Sierra Club supporting CBAs for Green Development
Allegheny Group of Sierra Club Supports Equitable Development in the Hill District and on Northside through Community Benefits Agreements
(Spring 2008)
From Los Angeles to Boston and Georgia to Milwaukee, communities are
organizing to ensure that development gives back to the communities where
it is located. In cities all across the country, broad coalitions of
faith, labor, environmental, housing and community groups are coming
together to negotiate with developers to guarantee that development
projects provide good paying jobs with health care, training opportunities
for community residents, affordable housing, environmentally sound
buildings and parks and open spaces. These agreements are known as
Community Benefits Agreements (CBA) and the national organization the
Partnership for Working Families (PWF) has been a leader in promoting
these campaigns to promote just and equitable development. Sierra Club
nationally is a key partner of the PWF.
With Pittsburgh undergoing many major development and economic changes,
PWF encouraged the development of a chapter in Western Pennsylvania that
would run CBA campaigns and be a long-term advocate for equitable
development. This effort resulted in the forming of Pittsburgh-UNITED;
the local chapter of PWF and a new voice for economic improvements for low
and moderate income Pittsburghers. This local chapter and the Sierra Club
have joined forces in the fight to gain benefits and investment for
underprivileged communities where major developments are being built. The
Allegheny Group of the Sierra Club was one of the early board members of
Pittsburgh UNITED.
A key component of a just economy is a clean and safe environment. Many
developers do the bare minimum to protect the environment in an attempt to
save on costs. This increases the risk of sickness in areas where the
development is located. With stricter guidelines and monitoring put on
developers before, during, and after the building process a safer cleaner
environment can be achieved. This is why environmental organizations have
been a key part of all CBA campaigns
The CBA negotiations in Pittsburgh currently cover two major development
projects. One is in the Hill district around the proposed new Penguins
arena. The other is on the Northside in a fight to obtain benefits from
the Majestic Star casino company; builders of the casino on Pittsburgh’s
northern shore. The Sierra Club has been an active part of both of these
campaigns.
In the Hill campaign, Sierra Club member Peter Wray, Political Chair for
the Allegheny Group, testified at the City Planning Commission meeting in
January about the need for a CBA with strong enforceable environmental
enhancements in the arena development. Peter was one of 300 people who
packed the hearing room in support of the One Hill CBA coalition’s CBA.
A week before the City Planning Commission vote, Randy Francisco, Barb
Grover and Mike Pastorkovich participated in a tour of the Hill district,
which was widely covered in the media. Key politicians and community
leaders toured important areas as the Arcena Street overlook and the Find
the Rivers park system.
The Sierra Club has several concepts they are supporting in the CBA around
the arena. These include controls on diesel emissions, green construction
for the arena, parks and open spaces on the Hill and advocating for fewer
surface parking lots. These are clearly within the mission of the group
to ensure the safety and betterment of the environment we live in.
In the campaign to win a CBA on the Northside, the Sierra Club is chair of
the Environmental Task force to ensure that the Majestic Star is
environmentally friendly. Here, too, the Sierra Club has remained
consistent and true to their mission by focusing their efforts on issues
such as parks and green spaces, low diesel emissions, LEED certification
for the casino, replacement of water/sewage drainage systems to reduce
contamination of the rivers, and green home rehabilitation for Northside
residents. Pittsburgh UNITED board member and Sierra Club Regional
Representative Rachel Martin presented these planks at a meeting of 200
members of the Northside UNITED campaign in December.
Stay tuned for further developments in the Hill, Northside and other
communities where development is happening.
(Spring 2008)
From Los Angeles to Boston and Georgia to Milwaukee, communities are
organizing to ensure that development gives back to the communities where
it is located. In cities all across the country, broad coalitions of
faith, labor, environmental, housing and community groups are coming
together to negotiate with developers to guarantee that development
projects provide good paying jobs with health care, training opportunities
for community residents, affordable housing, environmentally sound
buildings and parks and open spaces. These agreements are known as
Community Benefits Agreements (CBA) and the national organization the
Partnership for Working Families (PWF) has been a leader in promoting
these campaigns to promote just and equitable development. Sierra Club
nationally is a key partner of the PWF.
With Pittsburgh undergoing many major development and economic changes,
PWF encouraged the development of a chapter in Western Pennsylvania that
would run CBA campaigns and be a long-term advocate for equitable
development. This effort resulted in the forming of Pittsburgh-UNITED;
the local chapter of PWF and a new voice for economic improvements for low
and moderate income Pittsburghers. This local chapter and the Sierra Club
have joined forces in the fight to gain benefits and investment for
underprivileged communities where major developments are being built. The
Allegheny Group of the Sierra Club was one of the early board members of
Pittsburgh UNITED.
A key component of a just economy is a clean and safe environment. Many
developers do the bare minimum to protect the environment in an attempt to
save on costs. This increases the risk of sickness in areas where the
development is located. With stricter guidelines and monitoring put on
developers before, during, and after the building process a safer cleaner
environment can be achieved. This is why environmental organizations have
been a key part of all CBA campaigns
The CBA negotiations in Pittsburgh currently cover two major development
projects. One is in the Hill district around the proposed new Penguins
arena. The other is on the Northside in a fight to obtain benefits from
the Majestic Star casino company; builders of the casino on Pittsburgh’s
northern shore. The Sierra Club has been an active part of both of these
campaigns.
In the Hill campaign, Sierra Club member Peter Wray, Political Chair for
the Allegheny Group, testified at the City Planning Commission meeting in
January about the need for a CBA with strong enforceable environmental
enhancements in the arena development. Peter was one of 300 people who
packed the hearing room in support of the One Hill CBA coalition’s CBA.
A week before the City Planning Commission vote, Randy Francisco, Barb
Grover and Mike Pastorkovich participated in a tour of the Hill district,
which was widely covered in the media. Key politicians and community
leaders toured important areas as the Arcena Street overlook and the Find
the Rivers park system.
The Sierra Club has several concepts they are supporting in the CBA around
the arena. These include controls on diesel emissions, green construction
for the arena, parks and open spaces on the Hill and advocating for fewer
surface parking lots. These are clearly within the mission of the group
to ensure the safety and betterment of the environment we live in.
In the campaign to win a CBA on the Northside, the Sierra Club is chair of
the Environmental Task force to ensure that the Majestic Star is
environmentally friendly. Here, too, the Sierra Club has remained
consistent and true to their mission by focusing their efforts on issues
such as parks and green spaces, low diesel emissions, LEED certification
for the casino, replacement of water/sewage drainage systems to reduce
contamination of the rivers, and green home rehabilitation for Northside
residents. Pittsburgh UNITED board member and Sierra Club Regional
Representative Rachel Martin presented these planks at a meeting of 200
members of the Northside UNITED campaign in December.
Stay tuned for further developments in the Hill, Northside and other
communities where development is happening.