City of Asylum — Attraction in Pittsburgh

Cool little place. Very eclectic. It's not really for the typical Pittsburgh local. It's very artsy and pulls on that crowd. I'm betting they are expecting a large supply of urbanites to make their way. They will. It's worth while checking the place out. If I go back I'll write more. The north side, or as the newcomers call it, the north shore is still pretty run down. This place is right next to the old garden theater. The garden theater with its Marque is still there, but it's closed for business. It was the last bit of the old pittsburgh red light district. Pittsburgh once had one, imagine? Hell, the brothels would throw bombs through each other's doors. One of them was in market square, but those are the flavor filled memories from pittsburgh's past. What a snapshot of a by gone time. I sometimes wonder which had been better? The sensible me would exclaim the Eclectic out of towners, dear I say carpet baggers and the children of white, privledge Urbana. Funny, these guys don't seem to like themselves. Guilt I think. The mad man stuck in the year 2017 believes something else. GO CHECK OUT CITY OF ASYLUM AND WITNESS THE CHANGE. SHOW...

A place with very good mission. Yet I had a very disappointed time here. As a life long book lover, I visited many bookstores, big and small, they give peace and happy to my heart and soul. I just love books and the atmosphere inside a bookstore. But not this one. I went in ask the female staff in the front desk, "Do you have Chinese book? " The answer were only two letters , "No." Then I saw, just by the front desk, there displayed a book with Chinese characters on its cover. Actually, there were more than one books related to China. When I stopped at the back corner of the bookstore reading an introduction of a book about positive thinking, then came this male staff, "Are you Jennifer? I am suppose to have a meeting with her." No, there is no Jennifer, you just came to check on me. This is the very first review I write for anything. But I have to write this for I could not let this experience steals the special place books and bookstore in my heart. Books and bookstore connect souls of writers and book lovers, I could not find such...

Their book selection is terrific and their mission is wonderful, but I've found that the implication and attitude is that, since the mission is admirable, customers should put up with unknowledgeable, unhelpful, and snarky staff. They're mostly young volunteers who must be fulfilling some kind of university requirement, since there are always several of them milling around at the front of the store socializing, because they have nothing to do.

But if you ask them questions, they respond dismissively and know nothing about the store (see the review about the Chinese literature). When you check out, they don't know how to use the cash register and since they have no stake in anything, if you have an issue, they aren't at all willing to help.

I live in the community and want the project to thrive, so I'm hoping this negative review will at least encourage management to reconsider its approach to volunteers and spend much, much more time training them. I won't be going back...