Tag Archives: pgh 250

History Books – Making the Connections

Making the Connections Book Launch Party
Friday, April 17, 2009, 4-7 pm
Shadow Loung, 5972 Baum Blvd, East Liberty
RSVP on Facebook here.

One of the final events of the Pittsburgh 250 celebration was the community connections wrap up session back in December.  The afternoon turned out to be a lot more fun that I had anticipated.  As part of the Pittbsurgh 250 birthday celebration – the folks at the Sprout Fund helped to distribute over $1,000,000 in grants to communities around western PA to celebrate pride and progress in their community.

I was honored to serve on the grant making panel and hearing about the projects at the end of the year long birthday celebration exceeded all of my expections.  People came from all over the region to talk about the projects that took place in their communities to celebrate the 250th birthday and they had great stories to share and the sprout fund had a great story teller to document the stories too.   These stories were way more than just tales of an extended birthday party.  The community connections grants engaged people in more ways than just parties.  Sitting there in December I learned about all kinds of projects that happened from these grants – from mobile agriculture labs, Jazz communities, car car ministries and some very entertaining tales of fishing trips.

So the folks at the Sprout Fund wrangled up their story teller to  document these stories in a book which debuts tomorrow – Friday April 17, 2009 at a reception at the Shadow Lounge.

I stopped by the Sprout Fund office earlier this week for a sneak peek of the book which is titled Making the Connections – it is great – they have done an outstanding job of compiling and capturing the region in a convenient book format.

Stop by the Shadow Lounge to celebrate and pick up a copy or order one from the Sprout Fund’s website here.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7h-Cogf_4Q&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

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Tour of Pennsylvania Rolls Into Town

There are a ton of great things to do this weekend. But I am most excited about watching the Tour of PA. The Tour of PA is like the Tour de France, a huge professional bike race across the state of PA, part of this is in celebration of Pittsburgh’s 250. There are going to be 3 great opportunities to watch the racers enter the finish line and there are a ton of events to go along with the race.

I am including the race specifics – where to watch the start and finish below. Here is the short version with other activities included. Also check out the Trib’s Spectator Guide -which has lots of helpful info like what each color jersey means (via BikePGH).

  • Friday, June 27 – Bedford to Latrobe
    • While you are in Latrobe you might want to take a drive out to Ligonier – the library has an exhibit of Antique Bike Paraphernalia up until July 12, 2008.
  • Saturday, June 28 – Ligonier to Pittsburgh
  • Sunday, June 29 – Downtown Pittsburgh Criterium
    • Free Bike Valet – Bike PGH will safely watch your bikes while you watch the race.  Park at one of the trail lots and bike downtown for the finish.

Friday, June 27 – Bedford to Latrobe
Start: Bedford, Penn and South Juliana Street
Finish: Latrobe, Ligonier and Alexandria Street
Estimated Finish Time: 1:00 – 2:00 PM Followed by Awards Ceremony

Highmark Healthy High Five Finish Line Festival: 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Lot on Ligonier Street near Alexandria Street

Saturday, June 28 – Ligonier to Pittsburgh
Start: Ligonier, Market Street just off Route 30
Finish: Pittsburgh Southside, Sidney Street right before Hot Metal Street
Official Start Time: Noon Opening Ceremonies: 11:30 AM
Miles: 91 Kilometers: 146
Estimated Finish Time: 2:55 – 3:30 PM Followed by Awards Ceremony at American Eagle Outfitters HQ on Sidney Street right before Hot Metal Street

Highmark Healthy High Five Finish Line Festival: 2:00PM – 9:00PM
28th and Sidney Street in Pittsburgh Southside

Sunday, June 29 – Downtown Pittsburgh Criterium
Start/Finish Line: Blvd of the Allies and Stanwix Street
Official Start Time: 5 PM, Opening Ceremonies: 4:00 PM
Miles: 50 Kilometers: 80.5 (33 laps on a 1.5 mile/2.4km circuit)
Approximate Finish Time: 6:50 PM, Awards Ceremony to follow

Highmark Healthy High 5 Finish Line Festival: 2:00PM – 9:00PM
Blvd of the Allies and Stanwix Street

More Blog Coverage:

  • Giro di Keir – this is the blog of one of the cyclists on Team Race Pro – he writes about arriving in Philly.
  • Urban Velo

Pittsburghs Signs Pictures Wanted

A few years ago, on Penn Ave, just after you crossed Negly as you drive toward town there used to be this awesome Atari sign painted on the side of the building. It was by far a favorite of mine and one day it was gone before I could get a picture.

Thankfully there are some great people in the area that love signs more that I do and they have been collecting pictures of Pittsburgh signs for a few years now. The Pittsburgh Signs Project just might be one of the coolest websites in town. I think it is a great intersection of art, photography, history and technology all rolled into one interesting website.

To celebrate Pittsburgh’s 250th Birthday the Pittsburgh Signs Project is publishing a book of these pictures and they are looking for your pictures too. They are looking for pictures of signs from the 14 counties that make up Western, PA and everyone is invited to submit 5 of their photographs. More Info at www.PittsburghSigns.org

CALL FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS!
The Pittsburgh Signs Project invites photographers of all levels from the 14 counties of southwestern Pennsylvania to submit up to five images for possible inclusion in Pittsburgh Signs: 250, a full-color book showcasing images of signs, past and present. Counties represented may be: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, Washington, Westmoreland. Continue reading →