Pittsburgh G-20 Partnership details planning efforts for September summit

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The newly-formed Pittsburgh G-20 Partnership held a briefing Tuesday to discuss the results of recent brainstorming sessions and announce its contributors.

“This is the first time that heads of state of G-20 countries will be gathered outside the nation’s capital,” said Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, highlighting the truncated time allotted for preparation of this event, as compared with other blockbusters such as the U.S. Open and Major League Baseball's All Star game.

“We do one thing well,” Onorato said. “We know how to rally the resources to put on a good show for the outside world.”

Onorato chronicled some of the hundreds of ideas tossed around at the brainstorming, where ideas ranged “from the extremely creative to helpful to the bizarre.”

He highlighted the push to display the flags of G-20 countries throughout the Pittsburgh region, with translated greeting signs and multi-lingual interpreters available at hospitality points to help visitors navigate the event and the city.

More than 1,000 people already have volunteered to help with the efforts through the partnership’s Web site, www. pittsburghg20.org.

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl focused on projecting Pittsburgh’s image as a clean, green and sustainable region, but noted that safety takes priority.

The event will need 4,000 police officers — the city only has around 850, Ravenstahl said — which will be paid for by the federal government, which has declared the G-20 a “national security special event.” The designation carries with it the full financial force of federal resources.

Dennis Yablonsky, CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Economic Development, said the G-20 should be viewed as an opportunity to woo global companies looking for a North American home base.

The Partnership will also reach out to media in New York and Washington, DC, and use the know-how of the more than 300 international companies with a Pittsburgh presence to navigate the international media possibilities.

Part of that will be an online story bank for reporters. There will also be a media center at Pittsburgh International Airport, one at the Regional Enterprise Tower, and one online.

The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership is in charge of projects to fill up the 25-30 empty storefronts identified in the path of G-20 traffic. One idea is to have local artists and students fill those storefront windows with murals that tell the region’s story.

VisitPittsburgh chairwoman Doris Carson-Williams concluded the press conference by pinning the mayor and chief executive with yellow rectangles calling on passers-by to “Ask me. I’m a Pittsburgher!” The pins will be distributed to community ambassadors in advance of the G-20.

The Partnership, founded by city, the county, the Allegheny Conference and VisitPittsburgh, has received about $500,000 in donations to date.

The following entities contributed $35,000 to the Partnership:

Alcoa, Inc., Bayer Corp., BNY Mellon, CMU, Eaton Corp., K&L Gates, PPG Industries, Inc., University of Pittsburgh, UPMC, U.S. Steel and Westinghouse Electric Company.

Contributions of $10,000 came from Allegheny Technologies Inc., Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, P.C., GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, H.J. Heinz Co., iGate Global Solutions, Ltd., Jones Day, NOVA Chemicals, Inc. and Malin Bergquist & Co., LLP.

A number of other businesses and foundations contributed smaller amounts and in-kind donations of time.

Yablonsky said he’d like to see another $100,000 in donations to fund the Partnership’s education and training efforts.

Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato and Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl are scheduled to announce details of the Pittsburgh G-20 Partnership at a press briefing in Downtown Pittsburgh Tuesday. Results of the recent community brainstorming sessions will be outlined, and the two will be joined by Allegheny Conference CEO Dennis Yablonsky and VisitPittsburgh chairwoman Doris Carson-Williams.

The G-20 summit of world leaders will be held in Pittsburgh Sept. 24 and 25.