A “Welcome the Wharf” celebration took place on November 16 at Pittsburgh’s newly renovated 2,017-foot long stretch of Monongahela riverbank between the Fort Pitt and Smithfield Street Bridges.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony was open to the public and attended by many dignitaries and interested parties.

The landing features new lighting, seating and steps to the Monongahela River for kayakers and other watercraft. The landing’s completion concludes Phase I of the Mon Wharf project. Phase II will eventually connect Point State Park with the Eliza Furnace Trail via the proposed Mon Wharf Switchback.

The switchback will in turn connect Pittsburgh to the 318-mile Greater Allegheny Passage Trail and Washington, D.C.

Native trees and shrubs planted along the trail add a green edge to the Mon Wharf, which has not hosted plant life for several generations. Species include October Glory red maples, shadblow serviceberry trees, eastern redbuds, tradition serviceberry trees, soft rush and little bluestem.

The new plantings were chosen to provide a splash of native color along the Monongahela throughout the changing seasons.

Because the Mon Wharf is susceptible to flooding, the design of the new park by LaQuatra Bonci Associates includes water connections and high powered hoses to wash away silt and debris left by rising water levels. The landing is also gently graded to enable drainage of flood water.

Construction was overseen by Pittsburgh-based Clearwater Construction.

Support for the $3 million project was provided in part by Riverlife, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Department of Transportation, The K. Mabis McKenna Foundation, The Heinz Endowments and The Richard King Mellon Foundation. (Reprinted from DCNR Resource newsletter)