BCT Editorial – 9/24/06

This page was last updated on September 25, 2006.

Imagine; Editorial; Beaver County Times; September 24, 2006.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“Imagine this.

“Imagine a Pittsburgh with a Cultural District that is teeming with theaters and restaurants. Imagine a city with a thriving nightlife in several neighborhoods, and a shopping district that reflects those found in European cities.”

[RWC] Yeah, but this is the United States, not Europe. Apparently the Times believes European is better than American. Is anyone surprised?

“Imagine a city and a region with world-class museums and art galleries, top-ranked colleges and universities, pioneering hospitals and a budding high-tech industry. Imagine a 10-county area that is flooded with more than 105,000 full-time college students year in and year out.

“Imagine an environmentally friendly city with a number of certified ‘green’ buildings and a region that features miles of rivers and shoreline for fishing, boating and recreation.

“Imagine a downtown area that is home to two of the best facilities in major league sports and a world-class airport that is only minutes away.

“Imagine a region with a low cost of living, affordable housing, short commutes and good schools.

“It would be a great place to live and work, wouldn’t it?

“Well, we’re living there. The problem is in getting the word out around here, around the nation and around the world about our 10-county region.

“That’s the goal of the Allegheny Conference for Community Development’s new marketing campaign ‘Imagine Pittsburgh,’ which will run in regional and national publications.

“The selling point is that the Pittsburgh region has a lot to offer.

“Imagine that.”

[RWC] For the sake of argument, let’s assume all the points mentioned above are both correct and relevant.

If they are, why is the area’s population stagnant? Does the Times believe it’s just a marketing problem?

Could it be there are other traits more important than glitzy ballparks (voted down by voters) and “a number of certified ‘green’ buildings?”

By the way, Southwestern PA isn’t the only nice place to live. While I have a personal preference for this area, a lot of other areas have “a lot to offer.” We need to remember we’re competing with other nice places, not backwater rat holes.