Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is ending the city’s involvement in a nonprofit group that was created by his predecessor and raised more than $100 million in funding commitments.Watch the report in the video player above.Former Mayor Bill Peduto announced the OnePGH fund just weeks before last year’s mayoral primary election. Peduto lost the election to Gainey.At the time, Peduto said the city’s major nonprofit groups agreed to make contributions after the city ended a lawsuit that tried to force tax-exempt institutions to make in-lieu-of-tax payments.”There would never have been conversations with any of the four institutions if the threat of a lawsuit was hanging over them. It was a leap of faith that the city took and it was returned with a leap of faith that the institutions made.to work with us to create something new,” Peduto said in April 2021.Peduto secured $115 million in commitments from UPMC, Highmark, Pitt and Carnegie Mellon. The money was to be used to boost programs aimed at reducing inequality in housing, health care, recreation and education.But the city never actually received any of the promised donations.Deputy Mayor Jake Pawlak said the Gainey administration has other plans.”We feel confident in our ability to handle a lot more of those projects within city government itself, within existing partner institutions. That being said, there continues to be a role for cooperation and collaboration with the philanthropic sector, but we didn’t think OnePGH was the right structure to pursue that,” Pawlak said.The city plans to finish two landscaping projects in Hazelwood that were funded through OnePGH.Pawlak said $2.5 million in city funds that were allocated for OnePGH will be used to help fund the city’s bridge maintenance program.
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey is ending the city’s involvement in a nonprofit group that was created by his predecessor and raised more than $100 million in funding commitments.
Watch the report in the video player above.
Former Mayor Bill Peduto announced the OnePGH fund just weeks before last year’s mayoral primary election. Peduto lost the election to Gainey.
At the time, Peduto said the city’s major nonprofit groups agreed to make contributions after the city ended a lawsuit that tried to force tax-exempt institutions to make in-lieu-of-tax payments.
“There would never have been conversations with any of the four institutions if the threat of a lawsuit was hanging over them. It was a leap of faith that the city took and it was returned with a leap of faith that the institutions made.to work with us to create something new,” Peduto said in April 2021.
Peduto secured $115 million in commitments from UPMC, Highmark, Pitt and Carnegie Mellon. The money was to be used to boost programs aimed at reducing inequality in housing, health care, recreation and education.
But the city never actually received any of the promised donations.
Deputy Mayor Jake Pawlak said the Gainey administration has other plans.
“We feel confident in our ability to handle a lot more of those projects within city government itself, within existing partner institutions. That being said, there continues to be a role for cooperation and collaboration with the philanthropic sector, but we didn’t think OnePGH was the right structure to pursue that,” Pawlak said.
The city plans to finish two landscaping projects in Hazelwood that were funded through OnePGH.
Pawlak said $2.5 million in city funds that were allocated for OnePGH will be used to help fund the city’s bridge maintenance program.
