Remaking Cities Institute

RCI’s Research on Resilient Industrial Regions Contributes to Transatlantic Dialogue

The Remaking Cities Institute’s research and programming on resilient industrial regions is continuing to contribute to a transatlantic dialogue on challenges and opportunities. RCI will be sustaining this dialogue in 2022, including programs with the Ruhr region which will be announced in early 2022.

Carolyn Ristau Awarded 2022 Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship

The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency has named Carolyn Ristau, Remaking Cities Institute Visiting Scholar, as its inaugural Kathy A. Possinger Housing Policy Fellowship awardee. Ristau will receive a financial stipend of up to $12,000 to support her research project "Residential Zoning by Race: How Pittsburgh's Zoning Districts Promote Different Housing Options for Black and White Residents."

Carolyn Ristau Joins RCI as Visiting Scholar

The Remaking Cities Institute (RCI) is pleased to announce that Carolyn Ristau has joined the RCI as a Visiting Scholar. Ristau has over a decade of experience practicing and researching urban issues, including zoning, housing, transportation, and public safety. Her research seeks to understand the origins and context of zoning and development regulations to find ways that these regulations could be used to support more inclusive communities.

Ray Gastil to Speak at “Post-Covid Cities: Framework for Opportunity”

Remaking Cities Institute director Ray Gastil will speak on a panel on Wed 08 Sep from 12:00-2:00pm on "Post-Covid Cities: Framework for Opportunity.” The panel, which includes the leadership of the New York New Visions coalition of architects, designers, planners, and related disciplines responding to 9/11, will look back to the lessons learned from that work, and discuss the meaning and value of those to the current urban challenge.

Opening Up: Beyond the Porch Lecture by RCI Director Ray Gastil Thu 20 May

Opening Up: Beyond the Porch, a lecture by Ray Gastil, Director of the Remaking Cities Institute, will be presented as part of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation series on Thursday 20 May from 6:00-8:00pm on Zoom. As we reopen our business districts and neighborhoods, yet at the same time design for a new normal, the places where the private realm opens up to the public are more important than ever.

RCI Working to Address First Mile/Last Mile and Micromobility Challenges Outside the Urban Core

The Remaking Cities Institute (RCI) and Traffic21 CMU faculty are working with communities in Allegheny County to address first mile/last mile and micromobility challenges that exist outside of the urban core. The Linking our Networked Communities (LINC) project is underway in partnership with the Quaker Valley Coalition of Governments (QVCOG) and the communities of Bellevue, Avalon, Ben Avon, Emsworth, and Kilbuck. The study, supported by a challenge grant from CMU’s Traffic21 and the Mobilty21 Urban Transportation Center, focuses on critical issues for mobility and urban design for towns beyond the urban core in the Southwestern Pennsylvania region.

Remaking Cities Institute Faculty to Work with Monessen and Shaler on Traffic21 Smart Mobility Challenge Projects

Remaking Cities Institute director Ray Gastil and faculty Jonathan Kline and Stephen Quick will work with the City of Monessen and the Township of Shaler, winners of Traffic21’s third annual Smart Mobility Challenge, to develop mobility/urban design recommendations from computer visualization data to respond to community priorities.

RCI Director Ray Gastil Speaks at “COVID-19: One Year Later" Series on Fri 05 Mar

Remaking Cities Institute director Ray Gastil will speak on "Downtowns: Adaptive Reuse Project of the 2020s" on Friday 05 March at 12:00pm EST. The event is part of the series "COVID-19: One Year Later" organized by the Portland Society for Architecture. The series is intended to speak to larger issues for Portland, Maine, and downtowns like it.

RCI Director Ray Gastil is a Panelist at Georgia Tech’s Symposium "Climate Change and the Design of the Built Environment" Thu 04 Mar

Remaking Cities Institute director Ray Gastil will be on the panel "Design and Equity: The Value of Eliminating Equity Gaps" at the Georgia Institute of Technology symposium Climate Change and the Design of the Built Environment on Thursday, 04 March 2021 at 10:15am ET. The symposium features remote presentations, student-led interviews, and a look inside Georgia Tech's Kendeda Building.

William H. Frey Lecture "Diversity Explosion: How New Racial Demographics Are Changing America"

Remaking Cities Institute presented William H. Frey’s lecture "Diversity Explosion: How New Racial Demographics Are Changing America." Frey is a Senior Research Fellow at the Brookings Institution and the preeminent demographer in the U.S. His recent book is the definitive work on how the U.S. population is changing and how minorities are infusing our aging labor force with vitality and innovation.

Ray Gastil Presents "Future Work Force" at Georgia Tech #SMARTer Together Webinar Series Thu 29 Oct

Remaking Cities Institute Director Ray Gastil to speak on "Future Work Force" in recognition of the accelerated shifts of how and where we work and in response to challenges for infrastructure, training, and equity. The panel discussion is part of the #SMARTer Together Webinar Series at Georgia Tech on Thursday 29 October at 9:30am ET.

Ray Gastil and Don Carter Present at National Council for Preservation Education Conference Mon 26 Oct

Remaking Cities Institute Director Ray Gastil, and Senior Research Fellow Don Carter, will speak at the National Council for Preservation Education (NCPE) Fall 2020 Conference on Monday 26 October at 5:00pm ET. Gastil’s talk, "Adaptive Preservation: Responding to the Challenge at Scale," focuses on large scale adaptive reuse projects in Pittsburgh. Don Carter presents "Remaking Small Post-Industrial Cities."

Ray Gastil Serves on Steering Committee of the Oakland Plan

Remaking Cities Institute Director Ray Gastil is serving on the steering committee of the Oakland Plan being developed by the City of Pittsburgh, through City Planning and related departments. This is a critical time for engagement in the Oakland Plan process, which is seeking participants for the Action Teams that will help define the plan’s priorities.

Ray Gastil Moderates "COVID-19 and the Future of our Cities: The Future of Work" Wed 23 Sep

Remaking Cities Institute Director Ray Gastil moderates the discussion "COVID-19 and the Future of our Cities: The Future of Work" on Wednesday 23 September from 11:00am-12:00pm. The event's organizers are University Alliance Ruhr, ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability, and the German Center for Research and Innovation.

Ray Gastil Presents "Health By Design: Challenges for Urban Transformation" at Georgetown University Tue 25 Feb

Remaking Cities Institute Director Ray Gastil presents "Health by Design: Challenges for Urban Transformation" at Georgetown University on Tuesday 25 February. The event is presented by the Georgetown Urban Health Collaborative in coordination with the Georgetown University Global Cities Initiative.