Oct. 13 Run: PPG Place Downtown to visit the Giant Rubber Ducky

Thanks to Aimee for sending this in (and leading last week's run)!
 
Next Sunday (10/13), we will meet at the Tomb of the Unknown Bowler in PPG Plaza Downtown for a spectacular Giant Duckie Run!

Here's what we did last Sunday:
Borough Councilman and Third Ward resident Michael Lefebvre led the group on a wild and hilly adventure through the streets of Wilkinsburg, that brought us to hope, despair, and hope again!  Running past abandoned, dilapidated structures with broken windows, we also ran past beautifully renovated historic residential and commercial buildings, community gardens, and many, many churches, all glimmers of hope in a borough with a shrinking tax base.  The borough was historically known as "The Holy City," with its unusually high concentration of churches, seceding from the City of Pittsburgh in 1876 to maintain the religious integrity of the community.   http://www.wilkinsburgpa.gov/about/history.aspx

Efforts by the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation have transformed both residential and commercial buildings in the central part of the borough.  We marveled at the dramatically restored Crescent Apartments and Wilson House:
http://www.landmarkspreservation.org/work/wilkinsburg/the-crescent/
http://www.landmarkspreservation.org/work/wilson-house/

Scaling a steep hill, we found ourselves admiring the Singer Mansion, which has been continuously occupied since it was built for $75,000 in 1864.  See page 20 for a picture of the mansion.
 
After returning to the Regent Square part of Wilkinsburg, we found a house that was recently featured on the inaugural Wilkinsburg House Tour a few weeks ago.  It was originally purchased for $6,600, fixed up, and resold a year later for $363,000!!!  While the house was purchased through a Free and Clear sale, "flipped" and re-sold, good tax opportunities exist for those who occupy the house for at least 10 years. Here are the details on the borough's TaxBase Expansion Ordinance (which provides a nice tax abatement).
 
At coffee at Biddle's Escape, we discussed the debacle of Wilkinsburg's troubled school district recentlyborrowing $3 million and hiring consultants with expensive tastes (!), and the ongoing government shutdown (we couldn't resist).