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Joined: 13 Mar 2011
Posts: 198
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 Posted: Sun Mar 13, 2011 9:32 am Post subject: Second World War |
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In the 1930s and 1940s, Pittsburgh sought to revitalize the Point area of its downtown, at the tip of what is known as the "Golden Triangle". The site offers what Richard Cleary describes as "extraordinary views" along three intersecting rivers; Neil Levine states that it is "one of the most spectacular [sites] offered by any American city".[1][2]
[edit] History of the site
During the city's early history, the Point became a hub for industry and transportation. By the 1930s it was occupied by warehouses and railroad yards. Wright commented in 1935 that the city had wasted the potential of its rivers and hilly landscape. In 1945, the situation in this regard was even worse; four years of World War II and eight years of the Great Depression had permitted urban blight to make substantial inroads. The total assessed property value in the Golden Triangle was at a record low and falling. At the point, rarely-used railroad facilities included 15 acres (61,000 m2) of yards (60000 m2) and half a mile (800 m) of elevated train tracks.[3]
City leaders wanted to alleviate traffic congestion in the city. Two bridges met at the point in a way that left no room for the interchange required by the volume of traffic. The growth of the city had made parking a serious problem as well. Robert Moses, who had developed the traffic scheme for New York City, was brought in and published a traffic plan in 1939. He offered a circular park surrounded by approach roads connecting the bridges to the city. His plan retained the existing bridges, but most of the experts brought in to examine the problem called for the bridges to be relocated away from the Point, creating more space for adjoining access roads and interchanges.[4]
Although the site had substantial problems, Robert Alberts observes that "the condition, in the view of the city planner, was almost perfect". The Point had few property owners who needed to be bought out, few residents who would need relocation, and few structures worth preserving. Architects and planners could treat it as a tabula rasa.[5]
[edit] Plans for development
During the course of the Second World War, federal and local authorities established three goals for the site: "the creation of a park commemorating the site's history, improved traffic circulation through the construction of new roads and bridges, and designation of a portion of the site for new office buildings, intended to stimulate private interest in the Golden Triangle". The Allegheny Conference on Community Development became a driving force for these changes. Edgar Kaufmann, a Pittsburgh department store owner, sat on the board of the Conference and became chair of the 28-member committee convened to look into the Point Park problem.Proposal software
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