Right now 223 N.Atlantic Avenue is a vacant lot of overgrown weeds and grass, but in the not too distant future it will be home to cityLAB’s Tiny House project, Minim. If you happen to be the proud owner of Minim someday, you’ll probably find it hard to leave the space, in all of its sophisticated, contemporary glory. Eventually you’ll have to venture outside. Maybe you’re new to the neighborhood, or new to town. Maybe you just need toilet paper. Either way, you’ll want to know what’s around.
Your new address is just two blocks north of Penn Avenue, which means you’re super close to the 88 bus route that can take you west towards Downtown, or all the way east to Bakery Square in East Liberty. Walk a little further south, and you can catch the 87 on Friendship Ave. (west to Downtown, east to Lawrenceville). If you need groceries, there’s a brand new Bottom Dollar pretty much at the bottom of your street at 5200 Penn. Whole Foods and Market District are only a fifteen minute walk as well. Want to eat local and help out the community? Garfield Community Farm is a quick walk up N. Atlantic and a block east to Wicklow St. (That’s their bio-shelter below.) For local, organic produce you can purchase a CSA subscription or volunteer in exchange for around five hours a week.
Need to power through a project at work? Commonplace Coffee (formerly Voluto) is just a few blocks aways and serves up one of the best cups of joe in Pittsburgh’s burgeoning coffee scene. Stop in at Daily Bread if your wardrobe needs an update. Treat some out-of-town guests to a meal of a lifetime at Salt of the Earth, or maybe just a slice of pizza at Spak Bros. All this is within walking distance! If you need to hop on your bike to go a little further, that’s no problem: your new address is close to the high point of Penn Ave., so whether you’re headed east or west, you’ll have a nice downhill to get you there fast. (But bring some water for the hill on the way back.)
You can explore the map on Walk Score’s website — it shows just how close everything is. While it knocks off points for bike-ability, the steep hill is to the north, away from all the things you’d most likely be biking or walking to so we consider this an eminently walkable location. For an even more comprehensive map about getting around the city on bike, here’s a map from Bike Pittsburgh. Truth is, there’s a ton to do in Garfield. Being on North Atlantic Avenue puts you in the middle of it.
(Thanks to our architect, Chad Chalmers of Wildman,Chalmers, LLC, for the photo of the Minim lot in its current state.)