Redd Up program expands

If a parent were to tell a child to go “redd up” his room anywhere else in America, it’s… If a parent were to tell a child to go “redd up” his room anywhere else in America, it’s likely that a puzzled look would follow rather than a clean room.

However, a native Pittsburgher knows what to do when he hears the phrase.

“It means to clean up or put in order,” Kevin Quigley, assistant director of Public Works and the coordinator of the city’s “Redd Up” campaign, said. “It’s a Pittsburghese type of thing.”

The campaign, which started in March, was part of late mayor Bob O’Connor’s plan to clean up the city with both safety and beautification in mind.

So far, the “Redd Up” crew has cleared more than 300 vacant city lots and boarded up more than 600 abandoned properties, according to Quigley. They hope to demolish the boarded up homes and buildings, but funding is currently an issue.

Twelve men, including volunteers, make up the “Redd Up” crew, which is a part of the city’s Public Works department. The team includes one truck driver and one heavy equipment operator.

Every area in the city is eligible for “Redd Up,” and Quigley receives suggestions from the Public Works department, city council officers and the mayor’s office, among other places.

Currently, a “safety net zone” project is being put into action. After meeting with Mark Roosevelt, the superintendent of Pittsburgh schools, the “Redd Up” team is creating a 1,000 foot “safety zone” around all schools in Pittsburgh in hopes that eventually most areas of the city will benefit.

Since the “Redd Up” campaign began with O’Connor’s vision, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl plans on continuing the program in honor of the late mayor.

“He’s going to make it bigger as a tribute to Bob O’Connor to keep the tradition moving forward,” Quigley said.

Each “Redd Up” sign will now say, “In honor of Mayor O’Connor.”

Pitt is also included in the “Redd Up” plans.

In August, Deputy Mayor Yarone Zober walked the streets of South Oakland with Chancellor Mark Nordenberg and Ron Graziano, chief of Pittsburgh’s Bureau of Building Inspection.

With hopes of bringing the campaign to South Oakland, the Bureau cited more than 270 building owners for issues such as overgrowth, debris, poor maintenance and especially for graffiti, Quigley said.

“We did some ‘redd up’ in Oakland by removing a ton of graffiti and cleaning some lots,” he said. “We also tried to clear the alleys of debris.”

John Wilds, a senior administrator at Pitt’s Community and Governmental Relations office, said that Pitt has been working with Oakland organizations to make improvements long before the “Redd Up” campaign was introduced. But now that it exists, Pitt is ready to work alongside it.

“We did the tour with the deputy mayor and we promised him that we would work with the mayor’s office in cleaning up Oakland,” Wilds said.

The “Redd Up” program is not the only one devoted to revamping Oakland. Alex Coyne, the operations manager at Oakland Business Improvement District, says that many of their goals coincide with those of the mayor’s.

OBID works to clean streets and public buildings and maintain the infrastructure of Oakland’s business while working alongside law enforcement and community establishments.

“Obviously a clean neighborhood is a more attractive neighborhood,” he said “I think [“Redd Up” and OBID] complement each other very well”

Pitt and its students also go hand-in-hand with projects like these.

The city’s Public Works office joined together with Pitt during move-in this year to purchase Dumpsters that were placed throughout South Oakland. Cleaning out the messes left by previous building residents could go more smoothly this way.

“With all the transit of college students, there’s always people moving in and out of South Oakland,” Quigley said. “This lends itself to being messy.”

As the “Redd Up” program continues to grow, Quigley and the mayor’s office hope to find ways that students can take part.

“We’re trying to start a discussion with the mayor to see how they will move forward with the clean-up of Oakland and try to deal with code enforcement issues so we can improve the living and safety conditions for students that live off campus,” Wilds said.