South Side Stories: Weekly Update (2/18/14)

Bruce Kraus

#TheCarsonDivide

South Side Stories: Weekly Update (2/11/14)

The South Side puzzle is officially starting to come together. 

Slowly. 

That's a good thing, of course. When we listed our weaknesses at the beginning of the semester, I wrote that I normally wait until the last few days before the project is due to put in the hard work. This time around, I am actually making progress. Hopefully, this will result in a project I am proud of. 

This week, I put in my first calls to sources and laid out the groundwork for possible ledes.

I started by narrowing my focus to officials from District and Zone 3 in Pittsburgh, both of which include South Side Flats and South Side Slopes. This includes:

Cathy McNeilly- Zone 3 Commander- Cathy will give me the crime rundown. The statistics. A compelling, detailed answer to the question, 'How safe is the South Side?' Her commentary will shed light on the police presence in the area. 

Bruce Kraus- City Council President and District 3 Councilman- Councilman Kraus is the city's resident South Side expert. He has been working to keep East Carson St. safe since he was elected to office. He will be able to tell me how the neighborhood has changed over the years, and what initiatives have been put in place to preserve the culture. 

The South Side Chamber of Commerce- This will give me the historical context to write a great story. The SSCC knows everything about the South Side. They will be a great source of information moving forward, and their communications manager is very helpful. 

The Beehive- Talking to an owner of The Beehive will answer my questions about the day culture in South Side. The trendy hipsters holding their mochas. The store has also been around for awhile, so I'm sure someone will be willing to talk about how it has changed.

The Smiling Moose- This will provide a look into the bar culture. This isn't one of the more dangerous bars in the area, so it should be rather simple to take a trip there and talk to some workers. 

My goal is to conduct my first full interview this week. Let's see how that goes. I'm anticipating the normal source frustration; the pestering, the waiting, the limbo. 

It's all in good fun, though. 

South Side Stories: Weekly Update (2/4/14)

Week two was spent like this.

Notice the peace. The quiet. The calm before the storm. On any given afternoon, East Carson Street is everything you could ask for in a neighborhood; a place to shop, eat and relax.

I decided to break my text story up into three parts: The Day, The Night and The Collide. I focused on part one of our story this week.

I spent a normal afternoon in South Side. I walked up and down East Carson Street and took notes. I started on 10th street and went all the way to The Pretzel Shop. It was a decently lengthy walk, but it was a pleasure. I wasn't in danger of being struck by a car, or a homeless person. Or a drunk teenager.

I stopped in The Culture Shop and talked to the clerk. She said she has never had a problem during the day. The area is just like Shadyside, or Squirrel Hill. Relatively no danger.

I also grabbed coffee at Delanie's, which was a treat. I did part of my observation in the shop. It's worth noting what kind of people entered the shop. What kind of atmosphere they entered into.

If I can gather notes from a handful of days spent in South Side, I can write a lengthy story with no problem. I am afraid of the night, though. I will spend my first night in the area this weekend.

I also called Pittsburgh City Council President Bruce Kraus on Monday afternoon. He didn't answer his phone, so I texted him. Oh, the perks of having the council president's cell phone number. I plan on interviewing him soon.

Cheers until next week.