Where does Cleveland clobber Pittsburgh? Its land bank.

When Pittsburghers think of their rivalry with Cleveland, they often feel quite superior. The Steelers are 31-8-1 against the Browns over the last 20 years, after all.

Some people think, though, that the Steel City could learn something from Cleveland when it comes to affordable housing programs.

Bobby Wilson, a Pittsburgh city councilor and board chair of the Pittsburgh Land Bank, said Pittsburgh’s relatively new land bank is doing “similar stuff” to Cleveland’s, but at a much smaller scale.

“Cleveland, they’re just lightyears ahead of us in terms of their land bank and how they’re funding their land bank,” said Wilson, a Democrat who represents part of the North Side. “It’s what we seek to do that they’re doing on steroids.”

A land bank is a tool for local governments to cut through