Goals and Initiatives

With a volunteer board of directors and resident members, the Central Northside Neighborhood Council has been a driving force in the revitalization of the Central Northside. This has been done through direct involvement on various projects and through initiatives with private and public sector partners.

Community Outreach CNNC undertakes many on-going events and activities that help to maintain links between neighborhood residents, including:

    • Community Thanksgiving Dinners
    • Block Club organizing and support
    • Christmas Parties
    • Halloween parades
    • Community newsletter
    • Community bulletin boards

Youth Programs CNNC initiates and supports activities as advocates of the young people that are the future of our community, including:

    • Northside Reading is Fundamental
    • Sharry Everett Scholarship for college-age youth
    • Monthly YMCA swim nights
    • Greater Northside Athletic Association
    • C.A.R.I.N.G. afterschool programs
    • Summer youth employment projects
    • Jefferson Recreation Center programs

Development and Neighborhood Advocacy One of the most important roles that CNNC plays is as the leader in fostering the revitalization of the neighborhood through active programs to provide affordable housing, to reduce vacancies, and enhance the quality of life for all our residents. Some of the many accomplishments of CNNC include:

Arch Court — A 31-unit building for frail elderly, this $2.2 million project was conceived and developed by CNNC, acting as sponsor for a dedicated nonprofit organization, run by neighborhood residents, which owns and operates the facility.

Hope 3 Housing—With Action Housing, Inc. as development partner, CNNC renovated 6 houses on Boyle, Sandusky and Alpine streets, that were resold to low and low-moderate income home buyers.

Alpine I—CNNC, in partnership with the Northside Leadership conference, renovated 6 properties for resale and constructed 2 new townhouses on Monterey, Armandale, Garfield and Alpine streets.

Federal Hill Project—CNNC initiated and oversees this proposal to build 60 townhouses and provide 39-42 apartment units to replace the deteriorated and blighted housing on upper Federal Street, Jacksonia, and Alpine. CNNC has secured 1.8 million from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, and will break ground in 2006. Their partners include S&A homes, and Roshschild Doyno Architects. Seed money for this project was provided by the Community Design Center and the Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development.

Alpine II—As a second phase to the Alpine Project, CNNC, in partnership with PHASE, is developing a plan to rehabilitate 7 houses and build 3 new townhouses for resale to low and moderate income homebuyers on Jacksonia, Monterey, Armandale and Garfield streets.

Buena Vista Street Project—CNNC, with PHASE as development partner, renovated 5 houses for resale to moderate income home buyers. As part of a new Shell Rehab program, this project also repaired and upgraded the exteriors, including facades, of 3 large houses on Buena Vista Street to be sold to home-owners who will complete the interior renovations.

Parkhurst Project—Working to stabilize the area of disinvestment next to Allegheny General Hospital, CNNC has partnered with the Pittsburgh Housing Development and has completed construction on 3 new homes on Parkhurst. This project has expanded to include street improvements, funded by the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh, Allegheny General Hospital, the Urban Redevelopment Authority, and the Urban Forestry department. Street construction should begin in 2007.

Northside Housing Strategy—The accomplishments (B-G) above are the result of a comprehensive housing strategy that was developed in 1994-95 by The Mayor’s Task Force, a planning partnership between CNNC, the Mexican War Streets Society, and the city of Pittsburgh.

Alpine Visioning Project—With the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh, CNNC is developing an urban design plan for the Alpine Corridor that will address issues of housing vacancies and social needs for this area.

H Federal North Redevelopment Area—CNNC has participated at every level with the planning and development for this $40 million commercial revitalization project that includes a new office building and parking garage with retail facilities on Federal Street and a block of renovated structures for retail and commercial use along North Avenue.

I West Park Court—This 111-unit senior citizen hi-rise was one of the 1st community-owned and operated housing developments in the country. CNNC still owns and manages the building through a dedicated non-profit organization.

J Allegheny General Hospital Partnership—CNNC joined with 13 other Northside neighborhood groups of the Northside Leadership Conference in developing and maintaining a partnership with AGH that to date has resulted in educational opportunities and jobs for Central Northside residents, community health initiatives, a low-interest mortgage program and marketing of neighborhood houses to AGH employees. This partnership continues to oversee the renovation of the old Aberle Funeral Home and the completion and occupancy of the Federal North redevelopment.

Northside Reinvestment Strategy—As part of the AGH partnership, CNNC worked with East Allegheny and Fineview neighborhoods, AGH and Perkins Eastman Architects to develop a strategy to confront the serious disinvestment and blight that threatened the areas abutting the hospital’s campus.

K Widow’s Home—CNNC organized and managed the community consensus building for the restoration and development of these post-Civil War buildings at the corner of Sherman and N. Taylor avenues as subsidized housing for low-income tenants.

Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group—CNNC is an active member in PCRG, which negotiates with eight banks and financial institutions to ensure mortgage and other investment opportunities are made available to neighborhood residents. Among other accomplishments, this effort has resulted in multi-millions of dollars of investment and financing in the city and a “purchase-rehab” program, the Vacant Housing Recovery Program, which makes mortgages available to cover both purchase and renovation costs.

L Northside Urban Development Action Grant—CNNC is a member neighborhood in the Northside UDAG program, which has, to date, provided financing for over 300 units of housing within the neighborhood, as well as the funding for the Lorraine Street Parklet and the Alpine Totlot.

Neighborhood Marketing Project—CNNC and Northside Housing Services established a joint marketing effort to target vacant buildings in the neighborhood. One of the results of the marketing program was…

M Homeownership for Working People—CNNC partnered with the Northside Civic Development Council and Pittsburgh History and Landmarks to purchase, rehab and sell 7 vacant houses to low-to-moderate income home buyers.

N Pennsylvania/Brighton Road Development—CNNC initiated the planning and advocacy that resulted in $1 million of City funding to eliminate 6 problem bars, an auto junk yard and vacant commercial property at the corner of Pennsylvania/Brighton. This effort has since resulted in new commercial development including the Quik It gas station and Rite-Aid drug store.

AGH Helicopter—CNNC organized neighborhood residents, Martin Luther King, Jr. School parents and the Board of Public Education to protest the siting of the AGH Life Flight helicopter and continues to monitor fly-over areas and sound impact.

O 1414 Monterey Gallery of the Mattress Factory—CNNC joined with the Mattress Factory to identify and support funding to purchase a nuisance bar and turn it into a museum gallery.

P West Commons Park—CNNC has fought for decades to maintain the integrity and beauty of West Park. Some of the accomplishments include: preventing construction of a wall around the park, stopping the expansion of Divine Providence Hospital (now Mercy Providence) into the park, advocating and supporting the building of a new playground at the end of Palo Alto Street, lobbying for new lighting and improvement of the ballfield and swimming pool, working with the Historic Review and City Planning commissions to designate the park as a City Historic District. With the other neighborhoods that circle the park, CNNC is a member of the committee to develop a master plan for the future of this important community asset.

Q Public Safety Program—CNNC initiated an ongoing dialogue with Northside police commanders to improve the quality of life in the neighborhood. A few of the many Public Safety initiatives over the years include: organizing opposition to the establishment of Beer World on Federal Street, the expansion of the Paradise Lounge, the transfer of a new liquor license to the corner of Federal and Parkhurst streets, and organizing community outreach activities in the Garfield/Alpine streets area.

Northside Reading is Fundamental—CNNC sponsored the start-up of this now-independent and award-winning program that focuses on reading readiness among Northside youth.

Northside Tenants Reorganization—CNNC provided the tax-exempt status, acted as the funding conduit, and assisted with fundraising and organizing efforts of this early struggle to develop a tenant-managed subsidized-housing program.

R The Great House Sale—CNNC partnered with the Northside Civic Development Council to undertake a city-wide marketing effort of the Central Northside to sell 38 vacant houses for $100 each to homeowners who, with mortgage and rehab assistance, completed the renovation of the properties.

Neighborhood Housing Services—CNNC assisted in the start-up of the first such low-income loan program in the country and maintained representation on the NHS board for its first two decades. This program made it possible for many long-time Central Northside residents to upgrade their century-old homes to meet city Building Codes requirements