District 1 News: Councilman Wilson

Hello everyone, At the beginning of January, City Council swore in two new members: Councilperson Bob Charland (District 3) and Councilman Khari Mosley (District 9), alongside re-elected members Councilwoman Deb Gross (District 7), Councilperson Barb Warwick (District 5), and myself. Council members also selected Councilman R. Danielle Lavelle as the new Council President and officially kicked off the 143rd session of City Council.

While giving my remarks, I reflected on what was accomplished in my first term and I’d like to share those in this article. In my first four years as councilman, I was able to allocate $38.4 million to the Northside. These millions of dollars went towards paving roads, redesigning streets, installing speed humps, fixing landslides, repairing and constructing bridges, rehabbing city steps, building playgrounds, lighting ball fields, and improving our parks. It is truly a collaborative effort to bring this amount of money and projects to the Northside and I could not have accomplished this without my great partners at City Council and in the Mayor’s Office who have worked closely with me to improve District 1.

It was a busy first term, as I was able to pass 61 resolutions and ordinances with the support of my fellow council members in those four years. I am especially proud of having passed legislation to create a rental registry in Pittsburgh, forgive $115 million of bad medical debt, protect reproductive freedoms here in the City of Pittsburgh, extend paid sick leave during the coronavirus pandemic, and establish outdoor dining standards in the aftermath of the pandemic.

During my first term, I also had the privilege to be named to the Board of the Land Bank, which was created to take control of deteriorating homes across the city and put them on a path to new ownership. With 13,000 abandoned properties in the city’s hands currently, getting the Land Bank working was critical. I am excited to share that it now has nearly 50 properties coming to market, to be sold to community groups and private owners in less than a year. This year, the Land Bank will work on taking in 68 lots and 32 structures and I look forward to championing the reuse of these 100 properties so that we can tackle blight in our neighborhoods swiftly and offer low-income and working families a path to home ownership.

At the start of my second term, I introduced legislation to change the City’s zoning code that would reduce burdens on proposals for attached homes. This bill amends an existing rule within the Zoning Code that treats “attached” row houses in “detached” districts as an unpermitted use, putting them in the same disfavored category as industrial and commercial uses. Recognizing that this rule sets an unreasonably high legal standard for approving proposals for building future attached row houses, my bill will do the following: allow attached single-family homes by-right in neighborhoods with lots 35 feet wide or smaller; permit attached single-family homes with lots larger than 35 feet wide as a Special Exception at the Zoning Board of Adjustment.

I look forward to working with my colleagues in council on this and other similar legislation within my second term. If we are going to make it easier and cheaper to build more housing and more affordable housing in Pittsburgh, we need to make sure that our own laws and rules are not getting in the way.

If you have any questions or concerns, call us at (412) 255-2135, email us at district1@pittsburghpa.gov, or find us on Facebook and X, formerly Twitter. My staff and I are looking forward to serving all of you in this new year!