Trip #85 56th Street, Upper Lawrenceville, Pittsburgh took place on December 3, 2017, and was published on January 22, 2018.
As I look around Lawrenceville, I see a lot of change. New buildings, new restaurants, new stores. Everything that’s old is new again. As the giant apartment complex is being constructed across Butler Street, the 56th Street stairs, which start at the Shop ‘n Save parking lot are closed for business – and for a good reason – they are utterly crumbled, destroyed and cannot be used by any stretch of the imagination. As I view these separate occurrences of construction and destruction, I struggle not to be judgemental, not to be attached to either the new or the old. After all, these stairs were not always here. The old homes nestled in the hillside were not always here. And in time it will all go – even the new luxury living residences will one day be old and in disrepair. Everything is impermanent.
Field Notes: Another flight closed! This one is in very poor shape – entire sections of the concrete has given way. As the graffiti on the rail says, “no hope” “no future” “nada” – sums it up pretty well.
Want to visit these stairs? You can locate them on the Pittsburgh City Steps Plan website!
See the Risograph print of this photo and story in the Mis.Steps Shop.
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. If the location has an abundance of illegal dumping and trash, also contact Allegheny Cleanways, letting them know the location and the nature of the garbage. Thank you!!
