A community celebration to commemorate the grand reopening of the Northeast Fountain took place on May 2 in Allegheny Commons Park.
Story and photos by Ashlee Green
In partnership with the City of Pittsburgh, Allegheny Commons Initiative, and the Northside Leadership Conference, the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy (PPC) held a grand reopening celebration on May 2 for the reconstructed Northeast Fountain. The fountain is located at the corner of Cedar and East North Avenue in Allegheny Commons Park and faces the entrance to Allegheny General Hospital.
Community residents gathered together for a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the reemergence of the historic fountain, listen to the sounds of the Pittsburgh Banjo Club, and eat light snacks and refreshments from Bistro To Go and The Priory.
The fountain’s reconstruction took “decades of work and decades of patience,” according to PPC CEO Jayne Miller, and reflects its previous 1868 design. According to a press release, it features a “50-foot basin with a large, Grecian vase and one centered main jet surrounded by smaller jets around the base.”
Miller thanked the Northside residents in attendance and said the fountain is a symbol of the revitalization happening throughout the Northside neighborhoods.
The reconstructed Northeast Fountain will serve as an entrance to Allegheny General Hospital.
Pittsburgh Banjo Club performs for the crowd.
Even a few Downtown residents join in on the fun.
Jayne Miller, CEO of the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy, shows her appreciation for the crowd of mostly Northsiders: “Thank you for everything you do to make the Northside a great place to live,” she said.
Local dignitaries including Dan Gilman, Chief of Staff to Mayor Bill Peduto, Dan Onorato, of Highmark Health, Patricia Rooney, wife of former Steelers owner Dan Rooney, and Councilwoman Darlene Harris, make congratulatory remarks.
Gilman says “third spaces,” like libraries, community centers, and parks, define a community.
Patricia Rooney thanks Northsiders and says she hopes they can all be “caretakers” of the fountain.
Onorato and Councilwoman Harris share a congratulatory hug. “I was one of the first people here because I was so excited to get this fountain back to where it was, said Councilwoman Harris.
The ribbon cutting represents the first step in a series of ongoing improvements to Allegheny Commons Park. Next is the North Promenade, which runs along North Steet from the fountain to the Washington Monument.
A crowd gathers around the newly refurbished Northeast Fountain.
Kathy Mazur of KMazur Art, paints her version of the day’s events.
Attendees enjoy a rest on one of the benches surrounding the fountain.
