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Green? My ass!
by stephen donahue
Thursday, Mar. 01, 2007 at 2:22 AM
Its too easy being green
Green? My ass!
Recently Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Perhaps this action is supposed to supplement Pittsburgh City Council’s unanimous endorsement in July of 2006 of the Sierra Club’s so-called “Cool Cities Campaign.” Both of these measures call on the city to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Regardless by signing onto this accord Luke Ravenstahl can now claim to be “green.”
This May Pittsburgh will hold primary elections. Given local politics the Democratic Party primary will choose the city’s next mayor. Incumbent Mayor Luke Ravenstahl (Democrat) faces a strong rival in the primary in the person of City Council Member Bill Peduto (Democrat). Seeing this move by the incumbent to grab green votes Bill Peduto is claiming that he is the real green candidate and that Luke Ravenstahl is a Johnny-come-lately to the green scene. Bill Peduto is touting his Green Building Alliance’s Shades of Green Leadership Award and his consistent endorsements by the Sierra Club.
So which of these candidates is really green? The answer is neither. Yes, the incumbent is signing climate protection agreements and his rival is promoting “green technology” but regardless of this they are both also doing all they can to promote private automobile use.
Ask either candidate about the city parking tax and they will tell you that it must be lowered. Why, if they are really green would they not use the higher parking tax as a way to promote public transit? Then ask either candidate about the practice of using Tax Increment Financing (TIFs) to fund the construction of parking garages and they will just look at you like you are nuts. Ask why a new “green building” has a parking garage built along side it and you will be told not to worry because the parking garage will have a bike rack.
Pittsburgh is in a parking garage building spree right now. Every new development comes with one or more parking garages attached. Bill and Luke are using tax money to finance four new parking garages along Second Avenue at the Pittsburgh Technology Center. The renovation of the old Nabisco Bakery by luxury condo developer Walnut Capital will include a 1,200 car parking garage. This Bakery Square project is in the heart of East Liberty a major public transit hub but that doesn’t matter. Bakery Square is being built for the car not the bus.
Since the year 2000, the city has built or is presently building over 16 parking garages (Post-Gazette, 2/16/06) and many more are planned. Massive parking garages going up in all sections of the city. Thousands and thousands of new parking spaces for private single occupant automobiles are being built. So, won’t the benefits of a Pedutoesque green building be washed out by the parking garage being built right next to it? Questions in this vein have received just blank stares from the green candidates.
Do either of our these green candidates know that public transit produces 95 % less carbon monoxide (CO), 90 % less in volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and about 50 % as much carbon dioxide (CO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx), per passenger mile, as private vehicles. Yep, public transit cuts down on greenhouse gas emissions. Does either of them know that a full bus equals around 50 less cars on the street? Does either of them know that increased use of public transit will make the building of heat radiating concrete and asphalt roads and parking lots less necessary? Yep, public transit can really help reduce the heat island effect of urban areas by reducing the need to keep gobbling up green space for cars.
As this article is being written the Port Authority of Allegheny County is planning to eliminate over 50% of its bus routes in June of 2007. They also intend to increase fares annually beginning on January 1, 2008. If this should happen it will mean the death of public transit in the region. Right now there are captive bus riders who are saving up to buy a used car and riders of choice are getting back into commuting by car. The Port Authority reckons it will lose at least 11% of its riders in 2007. They will lose more riders in 2008. People are going to lose confidence in a public transit system that is expensive and just doesn’t go many places anymore. And so beginning this summer thousands more single occupant cars will begin dumping their CO and CO2 into the city air. So much for the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement and the Sierra Clubs Cool Cities Campaign.
The City of Pittsburgh is not required to and thus does not contribute a penny toward public transit. The question that must be asked of these so called green candidates is what public policy do they promote that encourages people to leave their car parked and ride public transit? The answer is none. Why doesn’t the city give tax breaks to employers who help their employees pay for monthly bus passes instead of using tax money to build parking garages? Why when most cities are moving toward establishing “car free zones” does Bill Peduto want to make downtown a “bus free zone?”
Give us a break! Free parking on holidays does not promote public transit. Lowering the city parking tax does not promote public transit. Giving tax breaks for the construction of ever more parking garages does not promote public transit. Shoot these clowns don’t know beans about using public policy to get folks on the bus or trolley. Are they green? Green, my ass!
Right on
by Doug
Thursday, Mar. 01, 2007 at 7:21 PM
I guess we have to pressure candidates to run on a truly greener platform if we want some real changes. Thanks for pointing out this important issue.
Long live King of the Hipsters!
by Mr. Peduto Project
Thursday, Mar. 01, 2007 at 8:11 PM
Typical Peduto.
Like his "courageous" symbolic anti-PATRIOT Act resolution and his very real love of installing a city-wide federal surveillance cameras.
Eligible ladies take note, if his aides are to be believed, you have a very real chance of being Mrs. Peduto if you hang out late enough in certain Shadyside watering holes. How does "First Lady" sound?
BS can be green too
by eric
Friday, Mar. 02, 2007 at 3:05 PM
Stephen and all, I'm sorry but these comments sound rather idealistic. I can empathize and agree with this issue of equity and accessibility to public transportation, and urban planning/policy that would encourage it, but I'm afraid few municipalities would embrace such radical changes (from their perspective) as you propose.
Peduto not green? Do you trust the Sierra Club? Are you aware that they publicly endorsed him as a candidate? Do you realize the organization does NOT endorse local candidates, typically? Do you realize that there is an Enviros for Peduto group, composed of many environmental professionals and concerned citizens, that has met for lengthy and friendly brainstorming sessions to contribute to a grassroots-generated environmental platform? Haven't you heard Peduto trying to save our transit in numerous speeches he's been giving around town, protesting budget cuts?
Ravenstahl green? Are you aware that he repeated the same speech, prepared for him in bulleted talking points, on both days of the Green Forum back in October? Realize he stuck the organizers of the event with about $1000 bill, which his office ensured the organizers they would pay after the event? Aware that Ravenstahl has basically given carte blanche to "the boss" Onorato to do what he wishes with the Port Authority without even a symbolic gesture voicing the public's frustration with slashing the Port Authority's budget? Remember that the only legislation Ravenstahl offered as a council member was to bankrupt the Shade Tree fund from bus stop advertisements so that it can be added to the city's general revenues (perhaps fixing potholes for cars).
I hear your concerns but just don't think they're grounded in reality. Maybe you can agree with a 'greenest' candidate. And that, my friend, is Peduto.
to Eric
by donahue
Friday, Mar. 02, 2007 at 5:55 PM
sorry pal but:
1.TIFs for parking garages are pure bull shit and Peduto has voted for them. There is nothing unrealistic about refusing to use tax breaks to build parking lots!
2.The Mayor of Toronto is proposing to increase yes, increase the parking tax in downtown Toronto and use the revenue for public transit. Is the Mayor of Toronto Ontario a whacked out crazy idealist?
3. The federal government already pays for its employees monthly passes thus providing a direct federal subsidy to public transit, why can't the city do something like that.
If you enviros consider such ideas as these as unrealistic then no wonder we are in the mess were in.
Can't get no satisfaction
by C.
Friday, Mar. 02, 2007 at 11:01 PM
I'm of the opinion you're in the mess you're in because no one is ever satisfied with anything or anyone, and no one has any idea as to how to pragmatically achieve what you vaguely think you want.
Sorry for the comment title, I understand its a mysoginistic, patriarchal view of sex, probably classist and speciest also. And environmentally unfriendly.
Poor C.-Dial and Dine-RIP
by I said extra ranch
Sunday, Mar. 04, 2007 at 12:33 AM
You've been extra bitter since the delivery business failed, so i don't think you're in any position to offer advice on how to run a city. Actually Gee Dubya (most entertaining president ever) is a failed businessman, too.
What do we need politicians for? If you take even a cursory glance of the last 10,000 years, they've been nothing but trouble for people like you and me. Our dissatisfaction stems from a desire to change life, not just bosses.
Voting is for the delusional, but at least the people who own Ravenstahl live in the 412 area code, the womanizing, hipster savior, Peduto, has no such local loyalties, except maybe to spoiled artists.
My dear extra mayo
by C.
Sunday, Mar. 04, 2007 at 1:06 AM
We closed for personal reasons, namely the health of my family, but I appreciate your concern.
I'm going to change that photo in your honor, so please stay tuned!
As for running the city, I'm not trying to, and my post never really went there.
As for the leftish community never being pleased, its not. When Giant Eagle stopped selling foie gras, there was no sense of 'hey, thanks' only a post by someone bitching about their prices.
Just why not point out those who live by the impossible standards you set?
As for Dial n Dine, we tried to do some of that. We used union printers, and got AA shirts and local embroidery and all that. We weren't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but we tried.
You bring up these personal things like I've really made a serious attempt at being anonymous. Anyone with a search button on their myspace can find me. I just don't care. I know who you are and where you live, but I'm not bringing that into this fine forum. Please do the same.
PS-I really don't care anymore about your ranch.
Feeding the trolls
by I said extra ranch
Sunday, Mar. 04, 2007 at 8:34 AM
Capitalism is capitalism. It can't be reformed, not by buying the 'right' things or boycotting (as if Lefties are big spenders) the 'wrong' things, so no, successful fetishization of one commodity brings no satisfaction.
As far as getting personal, these actions are personal to the people who participate in them. Your clueless criticisms and your love and defense of capitalism, make your own attempts at 'the American dream' into perfect discussion fodder.
I'd be really surprised if you had any idea who I was or where I lived. If I were younger or some anti-gun pacifist then such typings might concern me, but to me, it's just more bullshit from one of many indymedia trolls.
It's an all you can eat buffet
by C.
Sunday, Mar. 04, 2007 at 4:35 PM
You didn't seem to have a problem with capitalism when you gave me money in exchange for goods/services.
I do know where you live and who you are, as deductive logic is a bitch sometimes. I won't bring that here, unlike you. It would be wrong, I think.
I don't love or defend captialism, but I don't love or defend the alternatives either. I don't know which is better, and I'll be brave enough to admit that. I don't have the blind conviction that you do, my dear mayo, and frankly I'd rather be unsure.
My humble criticism isn't quite clueless, but I understand that you can't tolerate or listen to anything other than the party line.
But as for DND, all I can say is we tried something that may have provided some security and future for the family. You say it was misguided but you obviously didn't think so, my former customer!
nothing vague about it!
by stephen donahue
Sunday, Mar. 04, 2007 at 5:36 PM
These crazy posts. I got no idea what they are about. I wrote the original article and i might be a fool for trying but to get back to the message at hand.
I wonder if folks read posts before firing off their crap. For example "C" writes, "I'm of the opinion you're in the mess you're in because no one is ever satisfied with anything or anyone, and no one has any idea as to how to pragmatically achieve what you vaguely think you want."
What is vague about not wanting Tax Increment Financing (TIFs) to fund the construction of parking garages? There ain't nothing vague about it. How to pragmatically achieve this? Fuckin easy -- City Council votes NO on tax breaks used to fund the construction of parking garages. They vote NO on TIFs from time to time and the School Board gets to vote on them too as these TIFs take money away from the public schools as well.
There is nothing vague or unachievable about using parking tax policy to help fund and promote public transit. As i wrote above the Mayor of Toronto is doing it. So where is the fucking vagueness? How can something already being done be vague?
Re: my last vague idea I wrote, "The federal government already pays for its employees monthly passes thus providing a direct federal subsidy to public transit, why can't the city do something like that." If the fucking feds are doinng it right now it can not be some vague idea now can it? The City can easily offer tax incentives to businesses that pay for at least part of their employees monthy Port Authority pass.
I always hesitate to post on Indy Media as it seems to be sort of a waste. Too many clowns. I do hope that I have given evidence for those with a brain and the willingness to use it, that the ideas presented in the original article are not vague but concrete and achievable.
to stephen
by eric
Monday, Mar. 05, 2007 at 11:19 AM
Stephen, I did not mean to suggest that your proposals were wacky by any means. In fact, they are options that smart and progressive governments may choose to make cities more liveable while remaining fiscally conservative. Particularly, and correct me if I'm wrong, I think the context in which city officials have been arguing about parking garages is mainly about how to use parking revenues to boost general city funds. Creative and smart solutions to solving transit issues is not even within the parameters of the discussion. So, my initial comments were only to point out the myopia of the current city leadership.
And smart government we do not have, particularly since the (I hesitate to use the word) "Democratic" party endorsed a candidate for mayor who is hardly progressive. Ravenstahl doesn't believe in protecting the safety of women who seek healthcare at clinics that perform abortions. When asked about his opinion on the MonFayette Expressway, an issue hotly debated for years, he said he wasn't informed enough about it to comment. Not the greenest candidate or the sharpest tool in the box.
comments
by matt
Wednesday, Mar. 07, 2007 at 7:49 PM
as ironic as this sounds, i am of the opinion that comments should be eliminated from this website as they are counterproductive
Greenies
by Matt H
Monday, Mar. 19, 2007 at 2:04 AM
This whole green issue doesn't seem to be big enough in this city to sway an election one way or another.
I find it ironic that Peduto was anti-Patriot Act but is in favor of cameras at red lights in the city of Pittsburgh...hmmm....
Not just red lights
by Mr. Peduto Project
Monday, Mar. 19, 2007 at 8:37 AM
The King of the Hipsters wants more than just red light cameras, he's got them citywide. And I'm sure that Linewave systems really deserved that contract.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06089/678078-53.stm
Garages better than Parking Lots
by Chilled
Wednesday, Mar. 21, 2007 at 10:47 PM
As much as parking garages promote private automobile use, they also promote better land use than the alternative - sprawling acres of lined asphalt.
If you want to take a useful stand against parking lots, demand that the city parking tax be changed from a tax on receipts to a tax on the land underneath them. Vast swathes of Oakland are disappearing beneath non-profit parking lots that, because they only provide free parking for employees or residents, must pay no tax to the city.
Those gigantic parking lots result in businesses and residences being sited ever-more-distant from each other, which in turn makes walking, bicycling, or using mass transit increasingly less possible.
Parking garages might not be the greatest thing, but consider the alternative.
He's Watching you...
by Mr. Peduto Project
Monday, Mar. 26, 2007 at 10:31 PM
...even if you aren't at Cappy's.
Don't let the symbolic resolutions fool you.
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07079/770929-53.stm
According to City Councilman William Peduto, new graffiti with Mr. Montano's tag -- "MFOME" -- began appearing in recent days on Melwood and Centre avenues.
"We're asking the district attorney now to go for full prosecution," said the councilman, who used funds for his council district to purchase digital cameras used by the police bureau to document graffiti.
"The district attorney has sought to get stronger penalties but has not been successful in the county courthouse. Right now, we need to set an example."
Herein lies our problem...
by Suomynona
Sunday, Apr. 15, 2007 at 7:54 PM
"...I'm afraid few municipalities would embrace such radical changes (from their perspective) as you propose."
We can no longer afford subtle change.
We all need to learn to embrace radical change with regard to our environment. We are now in a race that can not be won by running slowly.
Rather than accepting that Pittsburgh is not ready for radical change, we need to change the way that Pittsburgh thinks in order to accept radical change. This is not just true for Pittsburgh.
If not, we will lose the race.
Green? More like Brown(shirt)
by Boris
Monday, Apr. 23, 2007 at 5:46 AM
"Global Warming" has taken the place of UFO's in the minds of highly suggestive mental cripples (like Sheryl Crow). Ride that bio-diesel Short Bus, baby!
Crow (4/19, Springfield, Tenn.): I have spent the better part of this tour trying to come up with easy ways for us all to become a part of the solution to global warming. Although my ideas are in the earliest stages of development, they are, in my mind, worth investigating. One of my favorites is in the area of forest conservation which we heavily rely on for oxygen. I propose a limitation be put on how many squares of toilet paper can be used in any one sitting. Now, I don't want to rob any law-abiding American of his or her God-given rights, but I think we are an industrious enough people that we can make it work with only one square per restroom visit, except, of course, on those pesky occasions where 2 to 3 could be required.
the incredible arrogance of the Unbathed child-mind
by Boris
Monday, Apr. 23, 2007 at 5:39 PM
global warming is a scam
by Algore
Wednesday, Apr. 25, 2007 at 4:54 AM
"The urge to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule.”
H.L. Mencken
Oh to be touche by Sheryl Crow.
by Vladamir
Thursday, May. 03, 2007 at 2:20 AM
I wished that I could have been Carl for that brief moment in time when Sheryl Crow reached out to touch her!
I would have gently took her hand and guided it into that warm region between my legs, and then asked her if she minded telling me if she thought that I needed more than one square to insure through cleaning!
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