Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Pittsburgh Envy

Oh, to be Pittsburgh. At least, that's the sentiment coming out of Philadelphia:

But I'd like to think Dorrance hoped for more for the community he loved. PNC Bank has thrived in Pittsburgh, by absorbing other banks, some of them deeply troubled, in Philadelphia and Washington, Baltimore and Cleveland. PNC is what CoreStates should have been: one of the nation's largest banks, solvent in crisis, profitable in almost all seasons, and a major hometown employer and patron of good causes. PNC is even building a 40-story skyscraper headquarters in Pittsburgh as Philadelphia suffers a commercial construction freeze (except hospitals). That should have been us.

If you want to needle civic leadership, then hold up the success of an urban rival. I've seen that gambit used in Cleveland on numerous occasions. Take compliment with grain of salt. But also recognize that Pittsburgh's strong recovery is more than eds & meds.

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