PITTSBURGH MAYOR ED GAINEY, INSIDE HIS OFFICE ON THE FIFTH FLOOR OF THE CITY-COUNTY BUILDING, DOWNTOWN. (PHOTO BY J.L. MARTELLO)
by The Courier Editorial Board
Basketball fans in Pittsburgh know that right now, the NBA Playoffs are happening. Teams are trying to fight and claw their way to advance to the next round and the next round, culminating hopefully with an NBA Championship.
When a player on said team is shooting well, they refer to him as “hot.” As in, he’s got the “hot hand.” Teams like to ride the “hot hand” as much as they can en route to victories.
Great things are happening in Pittsburgh right now. And thankfully, we’ve got our own “hot hand,” in Mayor Ed Gainey. No one is perfect, but Mayor Gainey has been making shot after shot of late, en route to some big Pittsburgh wins. On Monday, May 12, there he was, on the North Shore, helping to unveil the official “Countdown Clock” for the NFL Draft that’s coming to Pittsburgh in April 2026. Point State Park and Market Square are getting facelifts. There will be a new park space in Downtown coming next year called “Arts Landing,” which, by all accounts, will be beautiful.
Pittsburgh had its worst electrical outage due to storms, possibly ever, in late April, and Mayor Gainey was on top of everything. On the evening that it occurred, he was touring the damage, providing the public with updates, and comforting the city’s residents. He kept up that same energy in the following days.
While some try to say that Downtown Pittsburgh is dangerous and uninhabitable, it’s been nothing but developers coming into Downtown and creating apartment living spaces, like the new LiveWell Apartments on Wood Street, formerly the GNC headquarters.
And the Gulf Tower. And the former FHL Bank Building.
And check out the nightlife in Downtown Pittsburgh, as restaurants up and down Penn Avenue are buzzing with customers, the Cultural District is constantly packed with shows and people, and the David L. Lawrence Convention Center is always hosting a packed weekend of fun.
Mayor Ed Gainey has worked hard to lead the city’s police force and public safety departments in lowering overall gun violence and homicides in the city. Sure, he told the New Pittsburgh Courier in April that some of it was luck that the homicides are reducing, but still, you have to give credit where credit is due. There were 42 homicides in Pittsburgh in 2024, a far cry from the 71 homicides the city recorded in 2022.
And as far as affordable housing is concerned, there is no mayor, maybe in the history of this country, that cares more about having clean, affordable living environments for people than Mayor Gainey, who spent time in low-income housing in his youth. According to the mayor, his office has created or preserved 1,600 affordable housing units in Pittsburgh since he became mayor. They include places like the Mosaic Apartments on Forbes Avenue in Oakland, the upcoming Bedford Dwellings revitalization and additions in the Hill District, Pennley Commons/New Pennley Place in East Liberty, and more.
There is just no way to believe the rhetoric and the noise that Mayor Gainey has “destroyed Pittsburgh,” or has “set it back decades,” or is not a good leader. We at the Courier understand that politics is politics, and candidates and their well-funded supporters are going to place attack ads on TV, mailers and the radio.
That doesn’t make it true.
Pittsburgh, on Tuesday, May 20, do not sit at home, twiddling your thumbs watching “The Price is Right.” That’s what Mayor Gainey’s Democratic opponent wants you to do. We are going to give Mayor Ed Gainey the opportunity to finish what he started. This city’s got momentum. We are going to ride the “hot hand.”
The New Pittsburgh Courier endorses Ed Gainey for the Democratic nomination for Mayor of Pittsburgh. Get out and vote for the man who’s always accessible, who cares about us like no other, and whose drive is relentless.
Let’s Go Get It.
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