Preserve Pittsburgh Summit a Grand Success!
Posted On: August 25, 2011
More than 300 students attended YPA’s third-annual Preserve Pittsburgh Summit to tour historic properties and develop ideas about preservation in Pittsburgh.
Held at the Heinz History Center on Friday, September 30, 2011, the Summit featured seven different tours of the Strip, Lawrenceville, and Downtown. The tours included two food tours, a Main Street Lawrenceville tour, waterfront tour, loft living tour, a bridge tour, and a Downtown walking tour. The tours illustrated how buildings get renovated, the technology behind it, the skills required, and the economic and environmental benefits to communities.
The objective of the Preserve Pittsburgh Summit is to develop a model framework for how young people can shape the future of historic sites in their community by using real-life examples in Pittsburgh. The Summit is designed for young people to learn what goes on behind the scenes to bring old buildings back to life. After the tours, young people formed into small groups and reported back to the larger group about what they learned and the potential of historic preservation to transform communities. Themes such as History, Economics, Technology, and Green Building Design were emphasized.
The keynote speakers included PA State Senator Jim Ferlo, Pittsburgh City Council member Natalia Rudiak, and special guest, Felicia Mayro, Director of the Neighborhood Preservation Center of New York City.
Additional images from the event are featured below:
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| YPA's Preserve Pittsburgh Summit 2011 |
Registration Packet download: Summit Pre-Registration
YPA is grateful to its partners and sponsors, listed below:
Partners
Burgh Bits & Bites Food Tour
Buncher Corporation
Cochran & Associates Architects
Coro Center for Civic Leadership
Senator John Heinz History Center
Neighbors in the Strip
Partner Schools
Allderdice High School
Allegheny Traditional Academy
Carrick High School
Duquesne University
The Ellis School
Martin Luther King Middle School
Pittsburgh Board of Education
Schiller Classical Academy
South Hills Middle School
University of Pittsburgh
Sponsors
Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation
YPA Celebrates Preservation Month 2011
Posted On: March 17, 2011
The Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh celebrated May as National Historic Preservation Month at its annual Historic Preservation Month Celebration on Friday, May 6, 2011. It was held in the historic Paramount Pictures Film Exchange, Pittsburgh’s newest historic landmark.
At the event, YPA announced its annual list of the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area. At the top of the list was Waynesburg, featured below.
The final report is online: Celebrate Historic Treasures in Southwestern Pennsylvania: Top Ten Best Historic Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area 2011
YPA presented its annual Michael Eversmeyer Promise Award to an inspiring group of students and teachers at Peabody High School, who are writing a book about their community (more on the book http://www.youngpreservationists.org/peabody-high-school-students-publish-book). YPA is proud to present the 2011 Promise Award to these promising future preservationists!
The event also included a walking tour of the former Fifth Avenue High School, which is being rehabilitated into apartments!
Music by Jazz Incorporated, led by the legendary George Gist.
More photos here:
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| YPA Preservation Month Celebration, May 6, 2011 |
The food was presented by Merante Gifts and Catering of Bloomfield.
Thank you to our sponsors!
YPA Releases 2011 Top Ten List
Posted On: February 24, 2011
The Young Preservationists Association has released its 2011 list of the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities, which marks the start of National Historic Preservation Month (May). The list, released annually, includes endangered historic sites in the Pittsburgh area that are good candidates for preservation and reuse.
YPA will release a printed copy of its 2011 Top Ten report at its annual Preservation Month Celebration on Friday, May 6th, at the Paramount Pictures Film Exchange, from 6 to 8 p.m. Event details are on YPA’s website, http://www.youngpreservationists.org/preservation-month-celebration-may-6
Since 2003, YPA has celebrated historic preservation with its annual list of the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area. The list, compiled from nominations received from various individuals and organizations, is designed to encourage investment in historic sites throughout the nine-county southwestern Pennsylvania region. The list has been used by property owners to draw positive attention to their properties, raise investment funds, secure grants, and generate political goodwill for their historic sites.
In fact, since YPA released its first Top Ten List in 2003, more than $80 million has been invested into properties placed on YPA’s Top 10 List, including the creation of an estimated 1,245 construction and trade-related jobs, 230 housing units, and $750,000 in additional annual wage tax revenue is yielded to state and local municipalities, as documented in YPA’s 2010 report, “The Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Southwestern Pennsylvania: Jobs that cannot be outsourced.” Download the Economic Impact Report here: Economic Impact in SW PA
The criteria used to select the Top Ten List include the following:
1. 50-year Threshold (is it 50 years old or older);
2. Historic & Architectural Significance;
3. Threats to the Site;
4. Community Input; and
5. Feasibility of the Solution.
Below are the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area for 2011.
10. Connellsville Armory, Connellsville, Fayette County
9. Saints Peter and Paul Church, East Liberty (Pittsburgh)
8. Wigman House, Carrick (Pittsburgh)
7. Stables Building, Allegheny West (Pittsburgh)
6. Westinghouse Atom Smasher, Forest Hills, Allegheny County
5. Hipwell Building, Alleghney West (Pittsburgh)
4. Old Masons Building, Uniontown, Fayette County
3. Highland Building, East Liberty (Pittsburgh)
2. Grand Theatre, Elizabeth (Pittsburgh)
1. Main Street Waynesburg, Waynesburg, Greene County (featured below)
A low-res. copy of the final report can be found here: Celebrate Historic Treasures in Southwestern Pennsylvania: Top Ten Best Historic Preservation Opportunities in the Pittsburgh Area 2011
Past sites have included the Armstrong Cork Factory, Union Project, and the New Granada Theatre, all of which have been restored or stabilized.
Stay tuned to YPA’s Facebook Page for more details.
This Place Matters: 100 Students Clean up the Opera House
Posted On: September 27, 2010
One hundred students from five different colleges and a city high school went to work on the National Opera House grounds, producing more than 50 bags of trash, and filling a dumpster within 10 minutes on a temperate, sun-filled Saturday, October 16th.
YPA coordinated the cleanup with the property owner, Jonnet Solomon-Nowlin and her board of directors, along with Operation Better Block, Renew Pittsburgh, and others to prepare the grounds of this historic house for winter. YPA is grateful for Anthony Phillips, Jr. Hauling Co., Inc., for donating the Dumpster, and to the city for their efforts to remove the debris-filled bags.
Students came from Pitt, Carnegie Mellon University (Tepper School and the Heinz College), Chatham, Duquesne, and California University of Pennsylvania, and were joined with a group from Westinghouse High School. A teacher with the city schools’ Gifted Center also joined in. Several YPA members also participated. YPA A group photo was taken of the students holding the sign, “This Place Matters,” a campaign by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to recognize important historic sites across the country.
See photos from the cleanup here:
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| National Opera House Cleanup, Oct. 16, 2010 |
The National Opera House is located at 7101 Apple Street, in Homewood. Built in 1894, this City-designated Historic Landmark was home to Woogie Harris (brother of famed photographer Teenie Harris), who rented the house to a number of notables, including Roberto Clemente, Lena Horne, and several Steelers. Among the most famous occupants of the house was Mary Cardwell Dawson, who started the nation’s first black opera company, the National Negro Opera Company, in 1941. She ran her music school out of the house, as well.
Today, “Mystery Manor,” as it was sometimes called, is vacant and in need of repair. The students’ help was essential in sprucing up the grounds around the house, which were meticulously kept in the 1940s and ’50s. Their efforts directly support long-term plans to care for the house and work toward its eventual restoration (http://www.nationaloperahouse.org/).
YPA’s Day of Giving: October 13, 2010
Posted On: September 13, 2010
Leverage your donation!
The Pittsburgh Foundation’s Day of Giving is Wednesday, October 13, 2010. Help support the programs of the Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh by donating online on October 13th and your donation will be matched by the Pittsburgh Foundation!
This year the matching period will run for 24 hours and each nonprofit will receive a portion of the $500,000 pool of matching dollars! DONORS: The Day of Giving DONATE NOW Link will appear on OCTOBER 13, 2010 at Midnight.
YPA’s programs and publications have resonated with young people. Since 2003, more than 2,000 people have participated in our public programs.
For instance, this year, YPA published the region’s first tourguide of African American History, “Discover the Legacy: The African American Experience in Southwestern Pennsylvania.” Within two months of publication, more than 4,500 guides have been distributed.
YPA also inspired students at Propel Andrew Street High School to publish a book about the past, present, and future of Homestead.
YPA collaborates, networks, conducts tours, trains, and inspires a new generation to appreciate and preserve our past.
Donate on October 13th and help us continue our work to encourage young people to give life to history.
Here’s how it works:
1. Go to http://dayofgiving.pittsburghgives.org/nonprofits/
2. In the Organization Name box, type in Young Preservationists Association.
3. Click the Donate Now button.

4. Enter your name, email and phone number in appropriate boxes. Enter in donation amount. Minimum donation is 25.00.

5. Enter your credit card information on our secure server and click “submit.” You will receive confirmation that your donation has been received and an email will be sent to you for tax purposes.
Thank you for helping YPA Give Life to History!
YPA Releases New Report: Historic Preservation Creates Jobs!
Posted On: May 20, 2010
On May 20, 2010, YPA and Pennsylvania Works! released a new report that details the economic impact of historic preservation in southwestern Pennsylvania. The report, called “The Economic Impact of Historic Preservation in Southwestern Pennsylvania,” demonstrates the power of historic preservation to stimulate investment, generate taxes, create new housing units, and create jobs for Pennsylvanians that cannot be outsourced.
The report shows that in ten counties in southwestern Pennsylvania, over a five-year period, 2004 to 2009, historic preservation projects created:
> $475 million total investment,
> $65.6 million in taxes generated,
> 1,204 new housing units,
> 5.2 million square feet of space, and
> 3,042 permanent jobs.
The report measured the economic impact of historic preservation among YPA’s list of the Top Ten Best Preservation Opportunities, historic Main Street and Elm Street communities, and federal historic tax credit projects.
At a time when jobs are paramount, there’s no better way to stimulate the economy than through reinvesting in our core communities and historic structures.
Download a copy of the report here: Economic Impact in SW PA
YPA and Pennsylvania Works! call on the Pennsylvania legislature to pass a state law that provides incentives to owners of historic properties to preserve and reuse their old buildings. For the past ten years, the Pennsylvania legislature has been considering this legislation, but has failed to act. The time to act is now in order to put people back to work and invigorate the struggling economy.
The proposed legislation would provide direct grants to owners of historic properties to be used for building rehabilitation. It provides $15,000 for owners of residential properties, and up to $500,000 for owners of commercial properties. These funds not only fix up historic properties, but they employ local skilled labor that cannot be outsourced.
This economic impact report underscores the need for Pennsylvania to adopt this preservation incentive legislation to extend the economic benefits of preservation to all communities across the Commonwealth. Preservation puts people back to work, restores our core communities, and reinvigorates the tax base.
This new economic impact report is the definition of YPA’s slogan, “Give Life to History.”
YPA Press Release: YPAPressRelease 5-20-10
YPA CEO’s Remarks: YPA CEO Remarks 5-20-10
See images from the Press Conference here:
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| YPA Press Conference, May 20, 2010 |
Discover Pittsburgh’s African American History!
Posted On: July 1, 2009
After nearly three years of work, YPA is pleased to present the first-ever tourguide of African American historic sites in the southwestern Pennsylvania region.
Called “Discover the Legacy: The African American Experience in Southwestern Pennsylvania,” and developed in collaboration with VisitPittsburgh and other partners, the website features more than 100 sites important to the development of southwestern Pennsylvania’s African American community. Ten historical themes are represented in nine southwestern Pennsylvania counties, including the city of Pittsburgh. The tourguide also interfaces with the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission historical markers.
YPA is in the process of planning a public release of the printed tourguide, so stay tuned! In the meantime, here is the list of sites that will be featured in the forthcoming hardcopy of the tourguide:
Discover the Legacy
The VisitPittsburgh website link is here: Black History Tourguide
A WQED-TV special on the National Negro Opera Company, America’s first black opera company which began right here in Pittsburgh, won an Emmy Award in Fall 2009.
You can view the video here: http://www.wqed.org/ondemand/onq.php?id=614
YPA also created a Google Map of the historic sites here:
View Discover the Legacy in a larger map
Here are photos of the sites:
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| African American History Sites |
Thank you to all who made it possible, particularly the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and the PA Department of Community and Economic Development, the two agencies which underwrote the tourguide. Thanks to a collaboration with VisitPittsburgh (Colleen Kalchthaler) and a lot of hard work from Dr. Larry Glasco, Dawn Webb Turner (the 2009 Promise Award winner), Melody Farrin, John Burgess, Thea Young, Michael Bennett, and many others, this project is the product of a concentrated team effort.
Thank you for giving life to African American history!
Young People Preserve History!
Posted On: April 15, 2009
More than 160 people attended YPA’s Preserve Pittsburgh Summit on Saturday, March 28, 2009. The free event included lunch, a bus tour of four historic sites, and a keynote address by Michael Tomlan, Director of Cornell University’s Historic Preservation Program.
Facilitators guided discussion groups and on-site tours to develop recommendations for these four historic sites: the August Wilson House and New Granada Theatre in the Hill District; the Garden Theater on the North Side; and the National Negro Opera Company house in Homewood/Lincoln-Lemington.
The Summit, held at the Frick Fine Arts Building in Oakland, enabled young people and community residents to make history come alive by injecting innovative ideas to create a better future for these important but endangered historic sites. A final report will be issued at a later date.
That evening, Post-Gazette’s Tony Norman and PA State Senator Jim Ferlo hosted YPA’s Preservation Awards Reception. YPA awarded $500 to the winners of its preservation video contest and announced the Promise Award to an emerging preservationist. Entertainment was provided by “Sounds of Steel,” the Northside Urban Pathways Charter School Steel Pan Band. Immediately following the Awards, participants enjoyed networking with dynamic movers and shakers in the Pittsburgh region.
Read the Final Report here: Preserve Pittsburgh Summit Final Report June 2009
The 2009 Preservation Video Award winners included:
First Place ($250):
Site: Paramount Pictures Film Exchange, City of Pittsburgh (Soho)
Winning Student: Drew Edward Levinson
School: Pittsburgh Filmmakers
Hometown: Zelienople, Pa. (Butler County)
Age/Grade: 21, Sophomore
Nominating Teacher: Lorraine Heidekat
YouTube Link:
Second Place ($125):
Site: “Save the Strand,” Strand Theater, Zelienople, Butler County
Winning Students:
Bethany Bettencourt
Selena Blair
Michaela Burr
Alex Deep
Connor Domhoff
Tyler Falk
Christian George
Austin Hall
Rachel Hunter
Justin Kording
Morgan Marion
Cole McDonough
Austin Ridgley
Hailey Vey
Chelsea Alberth
Kayla Hart
School: Riverside Middle School
Hometown: Ellwood City, Pa.
Ages/Grades: 13-18, 8th Grade – Senior
Nominating Teacher: Mrs. Rebecca Erin
YouTube Link:
Third Place ($75):
Site: Old Indiana County Courthouse, Indiana, Indiana County
Winning Student: Brandon Roudebush
School: Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Hometown: Kittanning, Pa. (Armstrong County)
Age/Grade: 20, Junior
Nominating Teacher: Dr. Erick Lauber
YouTube Link:
Fourth Place ($50):
Site: The Longwell House, Monongahela, Washington County
Winning Student: Caci Lignelli
School: Ringgold High School
Hometown: Monongahela, Pa. (Washington County)
Age/Grade: 15, 10th Grade
Nominating Teacher: Mr. Don Roberts
YouTube Link:
YPA’s Promise Award was presented to Dawn R. Webb Turner, a third-grade teacher in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood.
YPA’s Promise Award, started in 2005, will go to one person, organization or place that is undertaking a new preservation initiative that represents great promise for advancing historic preservation in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Ms. Webb Turner’s work with YPA over the past year as a volunteer to develop the Pittsburgh region’s first African American history tourguide, as well as her efforts to preserve the National Negro Opera Company first home, and her extensive experience, education, and community involvement makes her an ideal awardee.
Ms. Webb Turner is currently a third-grade teacher at Pittsburgh Faison Arts Academy in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood. A Pittsburgh native, Ms. Webb Turner is a graduate of Westinghouse High School.
She received undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh, graduating Cum Laude. She has held positions as a Branch Manager for Three Rivers Bank and Assistant Vice President for PNC Bank. Ms. Webb Turner is currently developing the George A. Webb Sr. Learning Institute that will teach financial education and entrepreneurship to elementary-school aged children and older. She is also the Steward of Homewood North under the Clean Pittsburgh Commission, and started the “Let’s Clean Up Our House Committee,” a group of youth, residents, and block club members who are dedicated to cleaning up areas in the community.
Previous Promise Award winners have included The Union Project (2005); Braddock Mayor John Fetterman (2006); Sandee Umbach, director of Wash Arts (2007); and Tansy Michaud, a senior at Norwin High School (2008).
Photos from the Summit:
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| YPA’s Preserve Pittsburgh Summit, March 28, 2009 |
Photos from the Reception:
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| YPA’s Preservation Awards Reception, March 28 |
More info. about the Summit is here: Preserve Pittsburgh Summit
Summit Program: Summit Program
Preservation Awards Reception Program: Preservation Awards Reception
Download a poster here: Preserve Pittsburgh Poster
View a map of the four historic sites:
View Preserve Pittsburgh Summit Locations in a larger map
Preserve Pittsburgh Summit Host Committee
Diana Bucco, Executive Director, The Forbes Funds
Esther Bush, President and CEO, Urban League of Pittsburgh
Cheryle Campbell, Director, Pittsburgh Field Office, U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
Mindy Higgins Crawford, Executive Director, Preservation Pennsylvania
Aradhna Dhanda, Executive Director, Leadership Pittsburgh
Honorable Patrick Dowd, Pittsburgh City Council
Honorable Mike Doyle, U.S. Congressman
Dr. Kimberly C. Ellis, Executive Director, Historic Hill Initiative
Paul A. Ellis, Esq., Law Office of Paul Ellis & Associates
Honorable Jim Ferlo, PA State Senator
Saleem Ghubril, Executive Director, Pittsburgh Promise
Court Gould, Executive Director, Sustainable Pittsburgh
David Hopkins, Western Pennsylvania Community Development Territory Manager, PNC Bank
Ellen Kight, Executive Director, Pittsburgh Partnership for Neighborhood Development
Honorable Bruce Kraus, Pittsburgh City Council
Marimba Milliones, New Granada Theatre Committee
Jerry Morosco, AIA, Principal, Gerald Lee Morosco Architects, PC
Honorable Tonya Payne, Pittsburgh City Council
Honorable Bill Peduto, Pittsburgh City Council
Honorable Luke Ravenstahl, Mayor of Pittsburgh
Honorable Doug Shields, Pittsburgh City Council President
Sala Udin, President and CEO, Coro Center for Civic Leadership
Preserve Pittsburgh Planning Committee
Kevin Acklin, Renew Pittsburgh
Regina Anderson, Coro Center for Civic Leadership
Drew Armstrong, University of Pittsburgh Architectural Studies
Laura Becker, Student, Pitt
Terri Blanchette, Heinz History Center
John Burgess, Coro Center for Civic Leadership & Pitt Student
John Burke, URA
Bill Callahan, PHMC
Sean Capperis, YPA/Councilman Patrick Dowd’s office
Robert Carter, First Commonwealth
Matthew Cesare, YPA & Student at Geneva College
Ann Fortescue, Heinz History Center
Dan Holland, Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh
Mac Howison, Sprout Fund
Kelly Lyons, Coordinator of K-12 Outreach, School of Architecture, CMU
Rebecca Maclean, CPD Representative, HUD
Rick Malmstrom, Ellis School
John McCarthy, Ph.D., Robert Morris University History Club
Bethany McLaughlin, YPA
Alex Mickinak, Recent graduate, Pitt
Katherine Molnar, City of Pittsburgh Historic Review Commission
Mikhail Pappas, State Senator Jim Ferlo’s Office
Becky Rodgers, Neighbors in the Strip
Chris Sandvig, YPA
Colleen Schmidt, Student, Cal. U.
Steve Seliy, Consortium for Public Education
Thank you to Our Sponsors!
Presenting Sponsors
PNC Bank
Grable Foundation
Contributing Sponsors
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Katherine Mabis McKenna Foundation
Supporters
Carnegie Mellon University’s Center for Africanamerican Urban Studies and the Economy (CAUSE)
Carnegie Museum of Art
First Commonwealth Bank
Donors
Citizens Bank
Pennsylvania State Senator Jim Ferlo
Pennsylvania State Representative Jake Wheatley
GNC
Massaro
TriState Capital Bank
Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh
YPA Secures Black Opera Company House
Posted On: November 24, 2008
More than 20 volunteers spent three hours cleaning up the abandoned house on Apple Street in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, better known as the first home of the National Negro Opera Company, on Saturday, November 29, 2008.
YPA teamed up with RenewPittsburgh to board up and clean up the 7,000 square-foot Victorian. The board-up/clean-up effort was an important step toward the restoration of the historic house.
In addition to RenewPittsburgh, YPA is grateful to PA State Senator Jim Ferlo and Operation Better Block.
Built in 1894, the house on Apple Street was first purchased by Pittsburgh numbers king Woogie Harris, in 1930. Woogie Harris was the brother of famed photographer Teenie Harris. The house served as the home of the first black opera company in the United States. The NNOC was started by Homestead native Mary Cardwell Dawson in 1941. The NNOC grew to include a number of chapters around the country. First Lady Elanor Roosevelt and Marian Anderson were honorary board chairs. Among the people who came through the house include Ahmad Jamal and Lena Horne. The house also hosted a number of Steelers, including Roy Jefferson, John Nesby, and Marvin Woodson, as well as Roberto Clemente.
YPA coordinated the replacement of a state historical marker in 2007 (the original one had been ripped down). That same day, both the Mayor of Pittsburgh and City Council issued proclamations honoring the National Negro Opera Company. The house became a City Historic Landmark in spring 2008 and is eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.
A condemnation notice was issued on November 7, 2008, which inspired YPA to take action to ameliorate the condition. YPA has also established a separate fund for the house’s restoration. Donations can be directed to the YPA NNOC Fund and sent to our Homestead headquarters:
Young Preservationists Association of Pittsburgh
110 East Eighth Avenue
Homestead, PA 15120
Inquiries can be directed to youngpreservationist@gmail.com