Boaz Frankel

6 days ago | nextpittsburgh.com | Boaz Frankel

Location: City of Pittsburgh River Safety Center on the Allegheny River near PNC Park Featured guest: Richard Linn, EMS division chief/operations chief, River Rescue3 things that surprised me:1. When we walked into the City of Pittsburgh River Safety Center I was expecting to see offices or storage rooms, but most of the building is a boat garage. This is where the Pittsburgh River Rescue team is stationed 24/7 so that they can respond to emergencies around the area. 2.

2 weeks ago | nextpittsburgh.com | Boaz Frankel

Location: Braddock Carnegie Library on Library Street in Braddock, Pennsylvania Featured guests: Vicki Vargo, executive director, and Hannah Graves, operations manager, at Braddock Carnegie Library Association3 things that surprised me:1. The Braddock Carnegie Library opened in 1889. It was a gift from Andrew Carnegie to the city that housed his very first steel mill. The facility proved so popular that an addition was constructed just four years later.

1 month ago | nextpittsburgh.com | Boaz Frankel

Location: 5 Generation Bakers in McKees Rocks Featured guests: Scott Baker, president of 5 Generation Bakers3 things that surprised me:1. Scott’s great-great-grandfather emigrated to the United States in the 1860s and opened a bakery in the West End of Pittsburgh in 1875. Scott has heard stories that his ancestors in Germany might have owned a bakery as well, but he can safely say that he’s at least the fifth generation in the bread business. 2.

1 month ago | nextpittsburgh.com | Boaz Frankel

Location: Noah’s Ark, The Exterminator and Ghostwood Estates at Kennywood Park, West Mifflin Featured guests: Taylor Bulischeck, director of marketing for Kennywood Park3 things that surprised me:1. Taylor led me underneath Noah’s Ark to show me the mechanism that powers the rocking boat. There were wheels and gears moving a giant mechanical arm that rhythmically shifted the boat back and forth.

2 months ago | nextpittsburgh.com | Boaz Frankel

You can’t throw a pierogi very far without hitting a historic spot in this town. A morning commute takes you past the birthplace of the Ferris wheel, the Big Mac and commercial radio. George Washington fought wars here, and the Underground Railroad passed through local basements. The emoticon smiled here for the first time. : – )My wife, Brooke Barker, and I are always looking for excuses to tell these Pittsburgh stories. Recently we found one in an unexpected place – an empty Downtown storefront.