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Mission
Preservation Pittsburgh is a non-profit advocacy group
dedicated to preserving our region's historic, architectural,
cultural,
and environmental
heritage. Its purpose is to assist individuals and organizations
in preserving the integrity of the architecture and physical
surroundings they value.
Members, who include both professional preservationists
and interested citizens, are united by their concern that
the future of Pittsburgh's irreplaceable architectural and
landscape treasures is in jeopardy.
Preservation Pittsburgh's primary goal is to promote the
importance of preservation issues in the deliberations and
decisions of public officials, private groups, developers
and the general public.
History
Preservation Pittsburgh's history
began with the tearing down of a City
landmark--the Syria Mosque. The loss of this acoustically
perfect and much-loved
concert hall (the location is still a parking lot for UPMC)
convinced a group
of concerned citizens that there needed to be a grass-roots,
activist
preservation organization in town to take on looming historic
preservation battles in
the city. Our Board of Directors consists of interested citizens
willing to
advocate for sensitivity to preservation and sustainability
issues in public
policy decisions. The board meets quarterly. As you can imagine, the fight to keep
this city's
heritage and beauty intact is never-ending.
Pittsburgh's fortunes were sliding in the 70's and 80's
when the rest of
America was dancing to the call of urban development projects
that tore down
historic, often intact buildings, and replaced them with
interior-oriented malls,
large-scale and non-descript office buildings filled with
out of town
chainstores. Although this period of economic downturn was
an extremely difficult
time for many Pittsburghers due to the closing of steel mills,
the city still
managed to keep a large percentage of its beautiful period
architecture,
pedestrian-scaled neighborhoods, and locally-owned businesses
intact.
Unfortunately, as the City's fortunes began to rise, development
interests
increased too and civic projects that hoped to guarantee
this economic growth
were often done at the expense of Pittsburgh's history and
traditions. A
surprising number of people--from CEO's to students--comment
on the "feel" of
Pittsburgh and speak warmly of the beautifully detailed architecture,
traditional
pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods and locally owned stores.
To be able to move
through significant historic buildings, to work and enjoy
cultural refreshment
in and around them, is a value Preservation Pittsburgh stands
for. Such
quality of life issues, unfortunately, haven't been easy
to demonstrate on balance
sheets, even though here in Pittsburgh, they are enjoyed
by all.
Our unique heritage, beginning with the sacred confluence
of two rivers to
form a third, moving through the creation of the glass and
steel industries
which brought immigrant families into the region and created
neighborhoods that
still retain their ethnic traditions, through the development
of world-class
museums and cultural treasures makes us feel that Pittsburgh
is a city "Alive
with Tradition." We invite you to come join us to keep
these traditions alive.
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