Deep into the season of wish lists, Pittsburgh Today has come up with one for southwestern Pennsylvania. Be forewarned: We ask for a lot. But that’s what wish lists are all about, right?
1. Lift kids out of poverty
What’s it like to grow up poor? Some 17.5 percent of the children in the seven-county Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area know first-hand. Yes, it’s true our child poverty rate is lower than rates found in 10 of the 14 other Pittsburgh Today benchmark regions. But that rings hollow when poverty still threatens the well-being and futures of thousands of our kids.
2. A home of our own
Nearly seven out of 10 homes in the Pittsburgh region are occupied by their owners, giving Pittsburgh the second highest homeownership rate among our benchmark regions. Only Minneapolis has a higher rate. High homeownership rates indicate neighborhood stability and correlate with higher levels of educational attainment.
3. And it’s worth more
Homeowners in the region have even more reason to give thanks—the value of their homes has risen consistently in the past 10 years. Pittsburgh has the second highest housing appreciation rate among our benchmark regions over that period. Only home values in Denver have risen more.
4. Fewer are impoverished
Poverty in the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area fell over a year’s time from 12.8 percent of the population to 12.4 percent. That’s fifth lowest among our benchmark regions. While the national rate stood at 11.3 percent in 2000, even a short-term decline in the number of people living in poverty is reason to give thanks.
5. Good sports
Yes, we are. According to our new Sports Town Index, we’re one of the best sports towns of our benchmark region, ranking fourth when total team winning percentage, championships, franchise support and other factors are considered. And we’re closing in on Philly for third.
6. More money in our pockets
In the past year, the Pittsburgh region has had the largest year-over-year percent increase in average weekly wages of all our benchmark regions — extra money in the bank to pay for the turkey on the table or on Black Friday sales.
7. Good vibes
Pittsburgh has been bathed in positive vibes on Twitter. We have the fourth-most positive tweets so far this year among the 15 cities ranked in our Positivity Index, which measures such things. Yes, the ranking owes a lot to happy talk about entertainment and our sports teams. But it also reflects a relative lack of ill will toward the city and its people. And for that, we’re thankful.
Happy Thanksgiving
The staff of Pittsburgh Today