Don’t forget to vote today! If you’re not sure where your precinct’s voting is held, you can go here.

Thanks to all of you who participate in your civic duty!

Oakland Housing Series Continued…

“Current zoning permits Multi-Unit Residential Moderate Density (RM-3), which makes it difficult to control the spread of substandard rental properties: landlords can legally increase the occupancy of the properties up to the maximum allowed by the Zoning Code” – Meyran Ave study.

Overcrowding in Oakland (Pittsburgh)

A problem in Oakland, the home of the University of Pittsburgh, is the over-crowding of off-campus student housing. The 2000 Census defines overcrowding as 1.01 people per room fit for human habitation and severe overcrowding as 1.51 or more people per room. In renter occupied units in South and Central Oakland, 3.2 % of units are overcrowded and 1.6% are severely overcrowded, contrasting with owner occupied units where 1.6% are overcrowded and none are severely overcrowded.

Strangely, one archaic Pittsburgh law says that no more than three unrelated persons may dwell in the same building. Yet, many landlords circumvent this law by having students sign more than one lease, or only asking three residents to sign the lease. Stacey Papa, Esq, advises that students run away from these dishonest landlords as fast as they can should this happen…and, to be safe, stick to 3 maximum occupants in a rental unit. One Oakland resident who was worried about overcrowding asked Robert (bob) Eckenrode (the notorious Oakland slumlord with the most complaints against him - and ALSO one of the top 5 keywords driving traffic to this site - via Google Analytics), “’[H]ow many people do you have in your apartment?’

Bob Eckenrode replied to this older Oakland resident (occurring to an OPDC study), ‘I don’t know, the check just comes to my house. Oh, I’ll check it out tomorrow to see how many is in my house.’

The Oakland resident said, ‘He didn’t check it out. As long as he’s getting that rent and paying his bills, he’s fine.’”

Lax Building and Health Code Enforcement in Pittsburgh

The residents of Oakland also believe the lack of landlord property supervision results from the lax building and health code enforcement by the city of Pittsburgh. Many believe that landlords do not keep their properties up to code and do not respond to complaints on time due to the lenient code enforcement. The new zoning code, RM-3, allows a mix of housing and rental units in urban areas. It allows for single-unit detached residential, single-unit attached residential, two-unit residential, three-unit residential and multi-unit residential. Full Story »

Cheap Food + 6 Different Beers = One Fun Pittsburgh Night to Me!

I’m a beer snob - I LOOOOVE a good brew - but there is NO way, as a mother and full-time working professional that I can 1. afford the new (good) beer prices (result of Pittsburgh drink tax), or 2. find time to go out.

Luckily for me, a solution rests about 2.5 blocks from my humble abode and that solution is Tom’s Diner and Beer Store. This great little multitasking unit (altogether, there’s a great diner, a bar, and a beer store) can satisfy any beer urge I have. At Tom’s, I can buy individual beers at a much lower cost than at the bar (I estimate anywhere from 50% to 75% less!). Which saves me money, first. AND, is a huge benefit, because as a working Mom, I’d much rather be able to relax with my hubby at home with a cold brew instead of spending a whole ton of money going wild every night (not to say we don’t all enjoy that once in a while though, right?)

Tom’s Beer Store is a narrow room stuffed between the bar and diner and lined with two coolers of some of the best beers I’ve found in this city. AND, did I mention, I can pick individual numbers of them (from 4 to 12) and can mix and match my faves? That’s excuse to RAVE! PS: They just ordered the whole Great Lakes line of beer. Yum!

Speaking of YUM, did I mention that the diner attached to the beer store is seriously amazing too? Great, low diner prices for fantastic food and quick service. Gotta love it. So, if you’re ever in Dormont, stop at TOm’s diner. Follow this link to Google Maps to find it! Now, go eat, drink, and be merry!

Merry Christmas: Quotes in Pittsburghese!

Da translation is:

“Love is wah’s in da room wit yinz at Christmas if yinz stop opening presents and listen n’at.
~Author unknown, attributed to a 7-year-old named Bobby

“Anna Grinch, wit his Grinch-foot ice cole in da snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It come witout ribbons. It come witout tags. It come witout packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then da Grinch thought of sumpin he hadn’t before. wah if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. wah if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”
~Dr. Seuss

“Da only blind person at Christmastime is he who has not Christmas in his heart.”
~Helen Keller

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it allsa year.”
~Charles willieens (I’m so keeping it like this because I LOVE that the Pittsburghese translator replaces
the term ‘dick’ with ‘willie’)

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.”
~Norman Vincent Peale

Normal English Usage:

Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen.
~Author unknown, attributed to a 7-year-old named Bobby

“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”
~Dr. Seuss

“The only blind person at Christmastime is he who has not Christmas in his heart.”
~Helen Keller

“I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
~Charles Dickens

“Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.”
~Norman Vincent Peale

Translation courtesy of the Pittsburghese translator. Thanks!

I’d like to welcome all to PittsburghRants&Raves.com. I am a young working professional, lucky enough to live in the wonderful city of Pittsburgh for the past 5+ years. I am now raising a family in Dormont, working in Greentree, and loving life in the Burgh. This blog will be an outlet for me and my friends to rant and rave on pretty much anything we feel like.



About PittsburghRantsandRaves.com

PittsburghRantsandRaves.com is a new and (I hope you think) exciting blog that will rave about all the great things that can be found in Pittsburgh: music, food, events, nightlife, work opportunities, education, family activities, sports, business, politics, and, more! Of course, considering that nothing’s perfect, there’s plenty to rant about as well (namely the ridiculously bad drivers I encounter every day on the road) so enjoy our random rants on the city and the world and whatever else we want to write about on our bad days!

Some of my friends will join me to share their rants and raves about pretty much anything, and, knowing the lot of us may just rant and rave about whatever the heck we feel like!

Jame, the Original Ranter & Raver:







Hi! ‘m the founder of PittsIburgh Rants and Raves. I’m a self-proclaimed nerd with interests ranging from random Pittsburgh facts (I was a Pitt tour guide for 3 years), quotes of the day (one to live by: Carpe Diem) , movies, books, music (support local music), and so much more. I hope to get to use this blog and my other interest (writing) to meet others with similar interests.



My Trek to Pittsburgh: Full Story »