Southside prepares for influx of crowds for St. Patrick’s Day holiday

PITTSBURGH — It’s the center of entertainment for St. Patrick’s Day weekend.

“There should be thousands down here, it’s going to be a great day. The weather is going to be beautiful and people are going to be coming in droves,” said Chris Firman who owns Enclave.

Pittsburgh’s Southside will be packed and the business owners are prepared as they have worked as a team over the last few months to make sure everyone is safe.

“We have everything from a calming scanner system to meetings that are bi-weekly. The Southside Entertainment and Police patrols have been great, and they’ve really transformed the area. It’s a fun safe place to come,” Firman said.

That is the hope for the weekend’s festivities. With crowds expected early as the parade wraps up, the city is moving officers to concentrate patrols in the Zone 1 and Zone 3 areas.

“From 12pm on officers will be on foot from the 1200 block of East Carson Street to the 1800 block. Officers will be enforcing and not tolerating any crimes of any disorderly nature,” said Commander Jeffrey Abraham with Zone 3.

To aid in the enforcement, the new Southside substation will open Saturday for the first time. But police want the public to know its just a place for officers close to the action.

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Their message to people coming down is enjoy, but be safe and utilize the new spaces for rideshare drop off and pick up.

“Location for the pickup lanes with be South 18th Street from East Carson Street to Wrights Way and 20 to 26 Bedford Square off South 12th Street. The goal is to elevate foot and vehicle traffic on East Carson Street,” Abraham said.

Because of a huge influx of people coming into the city, police are encouraging people to to park outside downtown.

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