Pittsburgh is facing some big issues and great possibilities in 2024. City Cast Pittsburgh host Megan Harris sat down with Managing Editor at Public Source Rich Lord and Executive Director of Casa San José Monica Ruiz to talk about what Pittsburgh needs to take a hard look at this year.
Presidential Election & Voter Turnout
The country is always watching the swing state of Pennsylvania during national elections – like this year’s on November 5.
Rich Lord: “This [election year] seems to be tinted by the lack of confidence in democracy that unfortunately exists in so many corners. And I think it's going to be as much about whether democracy functions and how it functions and whether we can trust in the result. There will be a lot of people saying we can't trust the result, potentially including one of the presidential candidates, and that'll be as much of an issue as the policy differences.”
Read more: Voting officials are worried Pa. isn’t prepared for misinformation. [SpotlightPA]
Monica Ruiz: “We have to stop thinking about voting every four years and just remind people that elections happen every single year … And we cannot forget to target our youth. We shouldn't start targeting 18-year-olds about voting when they're 18. Right? We should have these conversations and do a little bit of movement with them prior to so that they're excited and educated once they start voting.”
Pittsburgh Public Schools Crisis
The city’s school district has a lot of bright spots, but it has a lot of problems too: funding is tight, enrollment is dropping, test scores are declining, the Pittsburgh Promise is ending, and there are racial disparities creating gaps in learning and opportunities.
Rich Lord: “[These issues] have existed for quite a long time, but they've existed in an atmosphere that has not been considered a crisis because it's kind of been papered over with federal funds for the last three years since the pandemic. Now the federal funds are running out and all of a sudden you get a crisis that could be crippling, but it could also be an opportunity to address issues if there's leadership and public input and potentially, hopefully, consensus at some point.”
Read more: Lawmakers want to invest $5.4 billion to revamp Pennsylvania’s education system and address inequalities. [90.5 WESA]
Homelessness and Affordable Housing
Pittsburgh is working to scale up its affordable units, but the immediate issues prevail: homeless shelters often overflow, people with low-incomes can't afford Pittsburgh, the land bank has been largely ineffective, and zoning hurdles can make it difficult to build new, low-cost housing.
Monica Ruiz: “Everybody wants to live in a nice neighborhood, right? But there's a big difference between revitalization and gentrification. If we're going to revitalize these communities, we have to do it in a way where we're including the people that are there and keeping them there… But more and more, we're seeing people moving outside of the city because they no longer can afford to live here. And they're living in areas where there are food deserts, no pharmacies, nowhere for them to get preventative health care.”
Rich Lord: “We're really struggling with the right balance of building new stuff, rehabilitating and preserving existing units, coming up with new models and new transitional housing options. It’s really kind of THE struggle, I think, for 2024 for this region.”
Challenges at Incarceration Facilities
People keep dying in the Allegheny County Jail, the county needs to hire a new warden, and there are juveniles inside the adult facility. Shuman, Pittsburgh’s juvenile detention facility, has been closed since 2021, but it is set to reopen.
Monica Ruiz: “I think that we have to start thinking about the root causes of how people end up in jail. Right? So if we start funding better mental health services, better housing, which are many of the reasons why people end up in these places, we can avoid people going into [incarceration]. It's just such a complex situation, where it's not just one thing. People need to stop dying in the Allegheny County Jail. There's so many things that need to change… And the fact that we have juveniles in the Allegheny County Jail is so unfathomable.”
Rich Lord: “Our country, including our region, incarcerates at a rate that just doesn't have other precedent in the developed world. Locally, we've had problems with healthcare and mental healthcare at the county jail. We've really struggled to figure out how to best deal with youth who are charged with offenses. And the impending reopening of Schuman is going to bring all that to a head where we have a contractor, Adelphoi, that has faced problems and accusations in some markets.”
