Thursday, December 30, 2010

2010 Pittsblog Predictions Revisited: Part 8

Two to go on my updating of the Pittsblog 2010 predictions.  Today:

8. Community: The opening of the Consol Energy Center will anchor a revitalization of the Uptown neighborhood, but the Rivers Casino will continue to struggle to meet its revenue projections. Demand for housing will raise housing prices sufficiently that Pittsburgh loses its status as the nation’s most livable city. This will be a good thing.

Consol Energy Center and Uptown? Check. "Revitalization" may be too strong a word, and the durability of area's renewal is open to question. We're still in the honeymoon phase. But early returns on the arena and its environs are positive.

The Rivers Casino? Check again. (I'm two for two!) "Expectations were never rational." That's one of the better Pittsburgh-related quotations this year.

Housing? Check a third time. I'm three for three in this category. Pittsburgh's real estate market went up, up, up, while the rest of the country slid sideways or downwards.

And that most livable city rating? That's still in place. So I'll claim three marks out of four. But all good things must come to an end, and I have a feeling that some other shoes will be dropping in this category in 2011.

Tomorrow -- and just in time for the true end of the year -- the final category: Media.

No comments: