Blog
On Saturday, September 23, OPDC fielded a Central Oakland team for the Garbage Olympics, Pittsburgh’s yearly citywide trash-collecting competition. Our 72 volunteers put in a Herculean effort, collecting 116 bags of trash, a bike frame, and tire.
If the Garbage Olympics awakened a love for litter-collection, make sure to sign up for Adopt-a-Block. Thanks to everyone who took part—we’ll see you next year!
Adopt-a-Block is a fun way to get volunteer hours with your friends while cleaning up your neighborhood. Teams of students “adopt” a route in Oakland and organize clean-up events throughout the year. Adopt-a-Block is a program of OPDC.
Team captains reach out to OPDC to schedule a clean-up event. Prior to the event, the team captain comes to OPDC to get supplies like trash bags and gloves. Volunteers sign a liability release form that helps us to track participation. At the end of the clean-up, teams leave their trash in a designated location so the Department of Public Works can collect it.
Adopt-a-Block is popular with student organizations at Pitt. However, we can also pair individuals with pre-existing groups. Reach out to cgreaser@opdc.org to learn more.
Hi, my name is Caroline Greaser. I’m a recent graduate of Goshen College and a PULSE Fellow this year with OPDC. Adopt-a-Block teams will coordinate their clean-ups with me and I will track all of your volunteer hours. Let me know if you have any questions. I look forward to working with you!
Beginning Sunday, October 1, routes 61D, 71A, 71C, and 71D will end their inbound trips in Oakland and will no longer serve Uptown and Downtown. These routes will have “Short” added to their route names and head signs.
These changes are part of Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s University Line bus rapid transit project, and are designed to provide smoother service and less traffic congestion.
To support these changes, PRT will add service on routes 82, 87, and the P7, each of which share portions of their service areas with the shortened routes.
Construction on the first phase of the University Line will begin in downtown Pittsburgh this fall.
Oakland community gardens are a precious resource, and it takes a lot of work and love to make them thrive. During the Oakland Plan process, residents agreed that Oakland’s gardens need more visibility, easier access, more space, and better technical assistance.
Get to know Oakland’s community gardens!
Frazier Farms sits on land owned by OPDC. It is managed by South Oakland residents. Want to get involved? Attend a South Oakland Neighborhood Group meeting to learn more. SONG meets on the first Tuesday of the month at 6:00 pm at the Frazier Fieldhouse.
Plant2Plate: Pitt students have supported a garden on Oakland Avenue for many years – but future university development on the site may make it necessary to find new digs. The garden publishes news and calls for volunteers through its Instagram account: @plant2plategarden.
Oakcliffe Garden may be overgrown, but it is brimming with potential. This site on the corner of Lawn and Elsinore has struggled to find dedicated volunteers. Got ideas? Let us know at questions@opdc.org.
An initiative of Grow Pittsburgh, the Garden Resource Center (GRC) is a tool-lending library and garden materials depot. For a sliding scale annual membership fee, the GRC allows patrons to borrow garden tools and access to bulk materials such as organic compost and mulch.
The city’s Adopt-a-Lot program allows residents to plant gardens on city-owned vacant lots for food, flowers, or rain water capture. Adopt-a-Lot has made big strides in Hazelwood, Homewood, and the Hill District, but uptake is lacking in Oakland. To get started, fill out the form at pittsburghpa.gov/dcp/adopt-a-lot.
Do you have garden ideas, or want to get involved? Join Let’s Talk: Oakland Community Gardens on Sept 20 .
It’s the start of a new school year, which means lots of young people are joining the Oakland community for the first time.
For many students, renting in Oakland is their first experience living on their own. They need to learn about trash and recycling, transportation and parking, public safety, and more—the sooner, the better!
This is why OPDC created a simple QR-code fridge magnet to connect students with our student renter resources page. The page features links to essential information that will help students understand their rights, resources, and responsibilities as renters and community members. OPDC will be updating and supplementing information on the student renter resources page as needed.
“We wanted to create a magnet that can live on the fridge, even as renters turnover year after year,” says Liz Gray, OPDC Neighborhood Quality Consultant. “It’s a way for students to have easy access to consistent, reliable information, even as guidelines may change.”
Want to get your hands on one of our magnets? Find us at one of the Be a Good Neighbor Block Parties, connect with a Pitt student ambassador, or visit our office at 294 Semple.
