Trip #547 Habermann Avenue, Beltzhoover, Pittsburgh took place on December 23, 2020, and was published on February 8, 2021.
A year ago, in our pre-COVID days, the Butterfly Effect may have sounded a little too “out there” to solidly believe in. The fact that one small incident half a world away could substantially impact the future appeared highly unlikely. Our western civilization mindset embraces self-determination and dominance over the landscape: promoting interconnectedness and collective fallibility is often scoffed at. But as this pandemic has shown us, it isn’t butterflies in China that cause tornados in Kansas but rather a cascade of events traveling over our natural and human-made environments. While we can’t control what’s happening in the world, we can control our actions. The steps we take now influence tomorrow, next month, and next year. We can create an effect that allows us to spread our wings and fly again.
Field Notes: This flight of red-brick stairs is almost completely hidden. If it wasn’t for a woman who was unpacking groceries from a car nearby, who pointed it out, I may have totally overlooked it.
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.
