News Around the Neighborhood
COVID Testing Resources on the Northside
Northside Christian Health Center
816 Middle St, 15212
Offering free oral self-swab Coronavirus testing. Must pre-register: alleghenycovidtesting.com / (412) 321-4001 option * for assistanceAllegheny Health Network
(Former Divine Providence) 1004 Arch St, 15212
A doctor’s prescription is needed for this site. For more information: ahn.org/coronavirus / (412) 687-7348Central Outreach and Wellness Center
127 Anderson St, Ste 101, 15212
The onsite testing is suspended, but they can assist you if you do not have a PCP or insurance: call (412) 515-0000Fall 2020 Tree Planting
According to Jeffrey Bergman, Director of Community Forestry and Tree Vitalize at Western PA Conservancy, there will be tree-planting in the fall. The intention is to move forward with the plantings for approved Tree Vitalize applications in Pittsburgh. They are finalizing assessments for the fall this summer and will follow up with applicants in late August.If you did not apply to have a tree planted, it may not be too late. Call or email me at (412)-321-5951 or callismar@gmail.com and I can provide the application form.
Pittsburgh Here for Good Fundraiser to Help Local Small Businesses
Before the pandemic, 595,000 small businesses close each year in the United States. More than 100,000 small businesses across the country have closed for good because of the coronavirus.
Pittsburgh Here for Good is a T-shirt fundraiser for Pittsburgh area small businesses by a Pittsburgh-area small business. Small businesses in the 412 have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic and are creatively exploring alternative ways to generate revenue. A T-shirt fundraiser is one way to do that!
Like you, I am a small business owner. Pre-pandemic, I printed apparel for youth sports teams. With sports being shelved, I had to pivot to keep good. Enter the “Pittsburgh Here for Good” fundraiser for small businesses. The Pittsburgh Here for Good fundraiser is an opportunity for Pittsburgh area small businesses to add a revenue source without taking on risk or adding expense.
It’s simple. You, the small business owner, sigs up on our website, upload your logo or motto, and we turn it into a premium T-shirt to sell online. You’ll earn $10 from the sale of each shirt – without risk, without cost.
We sent out weekly payments, and these can add up. Since the start of the fundraiser, we’ve sent thousands of dollars to Pittsburgh small businesses.
So, what’s the catch? There isn’t one. All we ask is you make your customer base aware this fundraiser exists and that it will have a positive influence on keeping your business alive! We ask you to commit to pushing the information out through your website, email, and social media.
People want to help out their favorite local businesses, but they don’t know how. This fundraiser is a win for all involved: the small business can generate revenue through shirt sales, their customers get a premium T-shirt for a good price all for helping their favorite business, and the business printing the shirts is helped also.
Your customers, your fanbase, your tribe…They want you to survive this. They want you to make it to the other side, and they want to help.
Visit https://www.itsforthekids.net/pittsburgh-here-for-good-lp.html#/ or scan the code.
You’ll be glad you did!
—
Mr. Kris Schemm
It’s For The Kids, llc
www.itsforthekids.net
(412) 414-0492
Allegheny Commons Park Updates + Events
Playground Removal
The Department of Public Works will be removing the playground in the West Commons (near the deer pit/Gus & Yia Yia’s) due to safety concerns. The Swings were replaced a few years ago so they will stay open. DPW will be putting the replacement of the safety surface and playground in the 2021 capital budget request.
WHAT THE MUCK!?
(volunteer clean up of Lake Elizabeth)
The Parks Conservancy in partnership with Allegheny CleanWays and the City are hosting a cleanup of Lake Elizabeth in Allegheny Commons Park on the Northside. Volunteers will be working alongside staff to remove debris from the recently drained lake on the following days/times:
- Tuesday, June 23rd – 9:00 am-12:00 pm – FB Page for 6/23 – Registration link for 6/23
- Thursday, June 25th – 9:00 am-12:00pm – FB Page for 6/25 – Registration link for 6/25
West Ohio Street Bridge Construction
PITTSBURGH, PA (June 18, 2020) The City of Pittsburgh Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) is pleased to announce the start of construction on the new West Ohio Street Bridge over the Norfolk Southern Railroad in Allegheny Commons Park in the Allegheny Center neighborhood of the City. The bridge has been closed to traffic since January 2018 due to deterioration of the 117-year-old structure. When construction is completed in the Fall of 2021, the new West Ohio Street bridge will support a full return of service between Allegheny Commons and Allegheny West.
In the coming weeks, a temporary pedestrian bridge will be installed to allow for continuous pedestrian access over the railroad during the project.
For questions, please contact the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure at zachary.workman@pittsburghpa.
gov.
Erin Tobin
Community Engagement Manager
A Story of Race, Ancestral Memory, Trauma, and Healing
Redemption: SONS is hope. It is change. It is a parent’s soul split in two and fused back together again. An African American mother from Louisiana and a Boricua father from the South Bronx engage in a call and response “duologue” as they weave a story of race, ancestral memory, trauma, and healing.
Redemption: SONS premiered at the New Hazlett Theater in December of 2016. We will rebroadcast the full performance followed by a live question and answer session with creators Dr. Tameka Cage Conely and Dr. Jason Méndez.
Brighton Road Updates Presentation – Sean Stephens (DOMI)
Lake Elizabeth Clean Up (Details to Come)
I just spoke with the Dept of Public Works and have the following information to share:
- DPW will begin draining the lake today or tomorrow. It will take a week or so for the lake to drain and fully dry out before we can have a clean up event.
- The Parks Conservancy will coordinate some volunteer events in the coming weeks to assist with the cleaning of the lake
- DPW will not be able to work alongside volunteers but will work on separate days to further clean out the lake.
- These events will be permitted given people are practicing social distancing and all the proper safety measures which will be shared on our website and on site at the lake during the event.
Please stay tuned for a date and additional information coming soon.
Thank you,
Erin Tobin
Community Engagement Manager
Statement of the NSLC Executive Committee (June 5, 2020)
At its heart, community development is the process of change by the community and for the community. That change takes many forms – quality affordable housing, health and wellness, quality education, economic opportunity, an equal voice in decision making – but true change is not possible or sustainable if people live in the daily reality of discrimination and the fear of injury or death simply because of the color of their skin or if the systems that serve them have racial inequity built into them.
Change is possible when people of good will join together to demand change, to work for change, and to model that change in their daily lives. The Northside Leadership Conference was created 40 years ago on the premise that injury to one of us is injury to the whole, and that by working together for all our neighborhoods, for all our residents, we can make positive and sustainable change. That challenge is before us again. Northsiders will unite again to make that needed change. We must.
Has Your Business Posted the Paid Sick Leave Notice?
The Paid Sick Leave Act went into effect for all businesses operating in the City of Pittsburgh on March 15, 2020.
Under the ordinance all employers with 15 or more employees are required to offer up to 40 hours of paid sick time per year, and those employing less than 15 employees offer up to 24 hours of paid sick time.
The Paid Sick Leave website provides additional information, the ordinance, guidelines, printable notices, FAQs and a complaint form.
ALL businesses that operate within the City of Pittsburgh are required to post a paid sick leave notice for all employees in their place of business.
Printable copies of the notice are available online in 33 languages. Employers must post the notice in English and any other language(s) primarily spoken by employees.
Loyalty Bond Program for Small Business
The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA) and Honeycomb Credit announced today that they are partnering to create the Pittsburgh Loyalty Bonds program, a new way for small businesses within the City of Pittsburgh to smooth out cash flow and engage their customers. Loyalty Bonds allow small, local businesses to sell gift cards at a discount right now and give prospective customers more reasons to return to that business for years to come. The first 100 Pittsburgh businesses to be accepted into this program will have their setup fees waived and will receive $300 from URA funds when they reach their funding goal.