July 20, 2008

At Diamond Jubilee, City's 'Jewel' Still Gleams

While McKeesport's noisy neighbors to the north were celebrating the 75th anniversary of sandwiches with fries and cole slaw on top, Our Fair City was hosting something a bit more genteel.

On Saturday, members of the Garden Club of McKeesport celebrated their organization's Diamond Jubilee with their biennial flower show.

Hosted at the McKeesport Heritage Center's grand banquet hall in Renziehausen Park, all of the club's 45 members were expected to enter the competition, which was a sanctioned event judged by other members of the National Garden Clubs, Inc.

Entries range from simple specimens of flowering plants and shrubs to table arrangements and home-decorating displays.

The Garden Club of McKeesport is not McKeesport's only organization for horticulturalists --- others include the Home Gardeners' Guild and the YWCA Garden Club --- but it's probably the best known.

Founded Aug. 17, 1933, by a group of the city's most prominent and elite women, the Garden Club is a more egalitarian organization these days, says Jane Miller, its current president.

"We have some pretty dedicated members," says Miller, of North Huntingdon Township. Though many of the club's members are from McKeesport and its suburbs, others come from as far away as Greentree and Moon Township.

The club's primary activity includes cultivation of the city's arboretum in Renziehausen Park, which is maintained in cooperation with the Pittsburgh Rose Society.

Located next to the Heritage Center, the facility covers more than three acres, including 1,800 roses, beds of perennials, a goldfish pond and water feature, a herb garden and butterfly garden, and a gazebo that's popular for weddings and other events.

"We're already booked for some months next year," Miller says.

Dubbed the "Jewel of McKeesport" by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the city's arboretum is one of only 123 in the United States certified by the American Rose Society and is the second-largest in Pennsylvania, after only Hershey Gardens in Hershey, Pa.

The arboretum is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. until dark. Admission is free.

Educational events, many held in cooperation with other enthusiasts in western Pennsylvania, are also hosted at the Garden Club's building.

During the first five years of the club's existence, Miller says, members met at the Penn-McKee Hotel or in each others' homes.

But in 1938, the city invited the club to create the arboretum at Renzie Park. The club got a permanent headquarters building in 1983. A two-story ranch-style building above the gardens hosts space for members to work and a gift shop.

Members gather every Wednesday, rain or shine, to tend the flower beds or work on pressed flower arrangements, wreaths, and other crafts for the club's gift shop.

Regular monthly meetings are held on the third Monday of the month at 11 a.m., and the club also hosts four teas during the summer months.

"We work right up until December," Miller says. "There's a lot of work to getting the garden ready for the winter."

The club then goes on hiatus before resuming activities in April.

"I find my peace in the garden, I really do," says Mary Jane Hickman of White Oak, a member of the club for the past eight years.

She calls working in the garden a great "stress reliever. If I have something that's really bothering me, that's where I go," she says. "I come in early on Wednesday morning, with the birds singing, and go to work."

Like many other social and hobby clubs these days, the Garden Club has a hard time getting new people to join. Many of the current members are retired, and some are in their late 80s. But the Garden Club welcomes prospective members, Hickman says; they should plan to attend a few work sessions to get to know the other volunteers.

Younger enthusiasts are very welcome, she says. The Garden Club has a lot to offer younger gardeners --- men and women alike, Hickman says. Besides fellowship and encouragement, the club hosts educational programs throughout the year in conjunction with experts from around the region and state.

"We're always learning new things," she says.

. . .

The Garden Club of McKeesport will host an open house on Sunday, Sept. 15. Watch the club's website for details.

The club is located at the corner of Tulip and Arboretum drives in Renziehausen Park, one block from Eden Park Boulevard, near city Fire Station No. 2 and Penn State Greater Allegheny Campus.

To inquire about renting the arboretum for an event, call Grace Krepps at (412) 751-8656. For other details about the club, call (412) 672-1050.

Posted at 11:00 pm by Jason Togyer
Filed Under: Events, News | two comments | Link To This Entry

July 17, 2008

Potluck Today

Miscellaneous leftover news items that we have to use up before they go bad:

. . .

Five new city police officers are expected to hit the streets next year, with the assistance of a state grant.

Frank P. Durante, Floyd M. Gault, Bryan P. Morris, Julian Thomas and Justin Toth, all of the city, are entering the Allegheny County Police Academy and expect to graduate in January, officials said.

City council this month approved a deal with the state to fund training expenses for the five, and obtain reimbursement from the state.

In a separate move, council also OK'd an application to the U.S. Justice Department for $14,154 to help pay for four new police cars.

The new cruisers will replace cars which have been damaged in accidents, or which have racked up so many miles as to be unrepairable.

Three of the cars are going into the patrol fleet; the fourth, a four-wheel-drive vehicle, will be used by police Chief Joe Pero, whose current car will be added to the police motor pool, officials said.

The federal grant will pay for the first year's lease payments on the four new vehicles.

. . .

The former Penn-McKee Hotel and Eagles lodge are among 30 blighted properties that city council has approved for demolition.

Council voted 5-0 to accept the recommendations of Building Inspector Chris House and Fire Chief Kevin Lust that the properties are dangerous and pose a health and safety danger.

The condemned buildings include four houses in the 2900 block of Grover Avenue, three in the 1100 block of Craig Street, and others throughout the city, including several in 10th Ward.

As reported by the Almanac last month, the Eagles lodge on Market Street was the former home of a prominent local doctor, Henry W. Hitzrot, and was built in 1892 at a cost that would top $1 million in 2008 dollars.

The building was sold to the local lodge, or "aerie," of the Fraternal Order of Eagles in 1911. That lodge disbanded more than 15 years ago for lack of members.

A non-profit corporation called Museum Hair Institute now owns the Hitzrot house. State records indicate the principal officer of MHI is Henry W. Russell, and according to a report in the Pittsburgh Business Times, MHI recently obtained a $300,000 mortgage on the building.

The Penn-McKee, built in the 1920s, was the site of the first debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard Nixon and once boasted a nightclub and a ballroom in demand for weddings, formal gatherings, meetings and other events.

After years of decline, the hotel became a boardinghouse for transients and the indigent and closed in 1985.

Although county tax records list a corporation called "See Bee Inc." as the hotel's owner, a White Oak evangelist told the Almanac last month that he is trying to save the building.

No demolition date for any of the structures has been set.

Posted at 11:21 pm by Jason Togyer
Filed Under: News | three comments | Link To This Entry

July 16, 2008

Call Me Unavailable (Temporarily)

I don't usually write about my personal life at the Almanac, but I've been absent for a few days, and I thought I should explain. I've been a little bit busy.

After nearly seven years, I've left the University of Pittsburgh and taken another job.

And although I don't like to mix my professional life with what I do at the Almanac, I will give you a little clue where I'm working now:

Audio Clue No. 1, 900K, MP3

Not sure yet? Here's another clue:

Audio Clue No. 2, 1.4MB, MP3

(By the way: That's the best ... fight song ... ever.)

Normal service will resume shortly; thanks for your patience.

And before you wonder, the parting from Pitt was very pleasant, but difficult. I worked with a really wonderful, witty, warm and talented group of people there, and I will miss them greatly.

But I got an offer I couldn't refuse, and besides, I didn't go too far away, as you've probably already tumbled.

Meanwhile, does anyone out there need any blue and gold neckties? I've got about a dozen that I'll trade. I need some Scottish plaids.

(P.S.: The usual caveats remain in place. Opinions expressed on www.tubecityonline.com and at the Almanac are not necessarily those of any employer or organization of which I'm affiliated. I'm not even sure if they're mine.)

Posted at 12:00 am by Jason Togyer
Filed Under: Pointless Digressions | eight comments | Link To This Entry