Articles written by Tom Smith
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St. Paul of the Cross Monastery Church reopens after renovations
A little over two years ago, in July 2018, the future of St. Paul of the Cross Monastery and Church was cloudy at best. The Passionist community of about a dozen priests heard a presentation at a...
St. George Church is recommended to gain city historic status
The City of Pittsburgh Historic Review Commission (HRC), after a 30-day delay to gain more information, voted to recommend historic status to the former St. John Vianney Church building in Allentown....
Mt. Oliver Borough honors police canine Nico with a proclamation
The August meeting of the Mt. Oliver Borough Council began with a short ceremony to present a proclamation to Police Chief Matthew Juzwick honoring police canine Nico for his dedication and service to...
Historic status for church could depend on if it's a church
The City of Pittsburgh Historic Review Commission's (HRC) virtual hearing August 5 on whether to recommend the former St. George Church building to City Council for historic status ended with the...
Mt. Oliver approves liquor license transfer for a new restaurant on Brownsville Road
The July public meeting of the Mt. Oliver Borough Council was moved to the Mt. Oliver Fire Hall so social distancing could be observed. To begin the meeting, the council approved a series of motions...
Hilltop Urban Farm is growing food on the Hilltop
Recently, I had the opportunity to tour the Hilltop Urban Farm (HUF) with staff members John Bixler and Ned Brockmeyer along with members of Hilltop community organizations. Mr. Bixler is the...
Come down, have fun, and be safe in S.S. for St. Paddy Parade Day
"You can come to the South Side and you can enjoy everything the South Side has to offer and you can leave one thing behind and that's your vehicle," was the message District 3 councilman Bruce Kraus...
Carson safety project making improvements to 33 blocks in S. Side
The long-awaited $16.31 million East Carson Street Safety Improvement Project has entered the preparatory work phase and is anticipated to begin construction work in early April. Residents were able to hear the latest plans and ask questions at a mee...
New steering group, area crime reports discussed in Carrick
The Brashear Association is looking for Hilltop residents to become members of a new Hilltop Program Steering Committee to drive future programing needs in the Hilltop. Kelli Murphy, a master’s level University of Pittsburgh intern with Brashear,...
The more things change, the more they stay the same
Over the Christmas holiday, I was going through the files and came across a story from...well let's let the date of the story go until the end. Those taking a look at the accompanying photo will have...
Readers respond to: What The Reporter means to me
Several weeks ago, I wrote a little story explaining what The Reporter has meant to me over the years. I wrote about some of the opportunities and experiences I had because of my life-long association with the weekly newspaper. I also asked you to...
PLI, Judge Ricciardi discuss quality of life issues
Quality of life issues took main focus at the Arlington Civic Council November meeting with guest speakers District Judge Eugene Ricciardi, City of Pittsburgh Department of Permits, Licenses and Inspection’s (PLI) Government and Community Liaison S...
Brashear building on track, driven by programming needs
Two years ago at its 100th Anniversary celebration The Brashear Association announced an ambitious plan to build a 40,000 sq. ft. building on Brownsville Road in Knoxville. Recognizing its clientele was predominately from the Hilltop neighborhoods,...
PWSA to begin stormwater project in South Side Slopes, Flats
Many of Pittsburgh's sewers were built in the turn of the 20th century and are still in pretty solid shape. The problem in this watershed is that the sewers are combined sanitary and stormwater...
Hilltop Alliance helping residents straighten out tangled titles
A problem quickly came to the surface when staff at the Hilltop Alliance began working with area residents on getting them help to make needed repairs to their homes. Although they may have occupied their homes for generations, they weren’t the...
Details of changes at Zone 3 council detailed at Arlington CC April meeting
“We’re doing things a little different,” Liz Style told members of the Arlington Civic Council last week. Ms. Style, president of the Zone 3 Public Safety Committee, explained the safety council has established an official database of...
Auberle gets OK for healing center in the M.O. school building
The Mt. Oliver Zoning Hearing Board (ZHB) has given conditional approval for Auberle to operate the Auberle Family Healing Center in the former Mt. Oliver School Building on Hays Avenue. The Family...
Hugh Brannan has influenced more than Brashear during his 36-year career
Sitting in Brashear's Museum Room, where much of South Side's history took place over the last 36 years and the Association's namesake is chronicled, it seemed appropriate Hugh Brannan was discussing...
Preparations made for St. Patrick's Day celebrations
Calling 2018's St. Patrick's Day celebration in South Side the "most successful ever," District 3 Councilman Bruce Kraus is hoping to build on that success this year. The councilman focused planning...
Strategy for Carson taking shape with task force formation
South Side stakeholders came together last week to take the next steps to solve problems, real and perceived, associated with the neighborhood’s business district. Josette Fitzgibbons, neighborhood business district manager for the Urban...
Holiday lights will return to E. Carson, after construction
South Side will be a little less festive this holiday season without the snowflake lights decorating East Carson Street, but not because of a lack of desire on the part of the South Side Chamber of...
Family Healing Center is being proposed for the former Mt. Oliver school building on Hays Avenue
The former Mt. Oliver school building on Hays Avenue may soon find new life in a new unique program designed to help the families of recovering addicts, The Auberle Family Healing Center. Auberle, a...
The faces tell the story in new South Side Mural: Tell Your Story
South Side used to be a place where a lot of artists came to, a place where they could thrive and create, says Steve Root of South Side Public Art. And he thinks it can be that place again. South...
New Carrick Library opens October 20
After a decade-long community process, Carrick will have a new the first-of-its-kind library when it opens October 20. The country’s first Passive House library, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s (CLP) Carrick Branch, is a better-quality...
Parklet is targeted by vandals for three years
Vandalism continues to plague "The Corner," a small parklet at the intersection of Mountain and Fisher in Mt. Oliver City. The latest damaged occurred sometime between Sunday, Sept. 2 after 4 p.m....
