University of Pittsburgh

Friendship/Penn Ave. Arts District

Friendship
Homes and apartments line the streets of Friendship.

I live in the neighborhood of Friendship in Pittsburgh’s East End. Settled by middle managers from the mills in Lawrenceville and Bloomfield, Friendship was once considered a “suburb” of Pittsburgh and was accessible by streetcar.

Friendship is a diverse neighborhood with regard to ethnicity/race, occupation, sexual orientation, socio-economic status of residents, and household composition. Beautiful old homes are big enough to house a family on the first two floors and to have apartments on the third floor–students will find these cozy spaces lovely places to live while studying at Pitt.

Favorite spots in the neighborhood include the Friendship Playpark, financed and built by Friendship residents; Baum Grove, Friendship’s own public greenspace and location of our annual Friendship Flower and Folk Festival; Quiet Storm, once a nuisance bar and now one of Pittsburgh’s hottest coffee shops; Pho Minh, authentic Vietnamese food; and a host of hip galleries along Penn Avenue. Friendship is convenient to downtown and to Oakland via public transportation.

Neighborhood

Eat

Shop

  • Kraynick’s Bike Shop: 412-621-6160
  • Penn Aiken Dairy: 412-345-5002
  • Whole Foods

Play

Housing

Average rents graduate students pay:

  • Studio: $400, avg. utilities $25
  • 1BR: $465, avg. utilities $70
  • 2BR: $630, avg. utilities $105
  • 3BR: $780, avg. utilities $115

Transportation

  • 71A Negley