Pittsburgh holds public hearing on rezoning 17 Garfield parcels to expand Fort Pitt Park

Pittsburgh City Council held a public hearing Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, on Bill 19-38, a proposed ordinance to rezone 17 parcels in the Garfield neighborhood to the Parks District to implement recommendations from the Fort Pitt Field and Park master plan.

Kate Rakus, senior planning manager in zoning and development review at the Department of City Planning, told the council the amendment would change 13 parcels from single-unit detached residential moderate density, three parcels from single-unit detached residential high density and one parcel from a residential planned unit development to Parks District. "The parcels are approximately 11.6 acres and generally bound by Hillcrest Street, North Matilda Street, Breeport Street, and Shenley Avenue," Rakus said. She added that "the proposed rezoning was a recommendation made in that master plan." Rakus also said an application for site improvements was submitted by Pachek + MTR on behalf of the city's Department of Public Works and that the department had mailed and posted notice to property owners within 150 feet of the proposed rezoning.

Rick Swartz, a representative of the Bloomfield Garfield Corporation, testified in support of the proposal, saying the effort "is something that the community has been working on in Garfield for the past 7 years." Swartz told the council the rezoning would create "a dedicated green zone area in the neighborhood, that would be protected from future housing development," and that preserving the parcels would help attract private and public resources for park improvements.

Aaron Liberg, a resident who said he lives in parcel 50F273 and is surrounded on three sides by the proposed park area, told the council he supports the rezoning and would like the space to retain its "wild character" while adding modest, accessible trails. "I'm excited to see it become park and public use space," Liberg said.

Councilman Mosley, who chaired the hearing, said he had seen renderings and visited the site with Department of Public Works and Parks and Recreation staff and expressed support for investing in public spaces. "So I'm proud to support this," Mosley said, and thanked planning staff and community partners for their work.

The public hearing record was opened for comment; there were no registered speakers on the docket and the in-person comments were the only testimony taken. No council vote on Bill 19-38 was taken at the hearing. The chair closed the public hearing and adjourned the meeting.