Renaissance Three? Four? Or Five?

If Pittsburgh is entering a new Renaissance, which would one would it be, anyway?

How do you tell that one has actually started and, if it has, how many have gone before?

A Trib article, Market Square shapes city's 'third renaissance', includes this prediction from Mayor Luke Ravenstahl:

I believe that we are in the process of a third renaissance," Ravenstahl said during the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's annual meeting. "I'm proud to say it, and I think if we continue this positive momentum, we'll be able to claim this decade as Pittsburgh's third renaissance."

He's not the first. Some creative googling reveals that Pittsburghers have been proclaiming the start of Renaissance Three since even before Renaissance Two ended. Check on this 1985 Post-Gazette clipping from three years before Mayor Caliguiri's death.

Some quick background: I've been covering Pittsburgh government and politics since 1978, when Dick Caliguiri became mayor. Caliguiri christened downtown development during his decade of service as "Renaissance Two". The city landmarks of PPG Place, Mellon Bank Center, Oxford Center are just part of that legacy. Time magazine tallied corporate investment in new office buildings during Renaissance Two at $1.5 Billion (in 1981 dollars), during the mid-point of of that era. Caliguiri died in 1988. Pittsburgh's first Renaissance was under Mayor David Lawrence, who, starting in the 1940s and 50s, led a public and private partnership with Richard King Mellon for urban renewal and controlling pollution in America's "Smokey City". It launched Pittsburgh's transformation and created downtown's Golden Triangle".


My search of Google News archives for references to a "Renaissance Three" in Pittsburgh turned up this trail of stories.



Here are some highlights, illustrating the pattern over the years.

May 21, 1991 - Imagine that everything in the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust's 10-year plan for the Cultural District is completed on schedule. Downtown would teem with artistic activity by 1994 or ... In other words, the Trust will have more evidence its gamble on a cultural Renaissance III will pay off. ...
From 2001: A CULTURAL ODYSSEY IF THE 10-YEAR PLAN... ($$) - Related web pages

Sep 30, 1992 - After 25 years of planning and more than five years of construction, the Midfield Terminal at Pittsburgh International Airport opens this week ... It really is the beginning of Renaissance III," Foerster said, borrowing a term used to describe previous phases of development in the city ...
From TERMINAL OFF TO FLYING START ($) - Related web pages

May 7, 1995 - Business: magazines, Alyssa Gabbay, "Renaissance III Man," Pittsburgh Magazine; nondaily newspapers, Fred Gustafson, "Test of Metal," In Pittsburgh Newsweekly; daily newspapers (circulation under 45000): Geof Becker and Matt Provenzo, "Strike!", Valley News Dispatch; daily newspapers ...
From PG EARNS 8 AWARDS IN QUILL CONTEST ($$) - Related web pages

Jul 30, 1995 - Some of Pittsburgh's most optimistic boosters are saying that Downtown is on the verge of a development boom that will rival the urban renaissances begun in the 1940s and 1970s. If it's true, it raises several questions: How would the Golden Triangle and its outskirts be changed in a Renaissance III? Would a third renaissance feel as good as numbers I and II, when Pittsburgh bathed in the national spotlight? Or would it be an unsatisfying sequel, like all those movies whose titles end in "III"? ...
From GOLDEN CROSSROADS ($$) - Related web pages

Feb 23, 1997 - John Heinz Pittsburgh Regional History Center, the Civic Arena, Three Rivers Stadium and the convention center. All are in or around Downtown Pittsburgh. ... That is why I agreed to chair this effort. We hope everyone in the region will join us in making this third Renaissance a success.
From LET'S BUILD A BETTER PITTSBURGH REGION ($$) - Related web pages

Jun 1, 1997 - I want to go on record as one Pittsburgh Republican leader in favor of the Renaissance III initiative that would levy a half-cent sales tax on the 10 counties of Western Pennsylvania to fund regional assets (yes, including ballparks). I keep hearing negative chatter from Pittsburghers ...
From REPUBLICANS SHOULD GO TO BAT FOR RENAISSANCE... ($) - Related web pages

Jan 6, 1997 - Hiking the hilly streets of Beechview last week, the mayor of Pittsburgh pounded on the storm door of a Dagmar Avenue home. From inside, a portly man peered through the ... ``If what he's trying to put together comes together, you're going to see Renaissance III,'' Stanizzo said. ...
From MAYOR ON QUEST FOR VOTES SOME '93 BACKERS ARE... ($$) - Related web pages

Mar 22, 1998 - And now, in an age of regional and global competition, Pittsburgh is poised to forge what likely will be known as Renaissance III. From residential lofts and shopping plazas to cultural venues and sports stadiums - plans for a dramatic reinvigoration of the region's epicenter are ...
From BUILDING THE FUTURE ($$) - Related web pages

Mar 27, 1998 - It is a meeting of such focused minds and willing spirits that stands to take Pittsburgh into a new era. Call it Renaissance III or call it just a better place to live, this is the blueprint of a renewable city that more people will be proud to call home.
From RENAISSANCE III PITTSBURGHERS ARE READY TO TAKE... ($$) - Related web pages

Post-Gazette (1997) Media Kit - With two new stadiums, expansion projects for the convention center and science center, and being named one of two finalists for the country’s first-ever Maglev train, Pittsburgh may be on the verge of its third renaissance in the past 100 years. (The date is embedded in the html of the web page.)

Friday, March 27, 1998 Editorial -- Renaissance III

We are hesitant to call it an unprecedented period of construction -- this being a city that has undergone not one but two urban "renaissances." But no one should be surprised if the name Renaissance III surfaces more frequently in connection with all the digging, erecting and eventual ribbon-cutting that's about to go on around here.

Pittsburgh is rebuilding again.

Apr 25, 1998 - I don't hear enough support for Renaissance III. When did Pittsburgh become inhabited solely by closed-minded old people who want the city to die with them? Let's change our name to Akron and be done with it. * Look up team player in the dictionary. Al Martin's picture is beside it. ...
From Author: LEE ADAM HEROLD ($$) - Related web pages

Jan 18, 1999 - This will help to bring new businesses and young families to our region to invest, work, live and enjoy the benefits and growing opportunities of Renaissance III. ... Pittsburgh is creating a total environment to attract business. Trails and parks are a part of this renaissance. ...
From HAPPY TRAILS ($$) - Related web pages

Apr 2, 1999 - "A lot of people have the wrong impression everything in Pittsburgh is going to be closed" when the Pennsylvania Department of ... Dawida said the bridge and tunnel work, while disruptive, is an element of what he described as "Renaissance III" - construction of two banking operations ...
From DAWIDA: CITY WON'T SHUT DOWN WHEN CONNECTOR... ($) - Related web pages

Apr 20, 1999 - "We need a full-time county executive who has shown countless times his leadership skills and his vision with the development of Renaissance III and the development of thousands and thousands of jobs that will be created by our Renaissance III. We need Mike Dawida!" ...
From Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PA) ($$) - Related web pages

June 20, 1999 - It's a new millennium and a new era for Pittsburgh," said Pfaff, 27, of the South Hills and the executive assistant for the Stadium Authority ... Some call it Renaissance III. It's an indication of how far the city has come and how far it can go that our rebirths carry Super Bowl-like ...
From SIGNALING A NEW ERA ($$) - Related web pages

Oct 3, 1999 - Here is a question I have heard frequently of late: Now that Pittsburgh is going through a period of resurgence, what do we call it? ... Sensing this, some members of our community have suggested "Renaissance III" to capture the transformation we are now experiencing. ...
From THE NAME OF THIS ROSE<>

Nov 9, 1999 - Regarding what to call Pittsburgh's regional resurgence: In the Oct. 3 Forum section, Timothy Parks of the Pittsburgh Regional Alliance suggested "Metromorphosis" to describe what some have called "Renaissance III" ("The Name of This Rose"). Here's a suggestion to build on what Mr. ...
From MORPHING TO GREATNESS ($$) - Related web pages

Dec, 1999 - Tom Murphy: Pittsburgh mayor who, perhaps, launched "Renaissance III" before being elected mayor as a state legislator, he got state funding for an ambitious and then-unprecedented project to transform an environmentally hazardous site (Herr's Island, a former slaughterhouse area) into a model mixed-use development. Not only has Washington's Landing been successful beyond prediction, but it also sparked greater popular interest in the beauty and possibilities of local riverfronts. Murphy's "Renaissance" also includes hiking/biking trails, as the big city most prominent in the national Rails to Trails movement has a mayor who regularly jogs.

Feb 1, 2000 - I have watched all of the local television stations covering the construction of the Renaissance III projects ... This event is expected soon to come to Pittsburgh. The Frankfurt Convention Center hosted one of the largest crowds in the world, yet was able to provide bus ...
From VEHICLE ACCESS TO DOWNTOWN SHOULD BE LIMITED ($) - Related web pages

May 12, 2000 - This letter is in response to the many articles regarding the redevelopment of Downtown Pittsburgh. As a former Pittsburgher, I miss the city. ... I wish that I could be there to see what current and ex-Pittsburghers will someday consider Renaissance III. We must ensure that the number ...
From A POSITIVE TRADE ($$) - Related web pages

Jul 23, 2000 - Cities around the nation have been updating their aesthetics, while Pittsburgh has lain dormant. But now, Renaissance III is lifting the 'Burgh from its rut. Much-needed makeovers erasing the days of the "fantastic plastic" era have finally arrived. Smart architecture is under way in ...
From Author: MATTHEW CURRY, DALLAS, TEXAS ($) - Related web pages

Jul 24, 2001 - In addition, the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce has taken out a series of advertisements in airline magazines urging fliers to consider ... Renaissance I was a beautiful piece of advertising, Renaissance II was cute, but Renaissance III is definitely sounding redundant. ...
From A NEW NAME FOR A NEW CITY ($$) - Related web pages

Nov 17, 2001 - My hat is off to the leaders, bankers and investors in the city of Pittsburgh. The second and third renaissance is great for the city. Moves and changes are really uplifting. Part of the North Side has become the North Shore, a wise and good name. There are new stadiums for football ...
From THE HILL NEEDS MORE ($) - Related web pages

Oct 14, 2002 - Once known for its steel mills and pollution, Pittsburgh has come a long way in cleaning up its environment and image. At the forefront of a movement known as the city's third renaissance is the new David L. Lawrence Convention Center, designed by New York architect Rafael Vinoly. ...
From Pittsburgh's `green' convention center:... ($$) - Related web pages

Jan 23, 2003 - Pittsburgh is in the midst of a third renaissance, an effort designed to transform the city from an industrial wasteland to a center for technology-based commerce. The Mon Valley and Fayette County are yearning for the same. However, transportation is vital to those efforts, ...
From Pittsburgh Council on the wrong road - Related web pages

Jun 9, 2003 - Much like Cleveland, Pittsburgh has worked to progress beyond its industrial past by pursuing dreams of an economy built in part on new and emerging technologies. As a result of those efforts, some people in Pittsburgh say the city is enjoying its "Third Renaissance...
From Pittsburgh: Steely determination; Blending of... - Related web pages

This Third Renaissance includes PNC Park, an intimate 38,000-seat ballpark for baseball's Pirates, and Heinz Field, an open-ended 65,000-seat stadium for football's Steelers. There's also the expanded, 330,000-square-foot David L. Lawrence Convention Center - a sweeping architectural jewel on the south bank of the Allegheny River that's more than twice the size of the previous building - plus a host of new restaurants, walkways and buildings along the city's riverbanks.

Dec 22, 2004 - In the end, as Murphy announced Tuesday that he won't seek a fourth term as mayor, he must inevitably be compared to the man against whom all Pittsburgh mayors are measured. Murphy's Renaissance III fell short of David L. Lawrence's original edition, and Murphy won't match Lawrence's ...
From Murphy's out - Related web pages

Dec 21, 2005 - 21--If Downtown Pittsburgh is undergoing a third renaissance, this one won't be built so much on the shoulders of skyscrapers as on the comforts of home. With more than $360 million in development in the works or in planning stages, the Golden Triangle could be on the verge of its biggest face lift since Renaissance II two decades ago...

From Downtown's newest building boom focuses on... - Related web pages

Dec 22, 2005 - Through good times and bad, PNC Financial Services Group has remained bullish about Downtown Pittsburgh. Its headquarters tower, One PNC Plaza ... No wonder Mayor-elect Bob O'Connor has called the past few days the best week for Pittsburgh in a decade. The time line for construction is ...
From NEXT RENAISSANCE - THREE CHEERS FROM THE CITY FOR... ($$) - Related web pages

Jan 4, 2006 - "I've heard something about him bringing a third renaissance to Pittsburgh. I'm interested to watch how that goes," said Chris Hearn, 22, of Kennedy, who works Downtown. O'Connor, 61, of Squirrel Hill, kicked off his tenure as Pittsburgh's 54th mayor by calling for more financial help ...
From Mayor O'Connor takes charge - Related web pages

Feb 8, 2006 - The chance to design a new neighborhood, Gatti said, is a "once-a-generation opportunity in my view or at least once every 25 years. I believe that the third renaissance in Pittsburgh will be a residential renaissance."

From Developer/architect teams chosen for Cultural District contest

Mar 21, 2006 - In Pittsburgh, participants took advantage of a system well-honed in these other electronic town meetings: a central computer system ... that tamps down the ideal that this region's best years still lie ahead, many nonprofit leaders believe that we are poised for a third renaissance...

From THE PITTSBURGH NONPROFIT SUMMIT PROVED THAT THE... ($) - Related web pages

Jul 16, 2006 - A group of local and out-of-town developers and property owners say the time is right for Downtown Pittsburgh and combined are investing well ... No one is calling their projects -- about 18 in total -- a revitalization or a Renaissance III, but for the sheer number, the moniker fits. ...
From Developers invest more than $1B Downtown - Related web pages

Aug 1, 2006 - The year began with his inaugural and hopes of a Renaissance III. And what is important to consider is that as Pittsburgh prospers, so goes Allegheny County and the trickle-down effect to the entire region. What's good for Pittsburgh is ultimately good for the Lower Valley and ...
From Region needs O'Connor - Related web pages

Sep 24, 2006 - Even before the late Mayor Bob O'Connor set out on his crusade to bring a third renaissance to Pittsburgh, our city's restaurants had undergone a major revamping. Pittsburgh diners can be thankful for the influx of talented chefs who are creating innovative menus and whose mantras are ...
From Some tips to improve restaurant service - Related web pages

Aug 19, 2008 Post-Gazette 2008 - In a statement released by his office, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said he met with Mr. Edwards on Friday and is excited about the possibilities generated Downtown by such projects as Piatt Place and Three PNC Plaza.

"We are experiencing Pittsburgh's third renaissance right now," he said. "Cranes are dotting Pittsburgh's skyline, Downtown living is on the rise, and in historic Market Square, business is booming. We must build upon this momentum, working together to improve Pittsburgh's retail environment."

From Luring high-end retailers the goal for Downtown partnership

.

Read More...

Summary only...

Ashley Todd "B" Hoax -- Behind The Cameras

A post in three parts:
Cameras Over Bloomfield, Elite or Deceit, Anatomy Of A Story

Cameras Over Bloomfield

Let's start with a story I was working on that was eclipsed by Ashley Todd's confession that there was no knife-weilding, "B" carving attacker. it reveals some of the facts available to Pittsburgh Police during their questioning of the of young woman.

It turns out that Todd picked a Pittsburgh neighborhood business district with a heavy concentration of surveillance cameras as the location for her fictional attack.

I confirmed Friday that private security cameras operated by members of The Bloomfield Business Association monitor the stretch of storefronts and sidewalks from the Bloomfield Bridge to West Penn Hospital -- including the site of McCain campaign volunteer's fabricated assault.

Bloomfield Business Association President Ben Foreman tells me the cameras are maintained by organization members in a program funded with help from the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office and other community leaders.

He says that up to three cameras covering the area in question are maintained by Father John Dinello, pastor at St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, which is across the street from the spot in question. Foreman tells me that Citizens Bank has at least one other camera in the front of its Bloomfield branch, in addition to the one inside the ATM where Todd claimed she'd been attacked.

Foreman could not say whether Pittsburgh Police had checked video from the additional cameras. He describes the crime rate in that area as "very low". Father Dinello did not return calls for comment.

John Carman has since updated the Bloomfield Business Association's website with a post called "B" is for Bloomfield.


Elite Or Deceit?


The Daily Kos' Sean Oliver argues the case that Todd is "a lot more than just a 'low-level McCain volunteer', noting that she was "recruited to join an elite, prestigous College Republican leadership team, the 2008 Field Represenative Program."



Oliver links to College Republican National Committee's Field Rep website, which indicates :

"For the past 20 years, the Field Representative Program has been the cornerstone of the College Republican National Committee. With programs in the Fall and the Spring, we deploy dozens of young, highly trained field operatives across the country to recruit new students to join the College Republicans..."

"...The 2008 Field Team is by far the most ambitious in our organization's history. 50 field reps are deployed from coast-to-coast, equipped with cutting edge technology and innovative recruitment tools to help them accomplish their mission."

The American Spectator looks Behind the Ashley Todd Hoax, with Robert Stacy McCain quoting College Republican sources who say they had:

...no indication she might be capable of such deceit.
"It's just a bizarre, bizarre situation," said one source.
There was "never any inkling" that Todd was dishonest or emotionally unstable..."

The College Republican National Committee fired Todd on Friday.


The New Republic's Jonathan Chait writes "Ashley Todd, We Hardly Knew Ye", a blog post whose illustration evokes "To Kill a Mockingbird":

Chait: "I don't think the actions of one sick volunteer say anything at all about John McCain or his campaign. They do, however, tell us a lot about right-wing yellow journalists, from Drudge on down, who manipulated primitive racial-sexual fears for partisan gain."

The Post-Gazette reports that Todd's friend Dan Garcia was not the one who spread them on the internet.

Mr. Garcia took the widely published picture of Ms. Todd with her injuries. He said he took several photographs with a digital camera to document what had happened. He said he only gave copies of the photos to police and Ms. Todd's employer, the College Republicans.

Pittsburgh Police did not make the photos public.


Anatomy Of A Story


Meanwhile, Talking Points Memo is questioning whether anyone in the McCain campaign worked to feed inflammatory false details to Pittsburgh news media.

Josh Marshall writes:

It is time for the McCain campaign to come clean about what role any of its staffers may have had in hyping or pushing the press to hype the charges stemming from Ashley Todd's vicious and reprehensible hoax.

TPM is pressing its story in four installments, so far:

"McCain Communications Director Gave Reporters Incendiary Version Of "Carved B" Story Before Facts Were Known"


"McCain Campaign Blames Reporters For Spokesperson's Peddling Of Incendiary "Carved B" Story"


"Who Do You Believe?"


"Time for Answers"

.

Read More...

Summary only...

UPDATE 3 -- Questions Raised About McCain Volunteer's Alleged Knife Mutilation

Ashley Todd

Update 3: New Channel 4 Action News video: the Pittsburgh Police spokeswoman says "the victim's statement has a few inconsistencies in it -- and her statement has changed". Todd now is telling police that she was also sexually assaulted, that she "lost consciousness", and that when she awoke she "had a stinging sensation on her face". Earlier updates are at the end of this blog post.

Conservative commentator Michelle Malkin is among those questioning the truth behind the story of what happened to McCain volunteer Ashley Todd here in Pittsburgh Wednesday night. Todd claims a robber carved a "B" (as in "Barack Obama") into her face after spotting a McCain bumper sticker on her car parked nearby.

Malkin writes on her website, in a post titled "Why that McCain volunteer’s 'mutilation' story smells awfully weird":

"Maaaaybe the alleged robber straddled her upside-down while carving it into her face."
"Maybe."
"But I’ve got my doubts."

You can read the rest of Malkin's post at this link. Her readers take up the discussion in the comments section. As of this posting, major national liberal bloggers haven't touched the story. Watch for updates at the bottom of this post.

The skepticism appears to be fueled in part by the fact that the wound allegedly made during an attack appears to be remarkably symmetrical, neat, and uniformly minor. And it's backwards -- though it wouldn't appear so when looking at it in a mirror.

My first reaction when I saw the photo of McCain volunteer Ashley Todd: someone mistakenly reversed the image... but, no. The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review story reports that "the man then carved the 'B' into Todd's right cheek", as it appears in the photo.

Ashley Todd has now locked down her Twitter account updates, but here's a screenshot of her messages both before and after the reported incident, courtesy of her participation in a College Republicans group blog.

Click to Enlarge

At Steve Huff's True Crime website, bloggers and commenters are also parsing the details of the story.


Let's check out the scene of the incident with Google Map's Street View. Clicking in the image below allows you to zoom in, out, and around in a circle. Two clicks of the clockwise arrow, followed by two clicks of the plus button will show you the ATM.


View Larger Map


The area appears to be part of Bloomfield's business district -- between West Penn Hospital and the Bloomfield Bridge -- and appears to have restaurants and bars nearby.

Among my questions: are there any witnesses? How busy is that area at that time of evening? There does not appear to be a drive-through ATM at that location; where was the woman's car parked in relation to the sidewalk ATM? Was the McCain phone bank office where the victim was working near the scene? Is it clear why the robber stayed around to watch her go to her car instead of running off with the $60? Did she go back into the phone bank office or into any nearby business after the attack? Some news reports say the woman drove to a friend's home; how far is that from the scene? Other reports say the woman declined treatment at the scene -- is that correct? Who offered treatment and at what point? Another report says the attacker said "you're with the McCain campaign"; is that an accurate quote from the victim to police of the attacker's words? Does she know how he knew she was with the campaign, and not simply a person with a bumper sticker?

Two More Snapshots of Google Street View. Click to Enlarge.

Update:

The Smoking Gun includes more posts from Todd's Twitter account at the bottom of its website's story.

Andrew Sullivan weighs in here with his "Joe The Mugger?" post.

Update 2:

Huffington Post now has this entry by Jeffrey Feldman dealing with The Drudge Report's spin on the story. You can also read his analysis on Frameshop.

.

Read More...

Summary only...

Teacher, Wordsmith, Madman Wake

Blogger Emeritus Chad Hermann's long goodbye to the burghosphere was honored with the sort of full page treatment in Sunday's Post-Gazette once reserved for Kaufmann's Department Store ads for "The Time of the Roses" sale.














(A search of Google News Archives helped me dig up this ad, along with a quirkily prophetic 1964 PG article -- "Perhaps Machines Will Read Things Like This" . Clicking the images will enlarge them for you. What a wonderful twist that, after 44 years, the article was in fact read by a "machine" and placed in Google's digital library. But I digress.)


Mr. Hermann, a respected writer and former educator, recently gave up writing his "Teacher, Wordsmith, Madman" blog. In the Post-Gazette, he says:

I grew weary of the game and the genre and everything that went with them. Even as I remained confident that TWM still kept those early promises, I feared that its company with the kind of shrill, toxic, intolerant crusading that these days so often passes for blogging would diminish it by association. If certainly not by comparison.

...and ...

I wanted TWM to be a window. And I hoped the blogosphere would be a gleaming, gaping city of them. Turns out it's just a long, dark hall of mirrors, stretching out to infinity.

In its final months, Hermann's "Teacher, Wordsmith, Madman" blog became increasingly consumed by his distain for presidential candidate Barack Obama. Here's a link to a Google search of his blog that provides some examples.



Judge Rufus Peckam writes about his Carbolic Smoke Ball colleague in a post at the Pittsburgh Men's Blogging Society.







Commenters at The Burgh Report are joining in the virtual wake, as is Ed Heath at Cognitive Dissonance in Pittsburgh and Beyond.

Heath writes:

Hermann’s piece on today’s PG’s “Next Page” was absolutely vintage Hermann. He titled it “The Out Post”. I suspect he might have titled it the “Last Post”, but apparently part of the reason he stopped blogging is because he seemed genuinely stung when his flippant criticism of Randy Pausch was so negatively received (he said he received three death threats).

Actually, Hermann describes getting "death wishes", not threats, in three readers' mean-spirited responses to his take on the Randy Pausch phenomenon:

That's right. Death wishes. A trio of anonymous comment-thread posters on other blogs -- they couldn't muster courage of conviction enough to e-mail me directly -- took exception to my suggestion that Randy Pausch had been overcovered, that the merits of his lecture had been overstated, and that most people now loudly proclaiming to be inspired by him will, 10 years hence, struggle to remember his name. For these sins, which seem to me no more than the untimely utterance of the obvious, I was wished dead or dying. (Sample: "Perhaps I'm blinded by my ... hatred of Chad Hermann, but that ... is exactly how I picture him when I imagine him dying of stomach cancer.")

This was one of the signs that it was time for me to quit.

Did Hermann's choice not to open his blog to comments contribute to the downward spiral of his relationship with his critical readers? Perhaps if he had published selections from the better of the "impassioned, respectful e-mail exchanges" he also described, it would have cleared the air and inspired a civil discourse. Then again, maybe it would have hastened a descent into blog hell.


That brings to mind a related topic.



The reader comments on The Burgh Report blog have developed into a active forum in recent months. (This link will show you an overview of all comments there, if you have an RSS Reader.) Sometimes the comments there can make for interesting exchanges. At other times, I wonder if the blog has been targeted by election season activists hoping to hijack the site.



By my recent count, the rambling reader called "Monk" was responsible for no less than 71 out of a sampling of 263 comments at The Burgh Report. Sometimes they stack up several at a time. It makes me long for a blogger version of an old radio talk show rule for callers -- "one call per show per week."


I moderate comments here, but don't have the time to keep up the pace that allows for immediate reader interaction. That -- and my ground rules -- mean that comments on my blog are few and far between.

When Kate Phillips of The New York Times spoke at the SPJ Regional here in Pittsburgh this year, she mentioned the challenges of keeping up with moderating reader comments for The Caucus, the NYT's political blog. The busier the blog, the more daunting the task, it seems.


I hope Hermann does come back with a fresh start -- and that he and his readers get to engage in a healthier discussion.

As for his current dark view of the blogosphere, I've always compared the quality of blogs to typing -- it all depends on who is at the keyboard. They are what we choose to make them.

.

Read More...

Summary only...

Why Call Him "Billionaire" Bluhm?

Viewer & reader Ted Couperus writes:

Why do you as well as all the other news folks on WTAE refer to Neil Bluhm as "Billionaire Neil Bluhm"? I didn't hear anyone refer to Don Barden as "Millionaire Don Barden". It seems very strange to use someone's alleged net worth as part of their name almost like it is a title.

It's a fair question.

While a billion dollars may not buy what it used to, it's still a significant mark of distinction in the world of business and worth noting. It's certainly in a different league than millionaires and the strata for the rest of us which a local bank referred to as "thousand-aires" in an ad campaign years ago.

Until Mr. Bluhm & company close the deal, which -- at this writing -- they've not yet done, we can't call him the Pittsburgh casino co-owner. (UPDATE: Late this morning, word came that the deal closed, casino financing came through, and payments to contractors is under way.)

In fact, Bluhm has said that his personal stake in the new casino will amount to only a few percentage points. He testified that he does not control the trusts established by his adult children for his grandkids. Those trusts will also have a stake in the casino.

Click image to enlarge.

The PowerPoint presentation to the gaming board identifies Neil Bluhm as "Managing Principal of Walton Street Capital", but that fund has many investors. "Walton Street Capital" has a 74% percent stake in "Pittsburgh Gaming Investors"... which has a 75% stake in "Holdings Gaming Borrower"... which is the vehicle for raising money for... "Holdings Acquisition Co", the casino licensee.

Taking the borrowed money into account, the PowerPoint then breaks it down this way:



Bluhm will serve on the three person management committee which controls the casino. That committee is at the top of a chain which includes a total of four variations of the Holdings/Gaming/Borrower/Aquisition/GP/ LLC/ LP/Company maze of names in the chart below.

Click image to enlarge.

Faced with those labyrinthine details and limited time, we opted for saying "Billionaire Neil Bluhm". The fact that it alliterates is a bonus.

We're not alone.

Google "Billionaire Neil Bluhm" and you'll get 1,970 hits. I'm only responsible for a few of them but I'll try not to run up the score.

A search for my alternate adjective in this case, "investor Neil Bluhm", brings 478 Google hits.

A simple search for "Neil Bluhm" produces 10,100 hits; the first two are shown in the screenshot below.



(PS to Mr. Couperus: I tried to e-mail back to you, but my response was bounced by your internet service provider as "rejected by the recipient domain".)

.

Read More...

Summary only...

John McCain & The Steelers Defensive Line?

Black & Gold?

When Senator John McCain was a Vietnam prisoner of war, did he give his interrogators the names of the Pittsburgh Steelers defensive line when they pressured him to name his squadron mates?

McCain told that tale to a Pittsburgh TV reporter this week, but it contradicts McCain's account for the past 40 years --- that he named Green Bay Packers players when he defied his captors.

The Republican presidential candidate is taking heat from some sports and political websites for his apparent Steelers-Packers flip flop.

First, here is his exchange with the Pittsburgh reporter:

Q (from KDKA's Jon Delano): "Senator, when you think of Pittsburgh, what's the first thing that comes to your mind?"

McCain: "The Steelers. I was a mediocre high school athlete and I loved and adored the sports, but the Steelers really made a huge impression on me, particularly in the early years."

"When I was first interrogated, and really had to give some information because of the pressures, the physical pressures that were on me, I named the starting lineup, the defensive line of the Pittsburgh Steelers as my squadron mates (Laughs)."

Q: "Did you really?"

McCain: "Years ago, yes."

Q: "In your POW camp?"

McCain: "Yes. Yes, indeed."

Q: "Could you do it today?"

McCain: "No, unfortunately, I couldn't. But I certainly could then."

An Amazon.com check inside the pages of McCain's autobiography "Faith of My Fathers" shows McCain's own words on page 194. Quote:

"Pressed for more useful information, I gave the names of the Green Bay Packers' offensive line,..."

When McCain's book was made into an A&E cable TV movie in 2005, the Green Bay version of the story was acted out, complete with the names from the Packers' 1967 defensive lineup. The Movie McCain repeated "Starr; Greg; McGee; Davis; Adderly; Brown; Ringo; Wood."

During a May 27, 2005 appearance on CNN, when the interviewer played that movie scene clip McCain explained it this way:

"That was the starting line up of the Green Bay Packers, the first Super Bowl champions. But, uh, it was the best I could think of at the time."

The reaction on sports blogs?

Fan IQ: "John McCain Apparently Gets Caught Lying About Naming The Pittsburgh Steelers Line In Vietnam"

FanHouse: "John McCain's Steelers Story Doesn't Add Up"

I e-mailed two members of the McCain campaign, asking "Why did the Senator change to the Steelers version? Was it -- as some bloggers are suggesting -- in the hope of winning the Steeler fan votes?"

National McCain campaign staffer Kimmie Lipscomb did not respond. Paul Lindsay of McCain's Pennsylvania campaign e-mailed back:

Hey Bob,

On background as a McCain official - It was an honest mistake. If bloggers want to make fun of him because he forgot which team he used under torture, let them.

Hope that is helpful to you,

Paul

I responded:

Paul,

We are on the record.
The senator wrote about the Packers version in his book and discussed it in interviews many times. Is the senator's or the campaign's response that he forgot? His statement to the Pittsburgh reporter was part of an extended discussion about the Steelers.

Bob Mayo
Reporter
WTAE-TV

I've gotten no further response from the campaign.

A viewer named Mark first alerted me to this story in an e-mail Wednesday night, writing that in KD's story McCain:

"stated that he used the great Steelers defensive line when FIRST interrogated. The thing is, he was first taken prisoner in 1967? Love to see some factfinding here."

That's when I started doing some Googling on the topic.

McCain became a POW in 1967. The legendary Steelers defensive line that McCain appears to be referring to -- The Steel Curtain -- wasn't in place until 1971. Mean Joe Greene --the first of the front four to arrive -- didn't join the Steelers until 1969, two years after the time McCain refers to as when he was first interrogated.


In 1967, John McCain was 31 years old and the Steelers were anything but super. They'd had only eight seasons since McCain was born in which team wins outnumbered losses. In the two years before McCain was shot down, the Steelers were 2-and-12 and 5-8-and-1. Discouraged fans back then called them SOS -- the "Same Old Steelers".

I wasn't able to blog on this Thursday, due to my trip to Harrisburg to cover the Gaming Board's hearing on the Pittsburgh Casino. When I resumed my Googling this morning, I saw those sports blog links and this blog post by Jake Tapper of ABC News. My station, WTAE, is doing the story on tonight's 11 o'clock news. If the video makes it to the Pittsburgh Channel website, I'll update this post with a new link.

.

Read More...

Summary only...

Ferlo's Billboard Back Story: The Past Informs The Present

A search of Google News Archives for "Ferlo" and "billboards" serves up an interesting history. I remember covering these stories in my radio days, back when State Senator Jim Ferlo was a City Councilman.

Here's an excerpt from a 2002 profile of Ferlo by Rich Lord, who was then with Pittsburgh City Paper:

...Ferlo has put government’s clamps, though, on one major industry: outdoor advertising.

In 1993, Ferlo surprise-attacked the billboard industry with an ordinance that essentially barred companies from putting up new billboards. Even boards removed for road projects or as a result of building demolitions couldn’t be replaced, and the industry fought hard against the bill, says Don Brown, public affairs director for Lamar Outdoor Advertising. “We were trying to fight to keep what we had,” says Brown, noting that some of his company’s highest-revenue signs are within city limits. “He organized the usual suspects, like the Sierra Club and other groups,” and got them to testify at public hearings, Brown says. “He was constantly lobbying council, going up and down the hall, like I was. … We lost by one vote.”

Since then, the industry has occasionally gone to court and won the right to replace some billboards. But Ferlo’s legislation has hurt. “It reduces the number we have, which in turn reduces the revenue we have,” Brown says. “Because I don’t think [Ferlo] has ever had a business responsibility, [there are times] when I don’t think he understands the realities of business.”...

Here are some select Google News headlines from the 90s.

Apr 5, 1992 - That's what happened with Councilman Jim Ferlo. Last week, he proposed freezing the number of billboards in the city. ... But Ferlo is on the right track. Along Becks Run Road, the local complaint has to do with clutter. A new set of 13 billboards obliterates what used to be a woodsy view. ...

From CITY TAKES A STEP TO RIGHT THE WRONG OF BILLBOARD... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Aug 25, 1992 - City Councilman Jim Ferlo of District 9'proposed zoning amendments that would also keep billboards off the riverfronts and only in ... Ferlo said that there are billboards in the which he thinks is too many. One of the pieces of legislation submitted by Ferlo calls for fees charged to ..

From News Record (Newspaper) - August 25, 1992, North... - North Hills News Record ($$)

Jan 26, 1993 - City Councilman Jim Ferlo introduced the proposed billboard ordinances last summer. He charged yesterday that the city Planning Commission has been ''stalling" on his bills. One would reduce the maximum size of billboards to 450 square feet from the existing limit of 1200 square feet. ...

From BILLBOARD LIMITS SOUGHT - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Feb 28, 1993 - City Councilman Jim Ferlo said yesterday that the 1561 letters he mailed at city expense during February covered three subjects -- billboards, ... Ferlo is leading an effort for greater city controls over the size and location of billboards and is helping merchants deal with the problem of ...

From FERLO DEFENDS LETTER WRITING AT CITY'S COST - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Mar 31, 1993 - "I resent the (sign) industry calling my bill a radical abolition of billboards," Ferlo said. "That isn't the case. This is reasonable regulation." A second bill by Ferlo, which would have capped the number of billboards in Pittsburgh at the present number of 1400, was defeated by the ...

From CITY PANEL RESTRICTS NEW BILLBOARDS - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Mar 17, 1993 - Councilman Jim Ferlo, who last year drafted his own billboard-control rules, complained that Zottola's proposals merely "rubber-stamp what the industry wants. ... Ferlo wants a 378-square-foot limit. The billboard study committee recommended 1000 feet between signs on major roads, the distance ...

From RIFT STALLS BILLBOARD CONTROLS - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)



Now, mixing in headlines from a PG archive search with the Google archive:

The city Planning Commission approved tough restrictions on new billboards yesterday, leading one advertising official to accuse the panel of trying to ''wipe out" the sign industry.
The commission voted 4-1 in favor of the tighter regulations on the size, height and location of billboards, which were proposed by Councilman Jim Ferlo, a longtime billboard critic. Outdoor advertising officials vowed to carry the fight to City Council, which has the final...

CITY PANEL RESTRICTS NEW BILLBOARDS
Date: March 31, 1993 Publication: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PA) Page Number: B-1 Word Count: 503

Apr 16, 1993 - (This is a test about billboards. Pick one of the following options.
Choice 1: Legislation proposed by city Councilman Jim Ferlo to limit the
size, height and location of outdoor advertising signs is an "extremist" measure that will have a "catastrophic impact" on local jobs, on small businesses that need a low-cost way to reach customers and on charitable groups that receive free space for their messages. Choice 2: Ferlo's) Ferlo said his bill was a compromise. Some hard-line billboard foes favor more drastic measures, such as ridding the city completely of signs or to prevent certain products, such as alcohol and tobacco, from being advertised. John Stephen of Friends of the Riverfront said the bill would make ...

From BOTH SIDES DISPLAY OPINIONS ON BILLBOARDS - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Sep 30, 1993 - Billboard restrictions tentatively approved PITTSBURGH City Council has tentatively approv- ed a bill to restrict new billboards and even ban them in the city's Downtown section. Council members voted 5-3 Wednesday in favor of the which was sponsored by Councilman Jim Ferlo and faces a final ...

From The Valley Independent (Newspaper) - September... - Valley Independent, The ($$)

Oct 6, 1993 - The life or death of new billboard regulations in Pittsburgh may rest in the hands of City Councilwoman Michelle Madoff. ... Madoff's vote would be needed in the event that Mayor Masloff, as expected, vetoed new billboard regulations that were approved by City Council yesterday. ...

From BILLBOARD BILL VETO WOULD GET MADOFF TO RETURN - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Jun 15, 1994 - Pittsburgh's skyline will become littered with visual pollution if Downtown businesses are not prohibited from putting up rooftop signs, say proponents of a bill before the city Planning Commission. Critics of the bill, proposed by council members Jim Ferlo and Christopher Smith, call it an unnecessary invasion of property rights. Although new billboards have been banned from Downtown, business identification signs are legal, and some city officials fear an outbreak of rooftop signs. ...

From PANEL HEARS PROS, CONS OF BILL ON ROOFTOP SIGNS - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Jan 13, 1995 - [ For more than half a year, the city Planning Commission, the Department of Planning and City Council worked on a plan by Councilman Jim Ferlo to severely restrict corporate signs in the Golden Triangle.
Last month, business and labor came out in force at a public hearing to give their views on the legislation. The impact of their testimony was so devastating that, afterward, it appeared the only council member in favor of the bill was Jim Ferlo. This is not how good legislation is made.] Council President Ferlo has distinguished himself as someone who cares about the appearance of Pittsburgh. He is a defender of its vistas, a guardian of its skyline. He worked for years on legislation to regulate billboards and ultimately was successful in enacting a law that balanced the ...

From SIGNS TO COME PITTSBURGH NEEDS A CONSENSUS ON HOW... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ($$)

Oct 15, 2000 - "No longer is taking a billboard on the parkway or an ad in the newspaper considered to be enough visibility. ... City Councilman Jim Ferlo, who considers Mellon's headquarters sign to be "a green, obnoxious blob," is pushing for legislation to ban all rooftop signs from going up in the Golden ...

From Pittsburgh Companies Rush to Put Their Names in... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh,... (Free with registration)

Jun 29, 2001 - 29--The large Heinz Field signs to be erected on the new football stadium are actually "billboards" used for advertising and aren't permitted on ... any kind can be erected on the North Shore because of a sign moratorium imposed in October by City Council, at the urging of Councilman Jim Ferlo. ...

From Pittsburgh Steelers, Civic Group Face Off over... - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pittsburgh,... (Free with registration)

Jan 5, 2003 - By his own count, Ferlo has had a "couple hundred" bills and resolutions passed in his 15 years on council. He sponsored legislation that tightened restrictions on billboards, defeating a powerful interest group in the process. He was instrumental in getting the Citizen Police Review Board ...

From Scorpion or warrior? Feisty Jim Ferlo leaves... - Pittsburgh Post Gazette

.

Read More...

Summary only...

SLAPP?

Bill Peduto claims that the lawsuit Lamar Advertising filed against him and his fellow Councilmen Shields, Burgess, Kraus, and Dowd was a SLAPP. He seems to suggest the city law department opinion about their legal expenses has the sting of a SLAPP, too.

What's a SLAPP?

I didn't recall the term, but apparently SLAPPs have a long and contentious history.

SLAPP stands for "Strategic lawsuit against public participation".


Wikipedia defines it as:

"a form of litigation frequently filed by organizations or individuals to intimidate and silence critics or opponents by burdening them with the cost of a legal defense so that they abandon their criticism or opposition."

California passed a law to protect against SLAPPs. So have more than two dozen other states. That includes Pennsylvania, though our state's has been described as a "significantly weakened version passed into law in 2000." It was designed to deal only with environmental law cases, and reportedly was passed "after a coal baron sued an elderly constituent for filing a complaint with the state’s Department of Environmental Protection when her home suffered acid mine-water damage."

That's from this article in Philly area newspaper that quotes a critic complaining that a court ruling created "an unduly narrow interpretation that destroys any value or purpose of the statute."

It seems that SLAPPs are an international phenomenon. Here' s a YouTube video report by CUTV. Concordia University Television is Canada's oldest student-run television station. I'm linking to it here for some interesting background. As they say on the DVD extras, this is for entertainment purposes only, and does not necessarily reflect the views, etc.




Here are some PG articles in which the term "SLAPP" appears.

Developers sue Franklin Park, residents for losses
Suit cites neighbors' 'frivolous objections' to townhouse plan


The dash to SLAPP is chilling


Judge drops neighbors from townhouse lawsuit

Meanwhile, I ran into Lamar Advertising's attorney Sam Kamin as I was leaving the City County Building after Tuesday's council meeting. He told me he had just finished dictating the court filing to withdraw Lamar's lawsuit against the city council members, as agreed to in the arrangement signed before the zoning board.

A check of the county court's website shows that the lawsuit has now been "Discontinued without Prejudice".

What the significance there is (if any) of the lawsuit being discontinued "without prejudice" in this case, I do not know.

.

Read More...

Summary only...

Google Mapping The News

View Larger Map



The image above is from Google Maps' street view of the scene of the deadly house explosion in Plum. It was e-mailed to me by crime blogger Steve Huff, who I first heard from a couple of years ago while covering the Brandi Dunn murder case.



Steve writes:

Hi Bob,

We've corresponded a bit in the past about some interesting cases in your area. I make a living with my writing and reporting now, but I still do plenty of blogging on my own. Today I grew interested in the house explosion in Plum, in part because such things are kind of rare. Thinking it probably wasn't crime related, I've written a personal blog entry about it here (I think of my blogs as "crime blogs" and just "personal blogs" where I write about whatever):

http://www.stevenhuff.net/archives/412

It's really just one angle on the story, still, it might be an angle that wouldn't occur to a lot of people. I just thought you'd find it interesting.

.

Read More...

Summary only...