Some Oakland residents upset about trash as Pitt students move in

As University of Pittsburgh students move in to their off-campus housing, some Oakland residents are concerned about trash dumped on sidewalks and front lawns.

The university says it works to ensure students are acting as good neighbors. Some Oakland residents seem to disagree.

“August is always particularly challenging in Oakland,” said Andrea Boykowycz, assistant director of Oakland Planning and Development Corp. She explained that August sees graduating students moving out and other students moving in for the start of a new year — a combination that sometimes leads to lots of junk left behind outside of apartments or houses.

“Most of our biggest challenges are about communication,” she said. “There’s no straightforward way to communicate rules and standards of behavior to students living off campus.”

The community group files hundreds of complaints through the city’s non-emergency 311 system each year, Boykowycz said. It’s sometimes difficult to identify landlords at problematic properties, she said.

New students, she said, “have yet to learn the rules for how to be good neighbors.”

University officials contend that Pitt works to combat such issues.

“The University of Pittsburgh is proud to be part of the Oakland neighborhood and is committed to maintaining a positive relationship with our Oakland community,” Pitt said in a statement.

Pitt students living on or off campus are expected to live by the Pitt Promise, officials said, which includes embracing “the concept of a civil community,” supporting diversity and contributing to the development of a caring community.

“The vast majority of our students live up to these expectations and contribute positively to the communities in which they live,” Pitt said in its statement. “When concerns or issues arise, the university works swiftly to investigate, have conversations and, where appropriate, apply sanctions.”

The school also hosts several programs aiming to improve relationships between Oakland residents and students, like the Be a Good Neighbor Block Parties, Oakland safety walks and townhall meetings with residents and tenants. They also participate in the Garbage Olympics, a major litter clean-up event.

Boykowycz said Oakland Planning and Development Corp. tries to work with the university to address concerns residents may have. They regularly communicate with Pittsburgh and university police, as well as other city departments.

“We work with Oakland landlords to reinforce the need for adequate containers for trash and recycling, and we address cleanliness and noise complaints with landlords whenever possible throughout the year,” she said.

Still, some residents are frustrated and believe not enough is being done to address their concerns about trash and noise in Oakland.

Janice Markowitz, who has lived in Central Oakland for 48 years, said her neighborhood now is “an assault on the senses.”

She complained of boxes, mattresses and other litter piling up on sidewalks, particularly as students move in and out of off-campus housing around this time of year.

“We feel like the institution is not being a good neighbor,” she said of the University of Pittsburgh.

Markowitz also voiced concerns about large parties leaving areas overcrowded, with cars sometimes parked in front of fire hydrants or dangerously close to intersections.

“I have never seen it so bad here,” she said. “It’s a nightmare here.”

When she expresses her concerns, Markowitz said, students have suggested she move away from the university.