Design Center PGH One Northside Initiative VISTA

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Design Center Pittsburgh works to make design and planning more accessible to communities. Join our team and use your talents in data, design and community engagement to make a difference.

Design Center Pittsburgh is seeking individuals with degrees from accredited architecture or planning programs to lend a year of AmeriCorps VISTA service (americorps.gov/vista) to developing new and established projects through the Design Center’s three focus areas: planning, design and engagement/education. They will be deployed to the 18 neighborhoods of the One Northside Initiative to focus on Place, working next to residents on a daily basis to help understand and document the community situation and its potential enrichment. VISTAs will identify voices and activists in and for the community, internalizing the full range of resident sentiment and opinion. They will facilitate the creation of projects and collaboration devices, both physical and social, and assist residents in the formation of a neighborhood vision articulating priorities around a holistic view of community need and urban design. Throughout, VISTAs will support direct design projects as part of a highly collaborative environment that encourages creative ability.

Candidates should express why they are interested in applying their discipline to improving the livability and viability of communities with specific focus on housing, density, displacement, sustainability and equity. The applicant should be skilled in GIS mapping and/or Revit. Skills in Rhino and the Adobe Design suite are a plus. Most of the VISTAs’ work will be eligible for AXP hours through the NCARB intern development program.

In addition to providing a resume, you must also create an application on the My AmeriCorps Portal and apply to the PCRG - Design Center PGHOne Northside Initiative VISTA listing (my.americorps.gov/mp/listing/viewListing.do?id=80604). For instructions on how to create an application, go to www.nationalservice.gov/programs/americorps/americorpsvista/start-your-application. If you have any questions, contact Chris Koch at ckoch@designcenterpgh.org or (412) 391-4144 ext. 28. Note that the VISTA's term will begin on August 2, 2018 and conclude on August 1, 2019.

Assignment Responsibilities

• Researching and developing methods to support asset and housing development
• Providing data collection and analysis of existing housing stock to support community programs
• Researching and developing vacant lot design and implementation with local residents
• Identifying and assisting residents in signing up for the Design Consult program for architectural assistance
• Facilitating community charrettes and dialogues regarding redevelopment of priority physical projects
• Managing project design phase and advising community and project partners
• Developing project evaluation tools and scorecard for partners
• Supporting project communication and storytelling

Benefits of AmeriCorps VISTA

• Living Allowance: Receive a modest bi-weekly living allowance of $472.22 to cover basic living expenses.
• Relocation Allowance: If you move 50+ miles from your home to a new community, you receive relocation travel assistance up to $1,000 (based on the federal mileage rate) and a settling-in allowance of $550.
• End of Service Award: Choose between a $5,920 Segal Education Award to pay for a range of education expenses or a $1,800 cash stipend.
• Health Care: Enroll in either out-of-pocket reimbursement ($7,150 medical, $1,000 for dental, $200 for vision) for healthcare or a healthcare plan. Dental and vision are also included, as are telehealth services.
• Non-Competitive Eligibility: Qualify for Non-Competitive Eligibility, a unique hiring path that makes it easier for federal agencies to hire you.
• Professional Development: Attend in-person and virtual professional development sponsored by AmeriCorps VISTA and Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group.
• Child Care: You may be eligible to receive up to $400/month for child care if you have children under the age of 13.

About Design Center Pittsburgh

Since 1968, Design Center Pittsburgh has provided design and planning resources to communities that provide a new way of seeing and doing through a community-driven process. Equity starts by ensuring that communities have the opportunity to do what we call: data, design and do.

Data allows us to engage in a conversation about entrenched cultural narratives and historic and current prejudices that are often a barrier to inclusive redevelopment. We start by listening to residents and getting a better understanding of what issues they are trying to tackle. Data provides us the opportunity to inform and educate residents regarding the current state of their community, and to identify where solutions for spatial justice exist.

Design is providing the power of design which are aspirations made visible, and inspiring communities to create tangible solutions to the problems they face. Leading residents through a human-centered design process, provides communities with a common vision they can use to engage partners, garner resources, and facilitate development that allows them to drive the decision-making process that can be inherently top-down in development.

Do is our call to action and ensuring that our early pre-design work leads to implementation. We do not provide design and planning resources that don’t align with markets, funding opportunities, and provide for more equitable and sustainable opportunities and outcomes for communities. Our partnership with communities includes support long after the pre-design phase, and technical assistance is ongoing so the Do becomes a reality.

To learn more, visit www.designcenterpgh.org.

About the One Northside Initiative

The One Northside Initiative is a community-driven plan to improve the quality of life in all 18 neighborhoods of the Northside. Residents and community members have been working together to define what’s working, what’s needed, and to develop shared strategies that will make a difference now and for years to come. Following an extensive resident driven process, One Northside is moving into the implementation phase with work that is focused on the quality of Education, Place and Employment. The One Northside Consensus Plan is a comprehensive approach to community revitalization that builds on existing assets and supports residents in creating the positive outcomes that they want in their lives and communities. Find out more at onenorthside.org.

About Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group VISTA

This project is part of Pittsburgh Community Reinvestment Group’s (PCRG) VISTA program, which sponsors seven VISTA members working at six sites for a more prosperous and equitable region. As the area’s foremost convener of grassroots organizations, PCRG aims to prepare Greater Pittsburgh’s next generation of community leaders. The proximity of these groups to the people they serve enables VISTAs to tackle poverty head on as they confront the rapidly changing landscape of Pittsburgh-area neighborhoods and municipalities.

In some areas, rapid growth threatens to displace low to moderate income residents, while other neighborhoods suffer from long-standing decay and under-investment. PCRG VISTAs placed with PCRG and its community partners aim to build the programming, resources, and organizational capacity necessary to capitalize on these changes. Not surprisingly, their assignments reflect the remarkable diversity of Greater Pittsburgh, concerning issues as varied as urban blight, affordable housing, and entrepreneur development. To support these goals, PCRG VISTAs formulate policy recommendations, implement community engagement strategies, write grants, manage volunteers, and much more. For more information on PCRG VISTA, visit www.pcrg.org/programs/americorps-vista or contact Aaron Salituro (asalituro@pcrg.org, 412-391-6732).