Who gets to decide what the Oakland of tomorrow looks like? And what do community members think of Oakland’s ongoing development and expanding university presence?
PublicSource spoke with long-term residents, students, university administrators, business leaders and city officials who make up the neighborhood to illustrate the impacts on the booming center of Pittsburgh’s growth. Should the Oakland of tomorrow be a place where children play in sunny yards or where towers cater to students and “eds and meds” workers?
“It's hard for many members of the community to know what the end game is for the university's expansion,” said Andrea Boykowycz, assistant director of the Oakland Planning and Development Corporation. “Is there a scenario in which the university will not talk about growth in the future? Will that be regarded as a failure, if the university can't continue to grow?”
Reporter Emma Folts tells the stories of seven Oakland residents face-to-face with change to illustrate the stresses facing the center of Pittsburgh’s tax-exempt growth. Read the story now.
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