Since Mr. Rogers' old neighborhood had been covered with soot, part of his new block might be, too.
The official name of the memorial being carved out of the Manchester Bridge Pier near Heinz Field is "A Tribute to Children." Unofficially, it's a tribute to the late Fred Rogers.
Picture an ellipse something like a keyhole in the middle of the massive stone pier that people can walk through to see a larger-than-life statue of Mr. Rogers (tying his shoelaces) facing the city that watched his television neighborhood on WQED.
Work on the project is going more slowly than expected, says George E. Pastor, project superintendent for the Astorino company, because the old Dravo corporation built a remarkably strong bridge support. Workmanship -- another tribute to Pittsburgh's heritage.
The soot, which had become the pier's carbonaceous coating during the 'Burgh's smoke-choked history, is almost completely blasted off. The plan was to blow all of it away -- along with what it represented.
Until Colin McNickle, the Trib's director of editorial pages, asked why.
Pittsburgh's heritage, while always rich, was sometimes dirty. Clean air during the days of Big Steel usually meant the mills were silent and that meant workers without work.
"Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" was first housed in the original WQED building -- then a soot-covered stone landmark at the corner of Fifth and Bellefield avenues in Oakland, now a soot-free home for the University of Pittsburgh's Music Department.
Louis D. Astorino, chairman of Astorino, a Pittsburgh firm that's overseeing virtually every aspect of the Rogers project, also knows a thing or two about wiping off soot from Pittsburgh's past.
He was part of the committee that was responsible for removing virtually all the soot from the once black-as-coal Carnegie museum building in Oakland at the foot of Bellefield along Forbes Avenue.
Look at the side of the building that faces Schenley Plaza and notice the smudge of soot untouched by design to remind Pittsburghers of what once was.
When Mr. Astorino was asked on Wednesday about not removing all the soot from the Rogers memorial, he said: "I hadn't thought about that. We should have thought of that before."
In his e-mail message to the Trib that day about Mr. McNickle's suggestion, Astorino wrote: "It seems that everyone here and at Family Communications (the program production company founded by Rogers) thinks that leaving a stone unclean is a good idea. So, we will take our chances with the Art Commission and will pick a stone today and instruct our construction group to leave it as is."
Pittsburgh's Art Commission will have to give its blessing because of the last-minute change in plans.
"I don't anticipate this to be perceived as a major design change," said Kim Baker, public art manager for the city. "I don't anticipate any issues with the City of Pittsburgh." She said she will follow up with the seven members of the art commission.
Arthur Ziegler, who heads Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, also likes the idea. Mr. Ziegler wrote in his e-mail message to the Trib: "Sounds good. They are cleaning the pier for the Mr. Rogers statue, but leaving a stone covered in years of accumulation of soot for history."
And for all to see how far Pittsburgh has come.
