Hill District Community Engagement Center

Sneak Peek for Hill District Community Engagement Center

The Hill District Community Engagement Center (CEC) is the second initiative of the University of Pittsburgh’s Neighborhood Commitments program alongside the Homewood CEC. Touted as the community’s “front door to the University of Pittsburgh in the Hill District” the CEC is centrally located at 1908 Wylie Avenue. The building itself acts as a bridge between community members and the University fostering a dialogue of “exchange and opportunity”. 

The Hill District CEC offers a wide range of facilities for community members to use such as multipurpose rooms, a classroom, a conference room, and drop-in office space. These spaces can then be used for Pitt programs like S.T.E.A.M. Saturdays and Communiveristy or by community groups like Hill District Chess Club and Autism Urban Connections Inc. Support Group. S.T.E.A.M, an acronym for Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics, provides youth with knowledge and education on STEM subjects. The same space is then also utilized to improve digital literacy and teach coding to adults. The adaptable use of spaces within the Hill District CEC by these various groups helps strengthen community partnerships while bringing opportunity for personal growth and skill development to multiple generations of community members. 

Pitt has committed to a minimum 15-year investment in both the Hill District and Homewood, so it is safe to say that Pitt is here to stay. Though Pitt has made this investment in remaining as a fixture of the Hill District, their physical space will be moving into the New Granada Theater in the coming years. The CEC will inhabit a portion of the historic site and carry on the theater’s legacy as a pillar of the community. 

Neighborhood
Hill District

A Community of Innovation

           A cozy rocking chair in the corner surrounded by children’s books and comfy couches, a long conference table in a meeting room with a modern industrial style, an event space with walls of windows and round tables, and a classroom with a monitor, two whiteboards and 16 seats.

Reuniting the Hill through We-newal

The Hill looks nothing like it used to. The Civic Arena ate what were once the most thriving parts of the Lower Hill, and Pitt’s athletic fields span into the Upper Hill. It’s a story that can be a bit depressing when learning about the vibrant, thriving community of the Hill District in the 1940s-60s. Over the years, as the Hill has shrunk in geographic size, the community went through change too. Now, the University of Pittsburgh is looking to strengthen their relationship with the Hill in ways that benefit everyone involved.

A Building Rooted in Connection

The large glass doors of Blakey Center, current home of the Hill District Community Engagement Center, give us a glimpse into the space even before actually entering. Peering through these wooden framed doors as we walk up the textured steps directly outside the building, the warm yellow colors instantly capture our attention and invite us in. Once inside, the light from overhead radiates through the room and implores us to explore further.