🎡 A ferris wheel on the North Side?!

A Ferris Wheel on the North Side?!

There are new renderings for the massive $600 million “Esplanade” plan, which will transform nearly 15 acres of Pittsburgh’s Chateau neighborhood along the Ohio River. The main attractions are a swimming pool, splash pad that turns into an ice rink, and a giant Ferris wheel; future plans also include apartments, condos, and a grocery store.

• 🎡 The developers, who received $10 million from the state in 2022, will soon submit a master plan to the city planning commission and hope to break ground in the fall. [KDKA-TV]

No More Wheel Mill

After 11 years, the 80,000-square-foot indoor bike park located on the cusp of Homewood and Point Breeze is closing on March 18. Owner Harry Geyer says the park is closing because of economic and other challenges. Check out The Wheel Mill’s sales up until its closure! [NEXTpittsburgh]

Policies Impacting LGBTQ+ Students Passed in Beaver County

South Side Area School District passed a policy that excuses teachers from using the pronouns or preferred names of LGBTQ+ students if it “would violate the conscience of the speaker.” Additional resolutions prohibit students from participating in sports or using shared bathrooms that don’t correspond with the sex they were assigned at birth. [90.5 WESA]

• 🏳️‍🌈 QBurgh, Pittsburgh’s queer news outlet, says “this policy not only strips students of their autonomy but also potentially exposes them to daily harm and discrimination.”

A Film for Disability Day of Mourning

All-Abilities Media, a local disability-focused journalism project, is releasing a short documentary called “Unthinkable” at 7:30 p.m. The 13-minute film, released ahead of Disability Day of Mourning, looks into efforts to commemorate people with disabilities killed by family and caregivers, and it’s dedicated to two McCandless brothers.

• 🎥 “Law enforcement does not specifically track murders of people with disabilities. But the Washington, D.C.-based Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) collects news accounts of crimes that it calls ‘filicide’ of people with all types of disabilities,” according to All Abilities Media. “ASAN’s research dating back to 1979 found what it deemed to be over 1,500 accounts of filicide worldwide.”

What Plants Thrive in a Warmer Pittsburgh?

The USDA updated its plant hardiness map, and the Pittsburgh area is 2.5 degrees warmer than we were a decade ago. So what does that mean if you’re getting ready to plant for spring? Meg Graham, the owner of May Apple Gardening, has a few recommendations for plants to add to your garden and some tips for how to take care of what’s already in your yard.