City Cast Pittsburgh
🍺 Wait, the IC Beer sign used to glow?
July 17, 2023
Welcome to a new week, neighbor! Today we’ve got your monthly local gift picks, the fascinating history of Pittsburgh’s “Hollywood sign,” and a City Cast Pittsburgh podcast about what’s happening with our unhoused community now that a Downtown shelter is shuttered.
What's CITY Talking About?
Robots Could Rove In Hazelwood
Carnegie Mellon University presented plans for a new robotic center at Hazelwood Green, including a 150,000-square-foot research building (with a testing area for robots and drones) and a 1 ½-acre outdoor lab to test robots in different terrain. It would also include an area where the public can get a peek behind the scenes. The Planning Commission will vote on it in two weeks. [PublicSource]
Wholey’s Lobster Grab Returns
How many live lobsters do you think you can hold at once? Starting Wednesday, Wholey’s in the Strip District is bringing back its 5th annual Lobster Grab. Customers will get a raffle ticket for each live lobster they buy, then on Aug. 16, one lucky winner will be taken to the tank to snag as many as they can in 60 seconds for a feast to take home. The record is 12! [KDKA]
Can You Muffle Pickleball?
A CMU-educated engineer wants to try. Bob Unetich is attempting to dampen the sound of one of the fastest-growing sports in the country (and Pittsburgh) through high wall sound barriers and changes to paddle material. The sport is popular across generations, as the city recently saw with the National Senior Games in Pittsburgh. [NEXTpittsburgh]
- 🎧 But what does it take to find and pursue a sport in your 50s, 60s, and beyond? [City Cast Pittsburgh]
Sponsored Content
Find Five Blocks of Fun at The Terminal!
This historic produce terminal is now an all-day destination for shopping, restaurants, fitness, and extraordinary experiences! Plus, every Saturday, shop a collection of local makers at Markets at The Terminal, and every Sunday dance to local musicians at Tunes at The Terminal! There’s always something happening at The Strip District Terminal!
What To Do
🥟 Food & Drink that Built Pittsburgh | Wednesday | 6:30-8 p.m.
Join the Renaissance Pittsburgh Hotel for a food and drink tasting with Chef Nick. ($65, Downtown]
🗨️ Radical Trivia | Wednesday | 7-9 p.m.
Give it your best guess at “The Greatest Trivia Show in the Entire Universe.” at St. Clair Social. [free, Friendship]
📖 Vertical Bridges: A Presentation & Poetry Reading | Thursday | 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Join the Italian American Program for a celebration of Pittsburgh’s city steps at the Heinz History Center. [free, Strip District]
🎤 Pickles and Giggles Comedy Show | Thursday | 7:30 p.m.
Laugh with Pittsburgh native comedians Collin Chamberlin and Ray Zawodni at the Pittsburgh Playhouse Highmark Theater. [$13, Downtown]
Today on City Cast
Why the Smithfield Homeless Shelter Became a Lightning Rod
In past years, the basement at Smithfield United Church of Christ opened its doors to those in need of a place to stay in the winter, but as homelessness surged, Allegheny County kept the shelter open indefinitely. A community quickly developed among those who slept there or later hung out on the church steps, but neighbors started objecting. We talk with PublicSource’s Stephanie Strasburg and Eric Jankiewicz about their reporting on how the county handled the shelter’s closing and what it reveals about our local housing crisis.
Have a great week, Pittsburgh!
– Francesca Dabecco
Free · Daily