Grand View Scenic Byway Park
Encyclopedia
Grand View Scenic Byway Park is a large municipal park in Pittsburgh
, Pennsylvania
. It encircles the neighborhoods of Mt. Washington
, Duquesne Heights
and Allentown
and offers scenic views of the city that draw more than 1 million visitors annually.
The park, officially created on Earth Day
2007, is 280 acres (1.1 km²). It joins Frick
, Schenley
, Highland
, Riverview, and Three Rivers Park
s as the sixth in the city's network of regional parks. Until consolidated, this land was an assortment of existing smaller parks, greenways
, forested hillsides, playing fields, and neglected land parcels. It is jointly managed by the city of Pittsburgh and the neighborhood's community development corporation
.
in 1998 that touched down in the neighborhood, the park was conceived by community activists as a way to address the damage. They called themselves "Green Is Good". They feared a post-storm "blighted" designation would spur the city to allow housing and condominium
development. Although Mount Washington's vista points are a high profile attraction, they argued, the true amenity was the continuous 264 acres (1.1 km²) of green, hilly, undeveloped land that rings the Mount. Eventually "Green Is Good" won the support of Mt. Washington Community Development Corporation, other local nonprofits, and the city government.
In 2003 the state designated three Pittsburgh roads—Sycamore Street, McArdle Roadway, and Grandview Avenue—as Pennsylvania Scenic Byways, inspiring the park's very long name.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. It encircles the neighborhoods of Mt. Washington
Mount Washington (Pittsburgh)
Mount Washington is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's south city area. It has a zip code of 15211 and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by both the council members for District 3 and District 2 .It is known for its steep hill overlooking the Pittsburgh skyline, which was...
, Duquesne Heights
Duquesne Heights (Pittsburgh)
Duquesne Heights is a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania's south city area. It has a zip code of 15211, and has representation on Pittsburgh City Council by the council member for District 2 ....
and Allentown
Allentown (Pittsburgh)
Allentown is a south neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The zip code used by residents is 15210, and has representation on the Pittsburgh City Council by the council member for District 3 .-History:...
and offers scenic views of the city that draw more than 1 million visitors annually.
The park, officially created on Earth Day
Earth Day
Earth Day is a day that is intended to inspire awareness and appreciation for the Earth's natural environment. The name and concept of Earth Day was allegedly pioneered by John McConnell in 1969 at a UNESCO Conference in San Francisco. The first Proclamation of Earth Day was by San Francisco, the...
2007, is 280 acres (1.1 km²). It joins Frick
Frick Park
Frick Park is the largest municipal park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, covering .The park began when Henry Clay Frick, upon his death in 1919, bequeathed south of Clayton, his Point Breeze mansion . He also arranged for a $2 million trust fund for long-term maintenance for the park, which opened on...
, Schenley
Schenley Park
Schenley Park is a large municipal park located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, between the neighborhoods of Oakland, Greenfield, and Squirrel Hill. It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district...
, Highland
Highland Park (Pittsburgh)
Highland Park is both a large municipal park and a racially diverse, mostly residential neighborhood in the northeastern part of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.The neighborhood has 6,749 residents according to the 2000 United States Census...
, Riverview, and Three Rivers Park
Three Rivers Park
Three Rivers Park is an urban waterfront park along the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The park, under development since 2000, is intended to be a landmark that will join Frick Park, Schenley Park, Highland Park, Riverview Park, and Grand View Scenic Byway Park...
s as the sixth in the city's network of regional parks. Until consolidated, this land was an assortment of existing smaller parks, greenways
Greenway (landscape)
A greenway is a long, narrow piece of land, often used for recreation and pedestrian and bicycle user traffic, and sometimes for streetcar, light rail or retail uses.- Terminology :...
, forested hillsides, playing fields, and neglected land parcels. It is jointly managed by the city of Pittsburgh and the neighborhood's community development corporation
Community Development Corporation
Community Development Corporation is a broad term referring to not-for-profit organizations incorporated to provide programs, offer services and engage in other activities that promote and support community development. CDCs usually serve a geographic location such as a neighborhood or a town....
.
History
In the aftermath of a rare tornadoTornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
in 1998 that touched down in the neighborhood, the park was conceived by community activists as a way to address the damage. They called themselves "Green Is Good". They feared a post-storm "blighted" designation would spur the city to allow housing and condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
development. Although Mount Washington's vista points are a high profile attraction, they argued, the true amenity was the continuous 264 acres (1.1 km²) of green, hilly, undeveloped land that rings the Mount. Eventually "Green Is Good" won the support of Mt. Washington Community Development Corporation, other local nonprofits, and the city government.
In 2003 the state designated three Pittsburgh roads—Sycamore Street, McArdle Roadway, and Grandview Avenue—as Pennsylvania Scenic Byways, inspiring the park's very long name.