Posts tagged running

Pittsburgh by morning

Having taken Arielle to work at 5:30 this morning, I returned home and felt very little desire to go back to bed. Instead, I set out for an early morning Saturday run, which are the very best kind.

Instead of my usual morning route that goes along the Allegheny River, by the stadiums, and back home by way of the park, I chose to further explore the neighborhoods and hills to the north.

Early morning dog walkers, empty buses, and singing birds were about the only things I saw while I was out. I ran on old brick streets, up steep grades, through wooded trails that were new to me, and past houses that, in their time, would have been a sight to see.

It’s sad to realize that Pittsburgh has lost nearly half of its residents since 1950. The city’s population has gone from about 676,000 people to somewhere around 339,000. And it shows. My run brought me through some neighborhoods that just looked gutted. Shops were closed up or nonexistent and community gathering spaces were few.

But it’s not to say that these are hopeless places. Far from it, as a matter of fact. They hold within them the potential for greatness. Densely built, these neighborhoods could easily support a wide mix of activities.

I see the main problem being one of convenience. Few shops, such as grocery stores, drug stores, and restaurants, exist in these neighborhoods anymore. It’s frustrating to live in a city yet be dependent on an automobile and the suburbs to complete even the most basic of tasks.

It is such a chicken-and-egg scenario: people won’t move in until the shops are there, and the shops won’t open up until there’s the people there to support them. It was my hope that this gas price fiasco would continue indefinitely, thus forcing some individuals to reconsider their basic method of living, but it looks like that hope may remain unfulfilled for the time being.

The city should step in, but it has its own share of problems that need to be dealt with. I guess what I’m looking for is a reappraisal of “the American Dream,” but I realize I shouldn’t hold my breath.

But if only I could bring everyone out on a run with me. They’d see that there is a lot of good to be had.

June 12 2004 · Link