Our new digs on Penn Ave, across from Doughboy Square

You may have noticed that the blog has been pretty quiet for the past week or so.  Well, we’ve been busy moving the whole operation from our shared South Side office in the Terminal Building to our own storefront space on Doughboy Square – the gateway to Lawrenceville.

We’re extremely excited to have a direct presence at and view of the crossroads of Penn Ave and Butler St, two major bicycle commuter routes.  All day long we watch cyclists pedal past the statue of the WWI Doughboy as they head toward the Strip, Downtown, Lawrenceville, and Bloomfield.  The Lawrenceville community has also been very welcoming to us, and we appreciate that.

In our old office, we shared it with two other non-profits, and limited what we were able to do with the space.  With our new office, we now have the opportunity to host events like movie screenings, speakers, gatherings, as well as better accommodate volunteer nights and large meetings.

Be on the lookout for events in the near future (once we settle in), but in the meantime, feel free to stop by and say hello – we still need to clean the front windows!  While you’re here, it is a great opportunity to become a member (or renew), and help us make this new space thrive.  We feel that with the opportunity of having a storefront, we’ll be better able to serve our constituents – YOU – with fun, impactful events.  Our ability to serve as a resource for new and future cyclists and advocates has also greatly increased.  The new opportunities that the space offers are endless, and we look forward to providing this resource and amenity to Pittsburgh cyclists.

Our new address is:

3410 Penn Ave

Pittsburgh, PA 15201

[map]

Please update your records.

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Wish List

Moving to our new space means that we need some things.  Here is a short list of some items that maybe you can help out with.

• Large Sturdy Shelves
• Small Desk
• Folding chairs
• Fax Machine
• 4 Matching kitchen style chairs
• Small office shelves
• Drip Coffee maker
• Large White Board
• A coffee sponsor (can’t hurt to ask)
• Snow Shovel

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What is that building?

The old Turner Detective Agency sign now resides upstairs in our office space

Many people that we’ve talked to have commented about the building itself.  The shiny art-deco facade sticks out due to it being sandwiched between the abandoned storefronts of Wilson’s BBQ and an unnamed warehouse.  The building owner, after buying the building that for years was the empty but iconic Turner Detective Agency, found some old pictures of the building from the 1930’s, and decided to recreate the facade from the era.

Previous to housing the Turner Detective Agency, the building was occupied by the Junction Coal and Coke Company.  Among their services was the selling of home heating coal to Pittsburghers in the glory days of smog and smoke.

Here is an advertisement from the Junction Coal and Coke Company, circa 1952.  We found it slightly amusing, in that tragi-comedy kind of way, that the Post-Gazette placed the ad right next to another ad offering to cure Asthma Mucus.

The owner of the building also found another ad, circa 1938, of the Junction Coal and Coke Company’s postcard reminder to order your home heating coal.  The price of a postcard stamp at the time was one cent.

How the times have changed.

The original facade of the building

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