Black/East Route 2024

1. Pittsburgh StepTrek 2024 Black Route -

2. Sidney St. - Keep left and head west on Sidney St. toward SouthSide Works Town Square and S. 27th St.

3. * SouthSide Works - This site had once been home to a sprawling steel mill whose works stretched to the opposite riverside. After the mill closed, a multi-million dollar residential and commercial complex took shape in stages between 2002 and 2004. Designed in a new urbanist style, SS Works offers more than 34 acres of shops, offices, hotels and apartments.

4. S. 27th St. - Make left and continue along S. 27th to E. Carson St. Cross and continue along S. 27th toward South Side Slopes, Oakley Way & Mosaic Steps.

5. Oakley Way & Mosaic Steps - Ahead are the Mosaic Steps! Take care crossing Josephine St. on the left side of S. 27th. As you climb the first 98 stairs, the colorful image of a young woman with a single flower reveals itself against a backdrop of homes, hills and wildlife. The steps themselves were built in 1928. Notice the foundations of long gone houses on the left as you climb. Continue across McCord St. and ascend an additional 63 steps to Shelly St. Take a break. You’ve just climbed the equivalent of 12 floors.

6. * Mosaic Public Art Project - The Oakley St. Steps mosaic was completed in 2016 and was the first of its kind in Pittsburgh. The installation was designed by artist Laura Jean McLaughlin, who led a group of 100 community volunteers in assembling the tiny mosaics on mesh. The finished work, affectionately titled "South Side Schlumpy Funk," covers 200 square feet and were mortared and grouted onto 77 risers. Led by SSSNA, the project was community-designed, funded and created.

7. Shelly St. - Beginning at 2700 Shelly are three of eight townhouses built in 2003 by the South Side Local Development Company in cooperation with the SSSNA. The new homes had to be shoe-horned into the hillside between existing homes. Continue walking Up Oakley Way.

8. Oakley Way Steps (cont’d) - Keep left and climb an additional 22 steps to upper Stella St.

9. Stella St - Go ahead . . . give it your best Marlon Brando: STELLA! Make right, keeping the metal fencing that divides the road on your right. In 1935 the Work Projects Administration (WPA) terraced this part of the hillside and created the bi-level street topped with an iron fence. In 1998 Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation designated the Stella-Shelley fence as a historically significant landmark. Take in the view of Mt. Washington and downtown. Walk down Stella to Barry & Leticoe St. Steps.

10. Leticoe St Steps - Cross Barry St. to Leticoe St. Steps. These 3-ft. wide wooden steps were rebuilt by the City of Pittsburgh in the summer of 2021. Descend the 69 stairs to Leticoe St.

11. Leticoe St. - Continue up Leticoe. In the 2500 block, before the hill crest, look right to the houses tucked behind houses. Close quarters! Continue down Leticoe to Eleanor St.

12. Eleanor St. - Make right and descend Eleanor St. steps on left side of street. These 16 steps were poured in 2000.

13. Josephine St. - Turn left and walk along the left side of Josephine St. On the opposite side is a "Guerilla Garden" planted and maintained by residents to beautify the neighborhood. Continue past Emerald Art Glass. Its shop is open to the public during week days. Decorative glass is made on site for both residential and commercial use. Continue to Greeley St.

14. * Gardens on the Slopes - At the corner of Josephine & Greeley is the first of six gardens maintained by SSSNA members. Part of an effort to put a green face on the Slopes, the garden was first planted in 2002 in conjunction with the Western Penna. Conservancy.

15. Greeley St. - Turn left and continue up Greely 75 yards to Eola Way Steps on the left.

16. Eola Way Steps - Make a left and walk to the stairs built in 1947. As you climb these 96 steps, each 4-ft wide, notice the ruins of stone or brick foundations perched over the hillside on the right. At the top of the steps is Sterling St. and Leticoe.

17. Sterling St. - Continue up Sterling to Mission St. and the former St. Josaphat Church.

18. * St. Josaphat Church - Dedicated in 1916 to serve a Polish parish established in 1901, the Roman Catholic Church was named for St. Josaphat (Josephat Kuntsevych), a bishop and martyr born in Poland in 1580. The building is Romanesque with a Byzantium influence evident in the arches, pillars and bell tower. The main altar held relics of St. Josaphat. In the rear, beneath the choir balcony, hung a picture of the Black Madonna. The church closed permanently after a section of ceiling collapsed about the casket of the last caretaker during his funeral mass. The school was converted into four living units. The church itself is being transformed into a community wellness center. Many Polish descendants continue to inhabit this section of the Slopes. The names of relations and former residents who served in World Wars I & II are seen on the memorial tucked into the hillside across Mission St. from the church.

19. Sterling St. (cont’d.) - Cross Mission. On the corner is Garvey's, a popular neighborhood pub. Stop in for a cold one if you’re thirsty. Ascend 33 steps to Caesar Way, the first wooden stairs on the left, across from 53 Sterling.

20. Caesar Way - Climb 44 stairs to a narrow trail that traverses the Slopes to Eleanor St. Steps. Please watch your footing. For over a decade, Caesar way was covered in concrete boulders and construction debris related to condos built on the plot above it. SSSNA members moved the debris, hoed out the path and tamped it down.

21. Eleanor St. Steps - Make right. Eleanor is one of the few throughways that ascend from the bottom of the Slopes to the top of the hill. This section of Eleanor is a classic “paper” street: a series of public stairways that are marked as streets on city maps. Very confusing esp. to delivery drivers. Climb 69 steps to Holt St.

22. Eleanor St. - Cross Holt and keep left on the sidewalk. Continue up Eleanor to Sierra St. on the right. Above you is Eleanor St. parklet.

23. * Eleanor St. Parklet - Every neighborhood needs a place where children can play. Tucked into the hillside, this parklet is undergoing a major renovation. The terrace offers a stunning view of downtown and the Point, and is a favorite site to watch fireworks. It is one of a series of small green spaces on the hillside.

24. Sierra St. - Turn right and keep right to reach a set of wood steps in front of 2309 Sierra. Note view of downtown and its bridges. Keep right and descend these 58 steps to Sterling St.

25. Sterling St. Steps - Cross Sterling and make left to climb sidewalk and 188 stairs on right side to Patterson St. Built in 1951, the steps connect Patterson St. above to Mission St. below. While ascending, notice Oakland and the Flats behind you. To the right is downtown.

26. Sterling St. Steps (cont’d) - Keep right and climb 8 steps to Salisbury St.

27. Salisbury St. - Make right. On the right, just before a gray, concrete structure (the Henry Kaufmann Center) is a mural and set of steps.  Make right at sign for Salisbury Connector Trail.

28. * Arlington Recreational Center Mural - Artist and resident Roberto "Max" Maxwell designed this whimsical mural that highlights the diversity of the residents and wildlife within the South Side Slopes. With input from an online survey and follow up feedback, the final design was painted this summer. SSSNA secured project funding through a Community Development Block Grant.

29. * Brashear Association, Kaufmann Neighborhood House - The Brashear Association was founded in 1917 to honor the renowned, self-taught scientist John A. Brashear and celebrate his humanitarianism. The Henry Kaufmann Neighborhood House was constructed in 1965 as an outreach site. Brashear Association supports and enriches families in a community context to build more vital lives and neighborhoods in South Pittsburgh. The building also houses Arlington Community Center.

30. Salisbury Connector Trail - Make right and descend 11 steps alongside the building. Past the building and to the right, the trail curves down to a sign that identifies the trail. Make left and walk the narrow path through the woods.

31. Salisbury Connector Trail (cont’d) - The trail crosses above a deep ravine that drops down the Slopes to Josephine St. Bear left at the "Y" in the trail. Keep left and continue along Marengo Connector Trail to the last house, with an orange chiminea, on the left.

32. * South Side Park Trails - The trails were was designed and built in collaboration with the Student Conservation Association. Funded by a 2015 Birmingham Foundation grant, the trail connects the eastern and western halves of South Side Park in this overgrown area known as Jurassic Valley. Landforce constructed both the Salisbury Connector Trail and Sterling Connector Trail in 2016. Goats from Allegheny Goatscape continue to eat the invasive vines. SCA and Slopes volunteers cleared a significant amount of land to cut across the steep terrain.

33. Marengo St. Steps - Turn left and ascend 25 steps to Marengo St.

34. Marengo St. - Continue up Marengo to Eccles St.

35. Eccles St. - Make left and continue to Fernleaf St. At this corner, on the right, is former Engine House #22 which was established in 1894. From its roof tower, the view covered several surrounding neighborhoods and provided an ideal lookout for smoke and fires.

36. Fernleaf St. - Cross Fernleaf and make a right. Continue walking to Fort Hill St. and Steps.

37. Fort Hill Steps - Turn left and ascend 49 steps to Arlington Ballfield & Spray Park. Give yourself a pat on the back! You’ve reached the highest point on this route.

38. * Arlington Ballfield & Spray Park - For all its steepness, there are play and ball fields throughout the Slopes. This ballfield regularly hosts baseball and softball games under the lights which can be seen from the South Side Flats and Oakland. Take in views of downtown’s tallest buildings and Oakland’s medical complex. The Spray Park opened in 2018. Replacing a deteriorated city pool, the spray functions are many and varied. A children’s playground, rebuilt in 2021, completes the park.

39. * Fort Laughlin, aka Fort McKinley or Fort Ormsby - This area once contained a circular redoubt located on "Ormsby's Hill," bounded by Fernleaf, Salisbury, Sterling, and Fort Hill Streets. It was one of two forts built in Arlington-Arlington Heights during the Civil War as a defense against the Confederate raider Morgan, who, it was feared, would come up the Monongahela from West Virginia. The first, Fort McKinley, was made of mud and its breastworks stood until 1925. Its grounds were purchased for a playground in 1914.

40. Arlington Playground & Spray Park - Walk past the Spray Park to a yellow brick rec. building directly ahead of you. Keep left and descend 12 steps to Sterling St.

41. Sterling St. - Make left and descend to Eccles St.

42. Eccles St. - Take right. Descend along sidewalk to Eleanor St. Cross and continue along Eccles to Clover St. Steps

43. Clover St. Steps - Take left and descend 49 steps to Salisbury St. Cross Salisbury and continue up last 4 steps to Berg St.

44. Berg St. - Make right and walk to Cologne St. Steps.

45. Cologne St. Steps - Take left and keep left to ascend 41 steps to Cobden St.

46. Cobden St. - Make right. The course takes you along the crest of a knoll, with yards sloping down on either side. You will pass the Cobden Street Basketball Court on your right. Continue past Sumner St. to Northview St.

47. Northview St. - Make left. Ahead is a commanding view of the Cathedral of Learning and Oakland. Descend past Flynn Way and Stromberg St. to where Northview bends to the right. On the left, just past the guardrail and before 3111 Northview, are Northview St. Steps.

48. Northview St. Steps - Make left and descend 114 steps through a nicely shaded area. The remains of a foundation stand near the bottom on the right. Where the steps come out of the woods is a park. Straight ahead is Josephine St. Make a left and walk through Monongahela Park. Do not descend to Josephine St.

49. * Monongahela Park - Turn left into park. Cross the short clearing, take 1 step up and descend 18 steps to the ball fields. Years ago this grassy area was a city reservoir. The basin was filled with earth in the 1950s. Many local groups use this large, level field for organized sports and exercise. Cross to the far left corner marked by a guardrail to exit the park onto Shelly St.

50. Shelly St. - Keep right and walk along lower section of Shelly St., below the iron fence constructed by Work Projects Administration. Continue about 100 feet to Telescope St. Steps, located before 2739 Shelly.

51. Telescope St. Steps - Make right and descend 56 steps. Continue along Telescope to Josephine St.

52. Josephine St. - Careful as you cross and turn right on Josephine. On the uphill side of Josephine are an embankment and walls of the former water reservoir that preceded Monongahela Park. Continue up to 30th St. Steps just past 2925 Josephine.

53. S. 30th St. Steps - Make left and descend 108 steps to Mary St. Cross Mary and drop down another 41 steps to Harcum Way.

54. Harcum Way - Turn right. Though the sign ahead reads “No Outlet,” continue up slight grade past Print Shop Lofts. At the end of Harcum, follow the path up a slight grade cleared through this area for approximately 200 feet to a set of steps at the end of Harcum.

55. Jane St. Steps - Make right and ascend 34 steps to Mary St.

56. Mary St. & Mary St. Steps - Take left and immediately descend 115 steps to lower Mary St. Continue to Handler St.

57. Handler St. - Turn left. Walk the four steps built into the sidewalk, left side, to Jane St.

58. Jane St. - Make left. Keep left and walk along sidewalk across from the stone wall and railroad tracks.

59. * Kollar Club - At 3226 Jane St., resides the John Kollar Slovak Literary & Library Society. Founded in 1913 and named for 19th Century Slovak poet, John Kollar, its original purpose was to teach English to Slovak immigrants and to orient them to life in America. The Pittsburgh Region is home to more Slovaks than any other area in the United States. The club continues in full operation preserving the Slovak language & culture, and serving as a social club and live-music venue.

60. Jane St. Cont’d. - Keep left on Jane St. and continue walking past Jay Verno Studios (3030 Jane St.) to Steve Seventy St.

61. Steve Seventy St. - Cross street and make right. Walk to Sarah St. along left side.

62. Sarah St. - Turn left and walk along this quiet section of street to S. 28th St. Birmingham Bridge Tavern (2901 Sarah) is a great place for a bite and a cold one.

63. S. 28th St. - Take right. Cross E. Carson St. at light and continue to staging area at S. 28th & Sidney Streets.