exchange Way behind Liberty is in deplorable condition with issues involving garbage and rats.
“That’s a concern I have. As business owners and property owners, we continue to look at great ideas, but we’re not taking care of business,” he said.
The PDP, Mr. Waldrup said, does pay attention to such concerns. But he added that the group doesn’t control the alleys and that property owners are responsible for taking care of their garbage. He said the PDP has asked the city to beef up enforcement in the alleys.
Larry Walsh, chief operating officer in Pittsburgh for Rugby Realty, which owns the building at 929 Liberty, said much of the concern at the meeting involved the potential loss of a loading zone.
The pavilions, he said, were presented as “just a design idea intended to create spaces people would want to congregate in.” His concern was that the structures could block signage on storefronts.
Mr. Van Horn also chided the PDP for putting forth a proposal without first getting input from stakeholders, saying there needs to be a more inclusive process.
Mr. Waldrup said the whole point of the meeting was to gather feedback. He said there would be at least three more meetings to discuss potential ideas.
In his letter, he noted that during a five-day pop-up storefront community engagement process held last March, people indicated they wanted to see more greenery; sidewalk cafes; shorter, safer crosswalks; more space for transit riders; and more sidewalk space along the stretch.