General

04/08 2015

Public Mtg On Plans For Proposed Student Rental Housing at 3407 Forbes, Tue 4/14 6pm

pdf icon 3407-Forbes-Ave-Campus-Advantage-Development-Meeting.pdf
pdf icon First-draft-building-design-3407-Forbes-Ave.pdf
pdf icon Project-details-3407-Forbes-Ave.pdf

Inline image 13407 Forbes Avenue – Proposed Campus Advantage Development (next to Arby's)
Campus Advantage, a national student rental housing management company, is proposing to build a 13-story, 137-unit student housing building. Attached are some rough designs and details the developer shared with us.
They are on the ZBA agenda for April 23, 2015 at 9:20 pm. Currently they're planning to request a special exemption and a variance related to increasing floor area ratio* (FAR), a variance to increase the percentage of the lot covered by the building from the allowed 90% to 96%, as well as increasing the building height from the permitted 102 feet (with LEED bonus) to 140 feet.
Next week, OPDC will host a public meeting for community input on the project:
Tuesday, April 14, 2015, 6:00 pm – Oakland Career Center, 294 Semple Street
*Floor Area Ratio (FAR): The total square feet of a building divided by the total square feet of the lot the building is located
04/06 2015

UPMC – Oakland Transformation Project Through 2016

pdf icon UPMCPlans2016.pdf

?Inline image 1?
"?UPMC is moving forward with plans to make major improvements that ?will bring more green space and enhanced traffic flow to the vibrant city neighborhood of Oakland.
The project will remove the top six floors of the South Tower (formerly Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh) and portions of the bottom eight floors.  The pedestrian bridge between the Falk Medical Building and UPMC Presbyterian also will be removed.
…
Large-scale demolition of the South Tower is scheduled to begin mid-June.  Project completion is anticipated in the summer of 2016."
04/04 2015

3407 Forbes student high rise public meeting 4/14 6pm Career Ctr – 294 Semple St

pdf icon 3407-Forbes-Ave-Campus-Advantage-Development-Meeting.pdf

Inline image 1Please see the attached flyer for a meeting Tuesday, 4/14, 6:00 pm at the Career Center building.  Please spread the word to your neighbors.
Key notes on the proposed development:
  • Specific to college students
  • Programming and resident assistants
  • 98 2 BR
  • 30 3 BR
  •  nine 1 BR
  • 137 units total for 295 beds
  •  Study room on each floor
  •  Will go for LEED Silver
  • Hope to break ground in Feb 2016, 18-month construction; open Fall 2017
  • Use allowed by right
  •  Zoning board variances requested for additional height and lot coverage, which equates to more units
  • Retail on first floor
04/02 2015

Liberty Tunnel Washing Activities Begin Sunday 4/5 in Pittsburgh

Traffic Advisory
Liberty Tunnel Washing Activities Begin Sunday in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh – PennDOT is announcing work to wash the Liberty Tunnels (Route 3069) in the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, will begin Sunday night, April 5 weather permitting.
To accommodate tunnel washing activities, single-lane overnight closures will occur in both directions of the Liberty Tunnels from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. through Friday morning, April 10. Work will not begin on Tuesday, April 7 until two hours after the Neil Diamond concert ends. Traffic on the bridge will not be impacted.
Motorists should be prepared for changing traffic patterns. Please use caution when driving through the area.  Work zone safety is everyone’s responsibility
Motorists can check conditions on major roadways by visiting www.511PA.com.  511PA, which is free and available 24 hours a day, provides traffic delay warnings, weather forecasts, traffic speed information and access to more than 770 traffic cameras.  511PA is also available by calling 5-1-1, and regional Twitter alerts are available on the 511PA website.
04/01 2015

Dept Parks & Seeks Proposals for Cleaning And Custodial Services for Citiparks Facilities

The City of Pittsburgh Department of Parks & Recreation (Citiparks) will be accepting proposals for a contract to perform custodial and cleaning services at the city’s twenty-two (22) Recreation and Healthy Active Living (Senior) centers beginning April 8, 2015.

This Request for Proposals specifically addresses the need to provide regular, efficient and effective custodial and cleaning services to the 22 Recreation and Healthy Active Living (Senior) centers.

Citiparks is seeking proposals that provide an hourly rate for reimbursement for providing the services above for as few as four (4) specific facilities and as many as all twenty two (22) facilities.

Citiparks has partnered with the Department of Innovation & Performance and the city’s Code for America Fellows to develop the RFP website where interested vendors can sign up to receive updates, responses to questions, submission details and deadline information regarding the Request for Proposals.

Click here for original post and contact info.

04/01 2015

Street Cleaning 2015 – April 1 – November 30

Street Cleaning starts April 1 and ends November 30, dependent upon weather conditions.  South Oakland days are typically the third Wednesday or Thursday.  Check the signs in your area.
If there are a lot of parked cars being ticketed, it can greatly delay and ultimately prevent street cleaning.  Please make sure to move your car and alert any neighbors as well.
Report any problems to 3-1-1 on online at http://pittsburghpa.gov/311/form

04/01 2015

Free Tax Preparation Assistance From Just Harvest

?Just Harvest Logo?

?As a lead partner in the United Way of Allegheny County’s Money in Your Pocket Coalition, Just Harvest provides free, IRS-certified income tax preparation for low-income households at four Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Sites in Allegheny County.

?The

 program ends for the year on April 15 but

?they?

 still have many appointment openings at three of five

??

tax sites – in the South Side, the Hill District, and Monroeville. It would be a shame to waste this opportunity to put money in the pockets of working families.

Making an appointment is as easy as dialing 2-1-1 (or 888-553-5778). These lines are answered 24/7.

Please help get the word out by sharing this info.

03/30 2015

2015 Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation Scholarships

The Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation actively assists western Pennsylvania high school seniors in their pursuit of academic achievement by offering scholarships, which includes one Bob Johnson Memorial Scholarship and a maximum of 20 Pittsburgh Penguins Foundation Scholarships annually. In addition, the Penguins Alumni Association sponsors a scholarship for local students who play hockey. All three scholarships for the 2014-15 academic year will be available in February 2015.
Click here for more info and applications

03/26 2015

Hotline For Highmark/UPMC Transition Problems

There’s free assistance available to help you with questions or complaints related to the UPMC-Highmark split.
Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane has launched a toll-free helpline – 1-844-743-2015 – with staff to help consumers understand their rights and cut through confusion they have about their plans. In addition, the staff may contact UPMC or Highmark on behalf of consumers who have a conflict with either company.
If you use the hotline, please be prepared to provide:
  • Basic information about yourself;
  • As much detail as possible about the conflict with UPMC or Highmark;
  • Any correspondence you may have received from either company; and 
  • Insurance coverage information because of the variety of plans that exist.   
Call process times will vary. The helpline will operate from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. If you call the helpline outside of normal business hours, on the weekend or when specialists are assisting other consumers, you may leave a message. Calls will be returned in the order in which they were received.
Before a complaint is processed, consumers will receive a confirmation email or letter with a summary of their complaint, as well as release forms.
For more information about the UPMC/Highmark transition plan, you may visit www.stayinformed.pa.gov.