![]() ![]() ![]() The Allegheny County Parks Foundation has received a $500,000 grant from the Babcock Charitable Trust that earmarks a bulk of the money to restore the water tower, said CarenGlotfelty, the foundation’s chief executive officer. “This has long been on our list of projects because of its proximity to the lodge, one of the most used facilities in the North Park, and because of the view it provides,” Fitzgerald said. ![]() Steel Tower in Downtown as a backdrop.ĭuring the past several years, park stakeholders have been trying to find ways to restore the tower and open access to the observation deck for public.Īllegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald on March 23 announced that a design contract has been awarded to transform the tank into an observation tower. The dome-covered observation platform is finished with a terrazzo floor and mosaics depicting constellations along with ornate metal medallions to show compass points.įrom a vantage point 1,361 feet above sea level, on a clear day the view of the North Hills is a panorama, with features of Pittsburgh’s skyline such as the Cathedral of Learning in Oakland and the U.S. A casual visitor to North Park could easily mistake the 101-foot-tall, bullet-shaped structure near the Lodge pavilion as nothing more than a rusting, abandoned curiosity.īuilt in 1937 during the Works Progress Administration, the cylindrical steel tank along North Ridge Road - officially known as the Allegheny County North Park Water Supply System Standpipe - once held a 300,000 gallon supply of water for the park.īefore being shuttered by Allegheny County in the early 1970s because it was deteriorating and becoming dangerous, visitors could climb the 154-step staircase spiraling up the exterior of the 25-foot diameter tank to an observation deck. ![]()
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