Allegheny Commons Park, Allegheny Center, Pittsburgh took place on July 24, 2022, and was published on August 3, 2022.
Established in 1867, Allegheny Commons is Pittsburgh’s oldest park. In fact, it was a park before it was in Pittsburgh, as what we now call the Northside was once the separate municipality of Allegheny City. With 80 acres, there’s so much to explore. The eastern and northern sections tend to attract the most people due to the gorgeous Northeast Fountain, public pool, playgrounds, athletic fields, the National Aviary, and easy access to the Mexican War Streets. But if you head over to the south and west sections, it’s a very different vibe. During my Sunday afternoon walk around Ridge Avenue (great for watching the Norfolk Southern train line from a close yet safe distance), the off-leash dog park, and Lake Elizabeth, I practically had the entire place to myself! The Allegheny Center neighborhood is relatively flat, so the nine flights of city steps sprinkled around the park don’t offer sweeping views or a sustained cardiovascular workout, but that’s OK. Variety is the spice of life, and there’s no shortage of tasty treats for all the senses here.
Field Notes: Another edition of Mis.Steps: Steps in Public Parks! Using the Regional Data Center’s master list of all the stairs, I sorted by neighborhood and decided to begin with “A” (OK, not the absolute beginning, the technical start was at the Williams Park in Upper Hill but I went there before I had printed out the master list and developed a plan! 😉 ANYWAY… The western part of ACP has recently re-opened and there are some lovely new city stairs that are incorporated near Ridge Avenue. The freight rail line is below and the new bridge helps everyone (vehicle/bike/feet) move through the space. It’s super nice and very close to the Civil War monument at Lake Elizabeth and the off-leash dog park area.
Love city steps? Get yourself the latest issue of Mis.Steps: Our Missed Connections with Pittsburgh’s City Steps! Each copy is unique and features 10 randomly selected “trading cards” of Pittsburgh’s 739 public stairways. Visit the Mis.Steps online store to see all issues and place your order.
Want to visit these stairs? You can locate them on the Pittsburgh City Steps Plan website!
Be a good neighbor! Have you visited these stairs and found them in poor condition or that illegal dumping (large items like tires, old furniture, and construction debris) and trash were abundant in the area? There are two things you can do to take action and make our city steps cleaner and safer for everyone! First, grab a photo if you can, and submit a report to Pittsburgh 311. All problems, both broken stairs, and railings, as well as trash and dumping, should be reported to the city. You can easily do this online or by calling.
