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They’re standing on Troy Hill’s Harpster Street, sitting on folding chairs, sprawled over those ubiquitous Pittsburgh front stoops. Snarfing down the pot-luck fare, largely vegetarian and vegan — three-bean chili and saffron rice; vegan meatballs in red-pepper sauce, carrot cupcakes, hot cider and soda — they’re the Troy Hooligans, a decidedly eclectic, informal, nontraditional bit of guerilla theater here to transform what is one of Pittsburgh’s more isolated neighborhoods.
Due to map — Troy Hill is a two-mile long, half-mile wide plateau above the Allegheny River — and mindset, the ’hood has been strictly for homebodies, an alpine retreat for made guys for more than a century.
Homes were passed down through the generations, in the manner of English country estates, parents to children to grandchildren. Realtors were proud of the fact that properties were rarely, if ever, listed for sale. In the event that a family member didn’t want the manse, a neighbor with an extra child or stray cousin invariably did. Title, tax, transfer — all done in an afternoon.
But things change. People move away. Houses on Troy Hill, once offered at a premium, were aging, going begging.
Not so long ago, when the suburbs beckoned, and living anywhere but in the city was deemed preferable, Troy Hill seemed — if not doomed, then at least a seedy relic of the distant past.
But with homes standing vacant, a lovely river trail below and the trend back toward urban places, Troy Hill is suddenly — if not a hot number, then at least something more than tepid.
Suddenly auslanders, young urban homesteaders, have started to arrive.
Some, like Troy Hooligan Prankster-in-Charge Nicole Moga, came equipped with decidedly nontraditional ideas. Flower-planting. Tree-planting. Block parties.
“It all started as a lark,” she smiles.
Wanting more room than they had in their Bloomfield digs, Moga and hubby Mike Fifth found a fixer-upper with incredibly good bones and fabulous turn-of-the-last-century burnished wood. “We fell in love instantly,” she recalls.
Moving to Troy Hill in ’09, into a house sorely undervalued and underloved, they went to work restoring their Harpster Street haven to its former glory. And they got involved in the life of the neighborhood, planting flowers and trees in public areas, hauling trash, calling the city about abandoned cars.
Oh, they wanted to work with traditional community groups, but found that said groups were somewhat resistant to new ideas.
Like rebranding the neighborhood. One bon mot that died quickly, recalling Troy Hill’s hog-butchery past, was to reposition the neighborhood as Pig Hill. “That,” Moga smirks, “was blasphemy.”
“That also led us to do our own thing,” she smiles.
Never incorporating, naming a board or writing by-laws, Moga, Fifth and some like-minded brigands created the Hooligans, continuing their own kind of agitprop street movement and action teams when necessary.
“I decided to keep it light and casual,” Moga recalls. That meant communicating largely by social media, a closed Facebook site that hosts some 180 like-minded souls. “We do things mischievously. We don’t take ourselves too seriously.”
So unseriously, in fact, that open-air block parties aside, the Hooligans never meet formally. “On purpose,” Moga says. “We want to keep it more casual than that.”
Instead, she’ll put out calls — railing-painting here, tree-planting there — and whoever shows, shows. “This,” she gestures, “is the way to transform Troy Hill.”
It’s a novel concept: neighborhood revitalization that mirrors resistance and insurgency movements the world over, albeit spiffed up by electronics. On the one hand, the entire idea seems loose to the level of coming apart at the seams. On the other hand, perhaps it’s the future of neighborhood activism — four dozen folks magically materializing for seed-bombing vacant lots and hanging dry wall. When you see an opportunity, they say, seize it, the modus operandi being it’s easier to ask forgiveness than permission.
A clean street, a repaired storage garage, a raucous, good-vibes block party, and pretty soon you’ve transformed an entire neighborhood.
“We feel very empowered and liberated to do things creatively,” Moga says. “Community development doesn’t have to be all board meetings and grant-writing.” She pauses. “We want to do fun things.”
Fun is the operative word, and it seems to be working.
“People have moved up here,” she adds, “and they’re excited about it.” They walk to trails and town. To the Wigle Barrelhouse. To PNC Park and Heinz Field and the Aviary.
“Those things are neighborhood assets,” Moga gestures, and smiles.
This article appears in Mar 2-8, 2016.
I was born an raised there it was a grwat place mostly old german people community schools but now you have to be afraid to drive through and it’s a real shame
Troy Hill is a super cool place. I’ve been up here a little over 2 years. It was totally off the radar for quite awhile.
I was born and raised in troy hill and live there now. I bought a property there and love it! I have a young child who lives taking walks there, loves the ball fields, and the spray park. Everyone I encounter with in troy hill is friendly and I’ve never feared anyone or anything. My family lives troy hill!
Anyone who thinks Troy Hill is inherently more dangerous than any other place has obviously not been there in a while or believes rumors too easily. I lived in Troy Hill for two years until a little over a year and a half ago.
I’m from suburban Virginia and had never lived in a city before– I was nervous! But the people of Troy Hill were always always friendly and helpful and I never felt like I was in danger even once! The community very actively looks after each other and keeps up-to-date on the goings-on there. I miss it every single day.
Having been in Troy Hill for 30 years and having moved there from the East End, I can honestly say that it is a great place to live and garden! the Hooligans make it delightful, the views are awesome and the neighbors/friends are the best of all. We have gained nearly 50 friends that love to socialize, eat great food, bowl, walk, learn new things, bicycle, stand up paddle, boat on the Allegheny and are fun to be around! what’s NOT to love?
I have lived on Troy Hill for 25 years and I have no intention of leaving. I walk around Troy Hill, down to the trail and onto the island. People are friendly and I can see such a positive turn around and that makes my soul smile! Love to meet the ‘Hooligans’!
Troy Hill was a fantastic place to grow up. what a beautiful view of the city and river. Sidewalks for those that enjoy walking or bicycling. A few baseball fields and playgrounds for the children. Some of the most amazing people are from that small German community. I never understood the attraction to Southside or Lawrenceville but I definitely understand the attraction about Troy Hill. Many beautiful big homes that at one point were being split up into low income rental units and now it seems those homes are being renovated. If we didn’t want the country life with animals I would really consider living where I grew up. There are so many families that never left and continued to push to keep it a great place to live. I feel Troy Hill is a great place to invest into properties it’s up and coming! Once a Troy Hill boy now just a Troy Hillbilly:)
why did you delete my awesome and completely unoffensive comment? humorless, soulless sycophants