You see, originally when I started this thing, I wanted to see what the best practices for SEO where and working out and testing various strategies to see what could and couldn’t help.  Pittsburgh in the most minimal sense has been great for this strategy.   As I’ve been able to drill down to incredibly detailed and labeled search key words over the past year or so and see what kind of audience I can target.

So while originally I did this all for work related purposes, in the end it became nothing more than work.  Somewhere along the line I fell out of favor and found it a chore to post things and try various things.  Doing a routine totally sapped my energy to produce any kind of original writing or find anything interesting to give to the readers.

So this is where I am today.  I’ve decided that I’m going to go back to doing this for what I enjoy, and that’s Pittsburgh.  I feel that I’ve gathered enough information on here to figure out what works and doesn’t work.  In the mean time, I’m working on my portfolio, and a new tech/web/seo blog dedicated to the things I’ve learned on this site, as well as my other personal sites.

So while I’m going to go back to working on other things, I’m going to just solely focus on fun and enjoyment here.  Things are going to change, and I think will be way more exciting dealing with Pittsburgh and what this great city has to offer.  So stay tuned!

“There are more deficient bridges in our metropolitan areas than there are McDonald’s restaurants in the entire country,” said James Corless, the organization’s director. “These metropolitan-area bridges are most costly and difficult to fix, but they also are the most urgent, because they carry such a large share of the nation’s people and goods.”

That quote alone is stunning, because there are a ton of McDonald’s everywhere.  I don’t know, I seriously thought it was already common knowledge that we’d have the worst bridges around.  Call me crazy, but I do remember a report back when that one bridge collapsed in Minneapolis, and I just swear they had a report saying that there were a ton of bridges in Pittsburgh that were sub-par to deficient.

“The dangerous state of our bridges is a problem that is not going away. Most of the nation’s bridges were designed to last 50 years, and today, roughly a third are already 50 years or older, and the average age of bridges nationally is 42 years,” Mr. Corless said.

Really though, who didn’t see this kind of situation coming? Nothing ever lasts forever, and why were these vital life lines ignored? It’s almost a shock, especially here, that we’re considered the city of bridges.

Quotes from this article: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11292/1183104-147.stm#ixzz1bEEiCnyV

My only real gripe with anything slated as #Occupy, is that I feel that it’s not been given a direct voice from specific people spearheading the “Operation Occupy.”  I just feel that without a direct voice, people are protesting, but can’t all be heard as one.

Some of the confusion stems from the nature of the movement itself. Members have agreed in general to oppose what they view as corporate greed, but individuals are free to promote their own causes as well, a common trend among quickly growing, leaderless movements.

This quote is taken from the Post-Gazette’s report and I am inclined to completely agree.  While I understand the right to give everyone their voice, there are parties getting involved looking to promote their own issues as well as the direct goal of these protests.

That makes it skewed, and the voices become many, and not just one large collective assault on the masses.

Asked how he promotes the group’s message when there are so many different causes, Michael Lawson, who is overseeing Occupy Pittsburgh’s hospitality efforts, said with a smile that there’s “no easy answer, especially when there are a lot of people with a lot of different opinions.”

Across the nation, Occupy Wall Street spinoffs have prided themselves on their efforts to be all-inclusive.

“Because the original group on Wall Street calls itself a leaderless movement … there is all of the potential for people to bring their own signs and make their own demands,” said Michael Kazin, a Georgetown University professor who studies social movements. “It is a carnival of activists.”

Low and behold, I don’t think you will find a ton of people who disagree with the assessment. I am a supporter, I think big business and big government work hand in hand to monopolize and give for their own, rather than the people that make it so.

Who knows though, as this is a totally random post, I just hope that the collective voice finds its way, and at least changes something to make someone’s life a bit easier.

It’s time that I focus my efforts into trying to make this site better, via a re-design, and a fresh new attitude on what’s going on with Pittsburgh.  I feel that it’s failed to me on a personal level, as I had no direction when I started writing about Pittsburgh with the creation of this blog.  I suppose it’s never had a clear direction, as I was just reaching beyond my territory and had no clue how to do some things.

What I’d eventually like to do, is gather like-minded people who are deeply involved with the city, and get them to send a few articles so I could grow the community in a way that it could reach different groups and demographics.

I don’t know, maybe I’m just writing to write, but I do know one thing.  For this site, changes are coming.

What is Google Offers?  

Google Offers is the direct competition to Groupon.  For the people who know what Groupon is great, for those that don’t, check it out.  Groupon and Google Offers are internet based promotion programs built for companies to give away daily deals and offer the consumer with something special.  It’s just another form of advertising, because as far as I’m concerned, Groupon is not for me.

Google Offers looks to be about the same way, they offer nearly the same services, same ideas, same theories, it’s just under the Google brand.

The Google Offers website to subscribe to Pittsburgh deals can be found here: Google Offers Pittsburgh

If you’re interested in how it got it’s start, why it’s opening up to Pittsburgh at an early time, check out the article the Post Gazette published: It’s interesting because this article talks about the team that created it here in Pittsburgh. I’m a huge Google guy(cheap plug to my Google+ profile), so anything they’re doing here, is usually great for all involved.

From the Post-Gazette:

More than 800 extras are needed for an upcoming scene being filmed for “Steel Town,” the movie being shot in Pittsburgh about two strong women who join forces to transform an inner-city school.

A casting call for extras will be held 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Pittsburgh Radisson, 101 Radisson Drive, Green Tree, 15205.

Filming for the movie, originally called “Still I Rise,” has been under way this summer throughout Squirrel Hill and other parts of the city. It stars Viola Davis and Maggie Gyllenhaal.

The tax-free benefit for movie makers is doing wonders for this city. The fiancée and I sat down and watched “Love and Other Drugs” on Monday night and highly enjoyed the various shots used throughout the city.

Port Authority has completed installation of new fareboxes on buses and rail vehicles and says it has overcome the problems that twice halted the project.

The next step in the run-up to a new high-tech fare collection system begins Monday, when 300 University of Pittsburgh staffers and students begin field-testing the system, to be followed by the entire Pitt faculty, staff and student body in the fall.

When the project is fully implemented next year, bus and rail riders will be able to pay with permanent plastic cards, called smart cards, that have embedded computer chips. Riders will tap the cards on a target on the fareboxes, and the amount will be automatically deducted.

They will be able to replenish the value of the cards at vending machines or online. Cash also will continue to be accepted.

Pitt is paying the transit authority $5.9 million this year and $6.8 million for the fiscal year beginning July 1 for unlimited rides for all university ID holders. The IDs have chips that are compatible with the new fare collection system.

Each week during the four-week test, the university will deactivate 25 cards to simulate students who have graduated or left the university. That will verify that those cards are no longer accepted by the new fareboxes.

Ultimately, that will put a stop to free rides for those who have left the university but continue to use their old IDs to avoid paying, authority spokesman Jim Ritchie said.

“It definitely occurs,” he said. “Our operators do their best to try to detect that, but it’s obviously very difficult. This change will make it a more precise system.”

In a presentation to an authority board committee this week, project manager Tim Bach said the new fareboxes are operating properly at a rate of 98 percent and that problems with the machines jamming or rejecting dollar bills have been ironed out.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11141/1148184-455.stm#ixzz1NC1kSLoN

“Pittsburgh is a beautiful city,” the London-born director said in a statement. “We have been able to find everything we were looking for here, and I am excited to spend the summer in Pittsburgh with our final installment of Batman.”

Mr. Nolan, a favorite of audiences and critics who also made “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight” along with “Inception,” “The Prestige” and “Memento,” met this morning with representatives of Mayor Luke Ravenstahl.

Awesome awesome awesome.

“We are thrilled to be welcoming the Batman film to Pittsburgh, and eager for the economic impact that our city will experience,” the mayor said in a statement. “This is another example of the growing film industry in our community, and we will be rolling out the red carpet for them.”

Dawn Keezer, director of the Pittsburgh Film Office, said the Warner Bros. production could be here for four to six weeks shooting in Downtown and nearby.

“They’re still nailing down actual locations but what they really fell in love with was the diversity of architecture and the gorgeous buildings that we still have in Downtown Pittsburgh and the surrounding areas,” she said.

In terms of pure movie release, this is by far the biggest movie to be shot here in years. The last two movies have grossed over $100 million dollars consecutively and this one is surely to do the same.

“I think it’s the most high profile project we’ve seen. I think it’s as a direct result of the success we’ve had with the film tax-credit program that Pittsburgh is on the map and Southwestern Pennsylvania is considered now for every major production, which is great because it’s all about jobs and money,” she said.

“We’ve been thrilled with all the work we’ve had in Southwestern Pennsylvania but Batman’s a known franchise. People know what Batman’s about and we’re thrilled that they have chosen Pittsburgh.”

Ms. Keezer said it was too early to predict how many local cast or crew might be hired or what the demand for extras might be.

The film is slated to arrive in theaters nationwide July 20, 2012.

I will surely be trying to find anyone or anything that has an idea on how to be an extra for this movie. I would love to be apart of it. The only thing I hope is that they re-invent the Bane character or Clayface. Two equally epic characters that I think are perfect for Nolan’s world.

The rest of the article can be read here: http://post-gazette.com/pg/11095/1137149-348.stm

The Tribune Review posted an article detailing why and how the Port Authority had to cut its service.  It’s a pretty in-depth look as to why, so we’ll post some excerpts here so you can read.  All in all, its plagued by political strife, and employment issues:

Port Authority’s financial struggles have long been a problem, many of which stemmed from increasing health care costs beginning in the 1990s.

From 1996-2006, the cost to provide health care for Port Authority’s 2,600 retired drivers and mechanics quadrupled. Since 2006, the agency has carved $52 million in annual expenses out of its budget, with measures that included cutting service, freezing pay, increasing employees’ health care and pension contributions, and shedding more than 400 jobs.

Fare increases in the 2008 and 2010 fiscal years translated to $14 million a year in increased revenue.

In December, then-Gov. Ed Rendell shifted $45 million in federal funding to bail out the agency, which initially proposed cutting more than 500 jobs. The outgoing Democrat called the money a temporary fix, saying state legislators must increase transportation funding this year. Port Authority will spend $33.8 million of funding this fiscal year to close its budget deficit.

A last-ditch attempt to stave off layoffs, services cuts and a privatization of some routes failed Friday when Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and the authority’s board rejected wage and raise givebacks offered by the union.

After a 70-minute, closed-door executive session on Saturday, the board voted 6-1 to authorize Lenzner Coach Lines, an Ohio Township-based private transit firm, to take over a popular commuter route in the North Hills, a move the union staunchly opposes.

Charles J. Martoni cast the lone nay vote. He wanted to grant a request from Amalgamated Transit Union Local 85, which represents Port Authority employees, to delay the cuts and extend negotiations another week.

“It’s privatization, outsourced, Wal-Mart on wheels — here we go,” Pat McMahon, president of the transit union, shouted to reporters after the vote. “I don’t know how they sleep with a decision like that.”

Union members at the hearing booed and shouted as board members quickly exited the room after the meeting.

“What our riders need more than anything else is stability. They need to know where and when buses are going to be, and we need to turn our focus to long-term solutions rather than these one-week-at-a-time, one-month-at-a-time, one-year-at-a-time bailouts, limp-alongs and Band-Aids,” Port Authority CEO Steve Bland said after the vote.

The route cuts are expected to reduce Port Authority’s costs by $20 million.

Officials from the transit union have opposed the cuts. They contend that if the authority spent the entire $45 million bailout right now, routes could have remained intact through January 2012. Instead, the agency plans to set aside $11.2 million in emergency money for next fiscal year, which begins July 1.

“Cutting now is going to put the entire burden on the people who are losing their buses, whole communities that are losing access to public transit,” said Marty Marks, a spokesman for the union. “If everybody throughout the state shares the burden at the same time, the outcry will be so great it will cause the governor and the Legislature to act.”

Good to know the actual past behind it, and what this cut actually does. Personally, the unionized issue is a large one, and while they cry foul, there’s no need to be paying anyone that much money.  The union wants to cry foul, but really, it’s highway robbery in what they’ve attained for its employees, benefits and large pay increases.

To anyone that was affected by these cuts, what do you say on the subject?

The Parade

It will begin at Liberty Avenue and 11th Street at 10 a.m. and continue on Grant Street and the Boulevard of the Allies, ending at Stanwix Street. Rules: All spectators must stay on sidewalks. Police will cite anyone with open containers of alcohol.

The parade will cause street closures starting at 8 a.m., when Liberty Avenue will close from 11th to 26th streets. All streets are expected to be reopened by 2 p.m.

 

The Festival

Streets in Market Square, including Forbes Avenue from Wood to Stanwix streets, will close at 1:30 p.m.

Rules: The open container law will be enforced in the square until 2 p.m., then relaxed until 6 p.m. Persons must enter the square through a controlled gate. No glass bottles, cans or alcohol can be brought in.

More rules: Those wishing to drink must show ID at one of the four carding stations and get a hand stamp and wristband, which will be required to purchase alcohol at one of the six outside vendors. Police and Liquor Control Enforcement agents will be on the lookout for underage drinkers and illegal serving of minors. You can’t take alcohol out of the square. You can’t bring a cooler into the square. No pets other than assisting animals.

A couple more: Beverages will be served in cups or cans. Anyone caught swilling from a glass container will be asked to leave and dispose of the container in the trash. Parking violators along the parade route will be tagged and towed.

 

Elsewhere

Liquor Control Enforcement also will patrol the South Side on Saturday along with police to watch for underage drinking, public intoxication, disorderly conduct and impaired drivers. Police also will keep a watchful eye on the North Shore. There will be DUI checkpoints and roving DUI patrols throughout the city.

The Penguins will play a home game at 2 p.m. at Consol Energy Center. The city is urging those planning to visit Downtown for any of the events to allow extra time, be patient and use public transportation if possible.

Many Port Authority bus routes serving Downtown and the Strip District will have detours and stop changes during the parade. Some West End and South Hills routes will terminate at Station Square, where riders continuing into Downtown can transfer to the T for free. The 28X Airport Flyer and outbound G2 West Busway-Oakland also will serve Station Square, temporarily bypassing Downtown.

I’m just no longer interested in this situation downtown.  I don’t want to go to the parade, and I don’t want to spend money down there.  The market district situation is a joke.  2PM until 5:30 PM?  What is this?  A high school dance?  Get real Pittsburgh.  I made a big stink about this last year, but this year?  I don’t care, I don’t even want to see the city on this day.

Article used:  http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11069/1130868-51.stm