Penn and Highland Avenue

Stand on the northeast corner of Penn and Highland and look west. This photo shows the same street view in June 1971 when this area was a pedestrian mall. Note the original location of the Joy of Life fountain at the left. To the right you can see the old marquee for the Regent Theatre, now the Kelly Strayhorn. At the end of the street was the affordable housing complex, Penn Mall Apartments, which was built by Tasso Katselas Associates during urban renewal in the 1960s. Penn Mall spanned Penn Avenue, allowing cars to drive underneath.

Sources:

Greenawalt, Justin P. “Pittsburgh’s East Liberty Project: Preserving the Artifacts of the Urban Renewal Era.” Master’s Thesis. Columbia University, New York City (May 2010). Accessed at http://www.eastlibertychamber.org/UserFiles/File/JGreenawalt_PittEastLibertyProject_Thesis.pdf