O’CONNOR WANTS TO FOCUS ON FIRST. THE PRIORITY OF IMPROVING DOWNTOWN PITTSBURGH, CERTAINLY ON DISPLAY HERE THIS AFTERNOON AS MAYOR COREY O’CONNOR AND MEMBERS OF HIS TEAM FROM THE BUREAU OF POLICE TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS WALKING TEN BLOCKS THROUGHOUT DOWNTOWN PITTSBURGH, POINTING OUT IMPROVEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE MADE, IS THAT MONA? YEAH, MONA’S GOT TO GO FROM THAT PICTURE. YEAH, RIGHT. WE GOT TO CLEAN THAT OUT. SO HOW ARE WE NOT INVESTING IN THE SPACES THAT WE ALREADY HAVE? THIS IS JUST SCREAMING FOR REDEVELOPMENT PLANS FOR IMPROVEMENT ALREADY BEING MADE. JUST DAY ONE IN OFFICE. AND THOSE PLANS REQUIRE NOT JUST WORKING WITH THE MAYOR’S TEAM, BUT ALSO DOWNTOWN PITTSBURGH. IT’S INCREDIBLE TO SEE HIM KIND OF HIT THE, HIT THE GROUND RUNNING AND NOT JUST TAKING NOTES HIMSELF. HE’S GOT EVERY DEPARTMENT THAT’S UNDER HIM OUT HERE, JEREMY WALDROP SAYS DOWNTOWN PITTSBURGH IS THE MOST IMPORTANT NEIGHBORHOOD IN THE REGION, WELCOMING OVER 70,000 PEOPLE A DAY. SO MAKING DOWNTOWN MORE WELCOMING WITH NEW INVESTMENTS AND STRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS IS TRULY A TEAM EFFORT. WHAT CAN WE DO TOGETHER TO CONTINUE TO SEE IMPROVEMENTS IN THIS COMMUNITY? AN EFFORT MAYOR O’CONNOR KNEW HE NEEDED EVERYONE TO BE A PART OF. SEEING THIS FOR A LONG TIME, IT’S NOW BEING ABLE TO WALK WITH DEPARTMENT HEADS AND POINTING OUT SITUATIONS THAT THIS HAS TO BE FIXED, AND ONE OF THOSE SITUATIONS THAT’S ALREADY GETTING A FIX. SMITHFIELD STREET SMITHFIELD STREET IS GOING TO SEE A ALMOST $9 MILLION INVESTMENT. IT SHOULD START LATER THIS YEAR EARLY INTO 27, EXPANDING THE SIDEWALKS, ADDING STREET TREES AND GREENERY. THIS IS ONE OF THE FEW STREETS IN DOWNTOWN THAT DOES NOT HAVE ANY SORT OF GREEN SCAPE COVERING ALLEGHENY COUNTY I
Mayor Corey O’Connor addresses improvements during walking tour in Downtown Pittsburgh
Mayor O’Connor and his team are addressing downtown Pittsburgh’s needs
Updated: 7:24 PM EST Jan 6, 2026
Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor and his team, including members of the police and public works departments, walked about 10 blocks downtown to address issues and areas needing improvement, marking a proactive start to his tenure. “How are we not investing in the spaces that we already have? And this is just screaming for redevelopment,” O’Connor told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 Tuesday.On his first full day in office, O’Connor began making plans for improvement, emphasizing collaboration not only with his team but also with the downtown Pittsburgh community.”It’s incredible to see him, kinda hit the ground running and not just taking those himself. He’s got every department that’s under him out here,” President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, Jeremy Waldrup, said. Waldrup highlighted the importance of downtown Pittsburgh, which welcomes over 70,000 people daily. He emphasized the need for a team effort to make downtown more welcoming through new investments and structural improvements.”What can we do together to continue to see improvements in this community?” Waldrup asked.O’Connor recognized the necessity of involving everyone in the effort. “Seeing this for a long time, it’s now being able to walk with department heads and pointing out situations that, this has to be fixed,” O’Connor said.One of the key projects already underway is the redevelopment of Smithfield Street. “Smithfield Street is going to see an almost $9 million investment. Expanding the sidewalks, adding street trees, and greener. This is one of the few streets in downtown that doesn’t have any sort of greenscape,” said a team member.RELATED COVERAGE: Looking for more news in your area | Subscribe to the WTAE YouTube Channel
PITTSBURGH —
Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor and his team, including members of the police and public works departments, walked about 10 blocks downtown to address issues and areas needing improvement, marking a proactive start to his tenure.
“How are we not investing in the spaces that we already have? And this is just screaming for redevelopment,” O’Connor told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 Tuesday.
On his first full day in office, O’Connor began making plans for improvement, emphasizing collaboration not only with his team but also with the downtown Pittsburgh community.
“It’s incredible to see him, kinda hit the ground running and not just taking those himself. He’s got every department that’s under him out here,” President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, Jeremy Waldrup, said.
Waldrup highlighted the importance of downtown Pittsburgh, which welcomes over 70,000 people daily. He emphasized the need for a team effort to make downtown more welcoming through new investments and structural improvements.
“What can we do together to continue to see improvements in this community?” Waldrup asked.
O’Connor recognized the necessity of involving everyone in the effort.
“Seeing this for a long time, it’s now being able to walk with department heads and pointing out situations that, this has to be fixed,” O’Connor said.
One of the key projects already underway is the redevelopment of Smithfield Street.
“Smithfield Street is going to see an almost $9 million investment. Expanding the sidewalks, adding street trees, and [making things] greener. This is one of the few streets in downtown that doesn’t have any sort of greenscape,” said a team member.
RELATED COVERAGE:
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