While most Southwestern Pennsylvanians believe the deer population to be a detriment, they could hardly argue that the 40-foot Carrie Deer Head, constructed from recycled steel objects, has not been a boon to the region. The Carrie Furnaces, located in Rankin, PA along the Monongahela River, were built in 1884, operated until 1982,…

The month of May was merrier for Alexi Morrissey, founder of “First Editions” project, after learning that his idea was chosen to receive an Awesome Pittsburgh grant from a pool of April applicants. “First Editions” is an audience-generated artwork of short poems created live and on-site at Bricolage Production Company in Downtown Pittsburgh. The artist…

Good citizens of our fair Pittsburgh. Imagine a world without tasty fillings wrapped in a thin French batter. A dark, depressing world with ne’er-do-wells attempting to serve you sub-standard treats. Holy horrible hotcakes – that’s awful!  But now, citizens, there’s hope. A vigilante. A creped crusader. Not the crepes this city deserves, but the crepes…

We all know our bridges are pretty awesome. So, how do you make them even more awesome? Take color and fiber and an army of knitters and turn one of the “three sisters” into an enormous community-led public art installation: you Knit the Bridge. Led by an idea sparked by Amanda Goss, a growing community of…

We all know someone who is absolutely enthusiastic about a hobby or activity. She keeps inviting you, finding ways to make it easy and fun to join her. You finally can’t resist anymore and jump in. Michele Thom, our 16th winner of a $1,000 micro-grant, is literally inviting you to jump. Out of a perfectly…

This spring, start looking for tea pops to pop up around town, courtesy of our 13th award winner, Healcrest Urban Farm. The for-profit social enterprise teaches community members about urban farm production, green vacant land use, and youth employment and mentorship. “We have had great experiences vending around town with our products, going to markets…

Imagine plummeting 400 feet over a river at a top speed of 50 miles per hour. Sound awesome to you? It sure did to us! Our eleventh winner of $1,000 is Adam Young, founder of the new venture ZipPitt. We were so excited about the project that we agreed to keep it under wraps for…