The mayor will see you now. No, not that mayor.
It looks like season two of the Paramount+ series “Mayor of Kingstown” has officially started filming here. The show is set in the fictional town of Kingstown, Mich., where the only thriving business is the local prison industrial complex. Its first season was mainly shot in Canada, but it was announced in April that season two would be filmed in Western Pennsylvania.
Pittsburgh Public Safety sent out a press release Tuesday listing road closures as cameras start rolling. Beginning at 7 a.m. Wednesday morning, the inbound side of Riverview Avenue on the North Side was closed for filming, though the nearby pool and playground remain open for public use. That leg of production is expected to last until about 3 p.m.
Pittsburgh Public Safety also warned that the Riverview Avenue shoot “will involve the filming of precision driving and scenes involving recreation of crimes involving firearms” and that police will be on hand for added security.
Filming for “Mayor of Kingstown” will also take place on the North Side Wednesday on Brighton Road from Woods Run Road to Schimmer and Westborn streets. The Pittsburgh Public Safety release specified that there will be no full closures, though commuters should expect “small delays occurring periodically from 2-9 p.m.” Wednesday.
On Thursday, the production will set up shop in the Strip District. Penn Avenue will be closed from 14th Street to 16th Street, and 15th Street will be closed from Penn Avenue to Smallman Street. Drivers may run into “intermittent traffic control” on 16th Street as well. These closures may last from 4-10 p.m., according to the release.
Finally, production will shift back to the North Side on Friday and cause the closing of Eckert Street from Beaver and Geyer avenues and McClure Street from Eckert to Woods Run from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
“Mayor of Kingstown” follows Jeremy Renner’s Mike McLusky as he attempts to keep the peace in a violent town where corruption runs rampant. Keep an eye out for updates throughout the summer on the series and the Lee Daniels horror movie as they continue shooting throughout the Pittsburgh area.
Joshua Axelrod: jaxelrod@post-gazette.com and Twitter @jaxelburgh.
First Published: June 22, 2022, 2:36 p.m.
