Monday evening was the first public meeting for the Polish Hill Strategic Community Plan, and a good crowd turned out to hear Pfaffmann + Associates present the data accumulated thus far.  We learned some interesting bits of Polish Hill data; for instance, our population is about equally divided between people who own and people who rent.  The average housing sale prices have risen considerably:  the  1995-2000 average was  $35,809; the 2009-2010 average was $74,086.

And from looking at the responses to the surveys we’ve distributed, it’s clear that most residents have similar ideas about what they like and dislike about the neighborhood.  People love the sense of community and the way living here is a bit like living in a small town.  They love that it’s quiet and safe.  And they love the views, the abundance of green space, and the way the neighborhood feels somewhat hidden.

The dislikes were mostly things like the number of vacant and dilapidated buildings, the traffic problems and commuters who speed through the neighborhood, and the lack of a grocery or laundromat.  But for the most part, everyone who answered seems think this is a great neighborhood (we agree).  One respondent said:  “…I see Polish Hill as a wonderful mix between forward thinking folks, and old world/old Pittsburgh.  I hope the neighborhood can retain the best of both without the yuppies driving the prices up…keep Polish Hill funky!”.  If you would like to take the survey, you can do that online here.

After the presentation, the meeting broke into smaller groups and residents discussed their thoughts on housing, traffic, transportation and street issues, green spaces, community, and more.

We want to thank everyone who came out to the meeting.  It was great to see so many interested and engaged residents and to hear everyone’s thoughts about what we could do to make Polish Hill a better place in the future.  We hope that all of you — and many others — will come to one of more of the Community Plan workshops on Saturday June 4.  We’ll soon be publicizing the times for the workshops, so stay tuned.