[cdc]

RENOVATE IT!

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07192/800787-53.stm

Ceiling collapse at Schenley High clouds building's future

The fate of the building, which is more than 90 years old and on the National Register of Historic Places, has been in limbo since November 2005. That's when school Superintendent Mark Roosevelt, citing the high renovation costs, proposed closing the building and moving Schenley High School to the former Reizenstein Middle School building in Shadyside.

He pulled the proposal for further study after students and parents objected, citing Schenley's storied history and high achievement. Supporters said the school's location in vibrant Oakland had helped to make its international studies program a success.


I am not convinced that the PGH school district can do a good job
renovating that building given their current finances and all the
other stuff they are trying to accomplish. Maybe they should explore
selling the building to Pitt (or UPMC) and let them renovate it. Pitt
seems to have a capital budget that allows them to do a lot of
expensive renovations (the cathedral stone cleaning, repair of the
library roof, new sports stuff near Trees Hall, etc.).


On a semi-related note, the addition being added to the Colfax ALA
building (a PGH K-8 school on Beechwood in Sq Hill) is now way behind
schedule. It was supposed to be ready for the upcoming school year,
but now I am hearing it may not be ready until March. The rumors I am
hearing are that the school district did not properly oversee the
progress of the project, and now the company constructing the addition
is playing games trying to extract more money out of the district. In
the mean time, the school staff has to figure out how to handle the
space crunch for the upcoming school year (Colfax used to be a K-5,
but it got converted to a K-8 --- that is why the addition is needed).

[Johnland]

[QUOTE=Evergrey;2946638]RENOVATE IT!

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07192/800787-53.stm

Ceiling collapse at Schenley High clouds building's future

What a shame. I knew the school's future as a school was in question. I would've hoped that it could remain a high school. I think it's a great location for city kids. It's in the 2nd most important neighborhood of the city, Oakland, which puts it close to many culturally significant institutions. Pitt, CMU, the School for the Blind, YMHA, the museums, frat house, hospitals, the biggest Carnegie Library, Hillman Library, people of all races, religions, good bus transportation, I could go on and on. The bottom line, is, that Oakland is a great learning environment. I actually lived on Dithridge St for several years close by. I think young people need exposure to all things possible in a positiveand educating way. oakland can do that.

[SteelCity15]

So now where will Schenley kids go?

[Evergrey]

ooo... how mysterious!


http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_516857.html

3rd grocery store may be in the bag for Pittsburgh

By Sam Spatter
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, July 12, 2007


Residents of Downtown, who for years have eagerly awaited the opening of a grocery store in the Golden Triangle, may be on the verge of getting two of them.
And, perhaps, a third.

"We hope to announce a grocery market for Downtown in about two weeks," said Michael M. Edwards, president and chief executive officer of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, on Wednesday.

Edwards would not elaborate on who will open the market or its location, except to say it will be in the Golden Triangle. He spoke at a membership meeting of the group at the Cabaret Theater in the Cultural District.

"We are still attempting to put all the pieces together, and (are) not at liberty to announce the operator of the market, except to say it will be a local organization," Edwards said.
Apparently, it is not a grocery store planned by Brian Weiss, owner of the Pittsburgh News at 115 Smithfield St., who expects to open one in about three months.

"I believe the other store will be in another part of Downtown," Weiss said.

Nor is it the European-style grocery store planned by Millcraft Industries for either Piatt Place, at Fifth Avenue and Wood Street, or the former G.C. Murphy building, on Fifth Avenue where the Downtown YMCA plans to relocate.

"We are still planning to have a first-class grocery store concept within our overall plan for Fifth and Market. The exact timing and location have yet to be decided," said Lucas Piatt, vice president for development of Millcraft Industries and developer of Piatt Place and the G.C. Murphy building.

Weiss purchased a vacant building next door, at 113 Smithfield, which formerly housed a flower shop. Plans are to double the size of his store and install what he calls will be a "large convenience grocery store."

Edwards confirmed neither of these two projects is the one he mentioned.

Edwards said the Capital Grille restaurant has scheduled an early September opening at Piatt Place, the former Lazarus-Macy Department store building, at Fifth and Wood streets. "It will probably be about Labor Day," he said.



Sam Spatter can be reached at sspatter@tribweb.com or 412-320-7843.
Back to headlines

[Evergrey]

Down with cul-de-sacs!

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_516774.html

It may be the end of the road for Western Pa. cul-de-sacs

By Tim Puko
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, July 12, 2007


The two young Michael sisters dragged suitcases around the cul-de-sac on their street. It was an afternoon of play in an area that gives them safety from traffic, gives their parents' house added value and gives the neighbors a sense of community.
"We love it," mother Christine Michael said about the Cranberry cul-de-sac.

The problem is that many people who design towns don't share that love. Several of the region's fastest growing suburban communities, with space at a premium, have been moving to reconnect the grid and minimize cul-de-sacs.

Revered by the suburban family and reviled by the urban planner, the cul-de-sac has been subject of reconsideration around the country in the past two decades. Homes on cul-de-sacs still are hot sellers by all accounts, but some people question the stress they can put on local thoroughfares, and public and emergency service vehicles.

"The debate still rages, even within the transportation community," said Martin Pietrucha, director of the Transportation Operations Program at the Pennsylvania Transportation Institute. "To me, this is why we have engineers."
In townships such as Pine and Peters, engineers and planners implemented plans to control cul-de-sacs decades ago. They have standards about where cul-de-sacs can go, how long they can be and which might be temporary. In Peters, developers often ask for compromises, planning director Ed Zuk said.

For Cranberry, that dance with the developers began more recently. Although they haven't outlawed cul-de-sacs, township officials began early this decade to dissuade developers from creating them. Planners want more neighborhood connections, by road and by walking trail.

"It's an education process," said John Trant Jr., Cranberry's chief strategic planning officer. "Cul-de-sacs are what we've known for the past 20 to 25 years. It's the bread and butter of what we do."

For Cranberry, the future is shown in a map of about 200 acres off of Rochester Road. Varying shades of green surround little yellow and orange rectangles, showing where homes are planned.

The map centers on a development to be called Park Place, one of two plans that could bring a higher density to the sprawling suburb. Just the margins of the map, a few slivers of existing communities, show 19 cul-de-sacs. The Park Place development, with about 800 units, has no cul-de-sacs.

The township gets calls daily from interested homebuyers, asking when the development will be finished, Trant said. But families throughout Autumn Hill and Blue Ridge, the development where the Michael family lives, are quick to tout the cul-de-sac life.

"There's a moment where you turn your back, and something happens and (your kids) run out into the street," said Ali Raible, mother of three children ages 8 and under. "If you're on a street, they can get hit. If you live on a cul-de-sac, you have a bit more leeway."

There is a financial factor. The Michael family's Azure Court home is worth about $10,000 more than it would be if it were two doors down and on the development's main road, Christine Michael said. The cul-de-sac would be the first thing she would note on a resale advertisement.

Homes on cul-de-sac streets usually sell faster and at higher prices, say planners and real estate agents. They are as popular as ever among homebuyers and developers.

In Findlay, another growing community, cul-de-sacs will be prominent in two housing developments and two business parks, township manager Gary J. Klingman said.

Officials in Plum and Monroeville said they see no drawbacks to cul-de-sacs there.

"Just about every single one of the newer (developments) has cul-de-sacs somewhere," Plum Councilman Paul Dern said. "We've never had, to my knowledge, issues."

Issues can arise with traffic and public services. Cul-de-sacs can leave neighborhoods without connections, making travel times longer, which means less efficient public services, officials said.

Middlesex set cul-de-sac regulations this summer so school buses could turn around. In Peters, school buses are not allowed to travel cul-de-sacs, one factor that pushed the community to start connecting many of its neighborhoods in the late 1980s, Zuk said.

Peters often lets developers keep cul-de-sacs that are temporary. When the next piece of land is developed -- often several years later -- developers must cut through the end of a cul-de-sac to connect the areas.

The cul-de-sac that used to be in front of the MacCleary family's Homestead Drive in Peters home now is a small roundabout with an evergreen in the middle. It's supposed to slow down motorists, but sometimes it simply sends speeding drivers careening through the MacClearys' front yard.

Three times in three years drivers have slipped over the curb and torn through the family's landscaping, Wanda MacCleary said. She has a tendency to stare down speeding drivers as they approach the circle and wave her hands like a third-base coach to tell drivers to slow down.

"They'll either flip me off or say something smart," she said. "Then I'll yell and say, 'Next time, I'll take your tag number. Slow down, there's children at play.' "

Although there are safety and landscaping concerns, the circle has advantages over the former cul-de-sac. The school bus can pick up the MacClearys' 6-year-old daughter in front of their house, and it gives their daughter a place to set up a lemonade stand.

Would Wanda MacCleary want the cul-de-sac back?

"I don't know," she said.



Tim Puko can be reached at tpuko@tribweb.com or (412) 320-7975.

[Evergrey]

another article about old-timer yinzers complaining about living in the city's most vibrant neighborhood... maybe they can move to a quiet place without rising property values... like Homestead down the road

these articles never seem to quote anybody under 50... every young person i know that live there love it because they're close to everything... stores, groceries, art galleries, restaurants and bars... the city government is setting a dangerous precedent if they pass this legislation... "Don't invest in this neighborhood. Don't open a business here."

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_516862.html


South Siders lament bar boom

By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, July 12, 2007


Bars are slowly suffocating South Siders, residents of the party haven said Wednesday.

"I am disturbed by the rapid decline of Carson Street," said Mary Ellen Leigh, 77, of the South Side. "A historic mile is beginning to look like a cheesy Coney Island."

Leigh joined more than 30 of her neighbors at a City Council hearing demonstrating wide support for a proposal to restrict the number of new bars that open in the Pittsburgh district popular among college students.

There are about 90 liquor-serving bars and restaurants in the South Side, according to Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board records.

"Our sidewalks have become their toilets," Sevick said of the bars' patrons. Police records show they issued 333 citations for public urination there in April and May.

Councilman Jeff Koch's proposal would require would-be South Side bar owners to seek special approval from City Council and the Zoning Board of Adjustment before opening.

Adequate parking and limiting the impact of additional traffic would be the main criteria for approval, but other "detrimental impacts" to nearby properties could be considered, according to the bill.

Koch's legislation targets the South Side, Lawrenceville's Butler Street and Bloomfield's Penn Avenue. When any of those business districts reach one liquor-serving business per 50,000 square feet, the area would be considered "saturated."

Only the South Side has reached that status. The two other neighborhoods are well under the limit and wouldn't immediately be subject to the new rules, Koch said.

The bill is up for preliminary approval Wednesday, and it looks like it will pass: Five members of the nine-person council said yesterday they support the legislation.

So does Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, said Tom Halloran, his department ombudsman.

Many said the bill is more fair to potential bar owners than previous versions that outlawed bars from opening within 150 feet of two or more existing ones. Those versions did not receive the city Planning Commission's approval.

"Right now, our city has no control over issuance of liquor licenses," said Koch. Gaining control would "help preserve the traditional character of neighborhoods," he said.

"But it's always been the independent bar owners that have given the town its personality," said Ned Sokoloff, a member of the state Restaurant Association's board and president of The Specialty Group, a Ross company that helps new bars and restaurants open and obtain liquor licenses.

"Independent bar owners are being crippled," said Sokoloff, who opposes Koch's idea and believes the new review process would prevent new bars from opening. "These are hard-working people, and now they're victims again. Eventually, there will be no more independents left."



Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or (412) 765-2312.

Hey Mary Ellen Lee... this "historic mile" would just be a crumbling wasteland if it wasn't for these "cheesy bars" opening up in the past 15 years... there has been millions of dollars of investment in the restoration of these historic properties by business owners... ban these businesses from opening and watch the investment take place elsewhere... but i guess that's what you want... a quiet dead neighborhood... why not just move up the hill to Arlington if that's what you're looking for

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07193/800895-55.stm

New ideas sought for LRT housing, retail development

Thursday, July 12, 2007

By Laura Pace, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Two days short of two years ago, Mt. Lebanon held a public forum to find out what kind of development people envisioned for land around the town's light rail transit station.

Today, officials want to hear it again, but now Dormont is part of the equation.

The joint meeting will be a day-long affair in the Mt. Lebanon Municipal Building, 710 Washington Road. Developers will meet in a private session from 1 to 2 p.m., public officials, municipal boards and authorities and business leaders will meet by invitation only from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and the public can attend from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.

David Veights, a consultant from DMJM Harris will be on hand to gather input.

Pennsylvania's Transportation Revitalization Investment District Act, called the TRID act, was passed in 2005 and provided money to help towns learn ways to develop housing and retail development near public transit lines.

Mt. Lebanon and Dormont were among the first recipients of a special state grant meant to revitalize transit areas. Each town got a $75,000 grant and each is adding $25,000 in funds to study development.

Both towns have larger light rail transit stations and several smaller stops along the line.

There is no timeline on the project but it is expected to take several years.

At a July 14, 2005 public meeting, an ad hoc committee formed of Mt. Lebanon officials, Port Authority planners and engineers envisioned a $40 million development over the T station, behind Washington Road, as part of a public-private partnership.

They dreamed of a parking platform over the station topped with private development that would rise up to meet the grade of Washington Road.

They outlined a concept of five developable parcels and 260 parking spaces.

Residents and local business owners talked about creating a New York City-style neighborhood with condos, a bank, grocery store and theater with the T running right alongside.

Other residents were concerned that any development would dwarf existing long-time neighborhoods in the area.

At the time, municipal planner Keith McGill said the goal was to create "a sense of place" rather than just building density.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Laura Pace can be reached at lpace@post-gazette.com or 412-851-1867. )

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07193/801037-53.stm

60 more condos planned for Strip

Thursday, July 12, 2007

By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



Another condo project is in the works near the Golden Triangle.

Solara Venture IV LLC is seeking a loan of up to $390,000 from the city Urban Redevelopment Authority to help finance acquisition and pre-development costs for a proposed 60-unit condominium development in the Strip District.

The company wants to convert the Otto Milk building on Smallman Street between 24th and 25th streets into condos, with smaller units starting at $180,000, according to the URA. The development also would include two floors of retail and office space, plus 75 parking stalls.

Kathy Wallace, a Realtor with Howard Hanna Real Estate representing the developer, said the condos are priced to attract young professionals. She said the goal is to come up with a mortgage payment that would be comparable to what they are paying in rent.

URA board members are expected to consider a Pittsburgh Development Fund loan of up to $390,000 at their meeting today. Total pre-development costs are estimated at $1.95 million, most of that privately financed.

In a report to board members, URA Executive Director Jerome Dettore said Solara Venture may return to seek another loan to help finance construction.

Philadelphia developer Jack Benoff, president of Solara Venture, also is developing condos Downtown at 941 Penn Ave. At that location, he has sold 13 of the 17 units available, priced at $352,000 and above. Construction is scheduled for completion in April.

"We're thrilled with the progress there," Ms. Wallace said. "It's a very exciting time for the project."

URA board members also will consider a Pittsburgh Development Fund loan of up to $290,000 to Fifth and Amberson Holdings LP and The Mansions on Fifth Avenue LP to establish a bed-and-breakfast in two historic mansions at 5105 Fifth Ave. and 925 Amberson Ave.

The proposed bed-and-breakfast will house eight suites and 14 guest rooms in the two buildings, which will be restored as much as possible to original room configuration, finishes and appearances while providing state-of-the-art amenities.

The project is part of an effort to protect historic mansions along Millionaires' Row. The Manor House at 5105 Fifth was built in 1906 for Willis McCook, a prominent lawyer who represented Henry Clay Frick in battles with Andrew Carnegie. The adjoining property at 925 Amberson was built in 1905 for Mr. McCook's daughter.

Total development costs are expected to exceed $6.7 million. The bed-and-breakfast plans to employ up to 18 people once in business.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Mark Belko can be reached at mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262. )

[themaguffin]

Well this does makes sense....


Office Depot sees opening Downtown
Pittsburgh Business Times - July 13, 2007by Tim Schooley


File Downtown's newest retailer under the categories of obvious and need.

Office Depot, an office supply chain with seven locations in the region, has signed a lease to open a 19,000-square-foot location on Smithfield Street in November. The store will replace a Barnes & Noble Booksellers that closed in late February, and will join Burlington Coat Factory and a handful of other retailers in Heinz 57 Center, owned by Oakland-based McKnight Development Corp.

[AaronPGH]

^ That's a total "DUH" right there. I'm actually really surprised I never realized one of these was missing?

[UrbaniDesDev]

Follow up on progress on the North Shore. It is taking shape to be quite a destination. It is going to be a beautiful River Front Promenade. There are 4 restaurants along the promenade already, Calico Jack's, Hyde Park Prime Steakhouse, McFadden's Restaurant and Saloon and Jerome Bettis' Grille 36.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/DelmonteCenter.jpg

Took some pics couple of weeks ago. It was early in the afternoon. They were all very busy by evening. I think they are all doing very well so far and will do much better as the concentration in the area grows.

This is prep for the opening of "Jerome Bettis' Grille 36" at Delmonte Center
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Bettis4.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Bettis1r.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Promenade3r.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Promenade2.jpg

This is down near PNC Park. It's McFadden's Restaurant and Saloon.
Hyde Park will prbably do outdoor seating also once the fountain construction is finished.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Promenade1.jpg

I am convinced that this will be "THE" destination for tourists visiting Pittsburgh. It will be Pittsburgh's version of Baltimore Harbor.
I know of the conversations of whether it is good or bad, but progress is continuing none the less. I'm not too thrilled with the tight coral they have around the seating areas. It makes them not so inviting to people out for a stroll and totally unnecessary. They don't have that along Ocean Drive in Miami or Baltimore and most other places of this type, why here. Even Penn Avenue's new outdoor seating restaurants don't have the barracades up to this extent. Pittsburgh can be so uptight. Calico Jack's has a rather awckward entrance from the Promenade.
Anyway, it is probably the most unique location in the city. Great views, great park, boats, 2 stadii, hotels, offices and future residential (Im hoping)
will keep this area vibrant. It is a location worthy of great success, big chains or not.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/DelmonteCenter2.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/KoreanWarVeteransMemorial.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/NorthShore-1.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/PNCRiverFront.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverwalk21.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverlife_photo1_400x272.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverwalk28.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverwalk24.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverwalk23.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/RiverBoats2-1.jpg
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/NorthShore.jpg

an early pic of the promenade;
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/riverwalk27.jpg

I hope they finish this walk before Pittsburgh 250
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/carnegieconnection.jpg

North Shore Casino!?
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/MajesticNorthShore3.jpg

Cranes over Pittsburgh ooooh
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/Cranes.jpg

Trib article from June
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/search/s_511504.html

[PittPenn 03]

Well this does makes sense....


Office Depot sees opening Downtown
Pittsburgh Business Times - July 13, 2007by Tim Schooley


File Downtown's newest retailer under the categories of obvious and need.

Office Depot, an office supply chain with seven locations in the region, has signed a lease to open a 19,000-square-foot location on Smithfield Street in November. The store will replace a Barnes & Noble Booksellers that closed in late February, and will join Burlington Coat Factory and a handful of other retailers in Heinz 57 Center, owned by Oakland-based McKnight Development Corp.

Finally! As a Downtown worker, I have been wanting an office supply store for years. My office has a contract for delivery with Office Depot, but I cannot tell you how often we find ourselves in a bind looking for a particular office product we need immediately and have to scrounge around looking for it Downtown. Weldins, which is a wonderful classic stationary store that I think has been around since the 1800's, carries some office supplies, but the selection is very limited. There are times when someone will have to get in their car and drive out to the suburbs to get supplies - no more! A great addition to Downtown, a nice chunk of sq footage off the market, and 100 more employees coming Downtown - very nice news!

[BMikeSci]

^ That's a total "DUH" right there. I'm actually really surprised I never realized one of these was missing?

I agree! With all the sharp minds in the downtown, how is it that no none opened an office big box here sooner? It never occurred to me, but now it seems that it's obviously a good idea. I bet they make a bundle.

[AaronPGH]

Pittsburgh is next for Google's Street View!

__________________________________________


Bits&Bytes: Hey, look, Pittsburgh, we're on Google TV

Saturday, July 14, 2007
By Corilyn Shropshire, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

There's proof that Apple and Google are still the domain of hipsters, and even better, that Pittsburgh's rising on the hip-tech map, too. It's about to join the likes of Denver, Miami, New York City, San Francisco and Las Vegas as a co-star of Google's geek-chic new product, Street View, (maps.google.com/help/maps/streetview/index.html).

It allows users to zoom-in from their computer screens to capture street-level views of well, anything that's happening. Google bills it as a means of taking "a virtual walk" with crisp views of neighborhoods in the five cities. Others on the Web see it as a means of beating the paparazzi to glimpse celebrities' bad outfits, or checking-out their ex-girlfriend's new car.

Stephen Lauck, a Mac fanatic and local rocker, has fueled the rumors that Pittsburgh is on the cusp of down-to-earth stardom by feeding Bits & Bytes with glossy digital photos (that nearly crashed Bits & Bytes' computer) of the Volkswagen Bug dispatched by Google to capture images of Pittsburgh to test Street View.

The photo shoot was shipped from Mr. Lauck's new iPhone. If you spot one of those Volkswagen Bugs tooling around town with a "logo on the side,'' be corny and wave.

[EventHorizon]

^ Oh that's awesome! I can't wait to explore it when it's up and ready!
...
State House passes Port Authority, hockey arena measures

Tuesday, July 17, 2007
By Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Harrisburg Bureau

HARRISBURG -- Supporters of two legislative priorities for Pittsburgh -- a new Penguins' arena and aid for the struggling Port Authority Transit -- sweated out narrow victories this afternoon.

The House vote for a new gaming-funded development fund, which will help finance the arena, was as close as it could be, 102 to 100. A vote on a new transportation aid program, which will provide $300 million in additional funds for mass transit, with $55 million going to the Port Authority, was 124 to 79. The Senate has already approved both items.

Many House legislators from around the state didn't like the gaming fund because it's paying for one large project in Philadelphia, an $880 million expansion of the convention center, and eight projects in Allegheny County, including the new $300 million arena.

Rep. Dwight Evans, D-Philadelphia, said other communities will get a chance this fall to seek funds from the gaming development fund for projects in other towns. The fund will receive $150 million a year once all 14 casinos are up and running, but currently has only about $25 million in it. The Pittsburgh arena and the Philadelphia convention center are the first two projects to be funded.

Many Republicans from rural areas objected to the means of financing for mass transit aid -- higher tolls on the Pennsylvania Turnpike and new tolls on Interstate 80, if the federal government approves. But supporters said the program will provide $750 million this year -- $450 million for dilapidated roads and bridges and $300 million for transit. The program will last for 10 years, averaging about $950 million per year. Supporters said the state has thousands of miles of poor roads and 6,000 crumbling bridges that must be fixed.

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.


http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07198/802303-100.stm

[BMikeSci]

another article about old-timer yinzers complaining about living in the city's most vibrant neighborhood... maybe they can move to a quiet place without rising property values... like Homestead down the road

these articles never seem to quote anybody under 50... every young person i know that live there love it because they're close to everything... stores, groceries, art galleries, restaurants and bars... the city government is setting a dangerous precedent if they pass this legislation... "Don't invest in this neighborhood. Don't open a business here."

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_516862.html


South Siders lament bar boom

By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, July 12, 2007


Bars are slowly suffocating South Siders, residents of the party haven said Wednesday.

"I am disturbed by the rapid decline of Carson Street," said Mary Ellen Leigh, 77, of the South Side. "A historic mile is beginning to look like a cheesy Coney Island."

Leigh joined more than 30 of her neighbors at a City Council hearing demonstrating wide support for a proposal to restrict the number of new bars that open in the Pittsburgh district popular among college students.

There are about 90 liquor-serving bars and restaurants in the South Side, according to Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board records.

"Our sidewalks have become their toilets," Sevick said of the bars' patrons. Police records show they issued 333 citations for public urination there in April and May.

Councilman Jeff Koch's proposal would require would-be South Side bar owners to seek special approval from City Council and the Zoning Board of Adjustment before opening.

Adequate parking and limiting the impact of additional traffic would be the main criteria for approval, but other "detrimental impacts" to nearby properties could be considered, according to the bill.

Koch's legislation targets the South Side, Lawrenceville's Butler Street and Bloomfield's Penn Avenue. When any of those business districts reach one liquor-serving business per 50,000 square feet, the area would be considered "saturated."

Only the South Side has reached that status. The two other neighborhoods are well under the limit and wouldn't immediately be subject to the new rules, Koch said.

The bill is up for preliminary approval Wednesday, and it looks like it will pass: Five members of the nine-person council said yesterday they support the legislation.

So does Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, said Tom Halloran, his department ombudsman.

Many said the bill is more fair to potential bar owners than previous versions that outlawed bars from opening within 150 feet of two or more existing ones. Those versions did not receive the city Planning Commission's approval.

"Right now, our city has no control over issuance of liquor licenses," said Koch. Gaining control would "help preserve the traditional character of neighborhoods," he said.

"But it's always been the independent bar owners that have given the town its personality," said Ned Sokoloff, a member of the state Restaurant Association's board and president of The Specialty Group, a Ross company that helps new bars and restaurants open and obtain liquor licenses.

"Independent bar owners are being crippled," said Sokoloff, who opposes Koch's idea and believes the new review process would prevent new bars from opening. "These are hard-working people, and now they're victims again. Eventually, there will be no more independents left."



Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or (412) 765-2312.

Hey Mary Ellen Lee... this "historic mile" would just be a crumbling wasteland if it wasn't for these "cheesy bars" opening up in the past 15 years... there has been millions of dollars of investment in the restoration of these historic properties by business owners... ban these businesses from opening and watch the investment take place elsewhere... but i guess that's what you want... a quiet dead neighborhood... why not just move up the hill to Arlington if that's what you're looking for

Part of the problem in PGH is it's hard to find a toilet. Perhaps the city should put out some porto-potties. In San Francisco there are really nice non-portable self-cleaning ones that the public can use for a small fee.

Restaurants and bars don't want non-patrons using their facilities, and there are no public toilets; so some people end up peeing in the street. It's unsanitary and a public health problem. I'm sure that the bar owners would pitch in to help fund some public porto-pots to keep their neighbors happy.

[BMikeSci]

With Rendell signing the budget, more demolition started today for the new arena. The old parking structure is being torn down. Now we should be watching for the new design to be announced by HOK sport. Here's an article I found:

http://www.hoksport.com/news/new_penguins.html

[GeneW]

Part of the problem in PGH is it's hard to find a toilet. Perhaps the city should put out some porto-potties. In San Francisco there are really nice non-portable self-cleaning ones that the public can use for a small fee.

There's one public toilet (http://www.post-gazette.com/lifestyle/20030212publicpot0212p2.asp)on Carson that they built four years ago. I'm sure they'll add another some day.

[BMikeSci]

I wonder if there are fewer citations in that area? It would be interesting to see a distribution of those 333 citations. BTW, that is the kind of toilet I meant. I didn't know it cost so much, however. Some plain old porto-pots might be more cost effective, albeit less sanitary. I was in the old park across the street from the west side of the William Penn Hotel a couple of times this past month. Both times, some guys were urinating on the side of the stone wall by the stairs leading down to Smithfield street. It seems that is the public toilet for the downtown - really gross! Try to find a real toilet there. It's almost impossible. So I don't go in that park any more. It's a shame because it's nice to get out of the traffic noise once in a while. There are also guys sleeping there and in other places around town now that the weather is better. Do we have a shelter program in PGH? I have mixed feelings about allowing people to sleep on the streets. On the one hand, I don't want to make anyone's life more difficult, but on the other hand, I want clean streets and parks. Some of these guys really need a shower. With all the inexpensive housing here, it shouldn't be too hard to shelter some of these people. Perhaps if we had a work program, we could feed and house people in return for cleaning and renovation work on abandoned properties.

[EventHorizon]

Council agrees to limit South Side bars

Wednesday, July 18, 2007
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Pittsburgh Council today unanimously, but tentatively, approved legislation to stop the flow of watering holes to South Side's East Carson Street.

The legislation allows only one liquor license per 50,000 square feet of any local neighborhood commercial district larger than 2 million square feet. That would apply only to East Carson Street on the South Side, Butler Street in Lawrenceville and Penn Avenue in Bloomfield and Garfield.

East Carson is well past that "saturation point," meaning the law would not force existing establishments to close, but would keep out new ones unless they went through an extensive public process.

The other two affected districts are not near the saturation point. Butler Street, which has 16 liquor licenses, would not be saturated until it had 46, and the applicable portion of Penn Avenue, which has 11, could top out at 42.

A final vote is likely next week.


http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07199/802532-100.stm

[hyperion1110]

Here is a bit of news that everyone might find interesting.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07199/802590-100.stm


Court upholds awarding of Pittsburgh slots license

Wednesday, July 18, 2007
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Detroit businessman Don Barden has retained the state license to build the Pittsburgh casino.

The state Supreme Court gave Mr. Barden the victory today, rejecting appeals filed by losing bidders Isle of Capri Casinos Inc. and Station Square Gaming challenging the license.

"I feel both overjoyed and vindicated by the Supreme Court's decision," Mr. Barden said this afternoon.

"While it's taken a little longer to get to this point than we had anticipated, we're grateful to the court for moving with such urgency and helping to clear the way for Pittsburgh's first casino.''

With the decision, Mr. Barden expects to move quickly to begin construction of his North Shore casino, which will be built between the Carnegie Science Center and the West End Bridge.

He wants to have it built in 14 to 16 months, an ambitious construction schedule that would place the opening in October-December 2008. Before appeals were filed, he had been shooting for a March 2008 opening, but that has been pushed back twice by the court case.

Mr. Barden and his company, PITG Gaming LLC, already have permission to demolish buildings on the site. They also have received master plan approval from the city, although that is being challenged in court by the Steelers and Pirates over traffic-related issues.

The challenge is not expected to delay the start of construction, however.

[BMikeSci]

If I understand at all where the casino is going, they will tear down that old warehouse. Every time I go by there on my bike, I start coughing. I don't know what is all over that area, but it's probably not good for one's health. If that's taken away, the trail that goes up to the old jail will be viable for my bike rides:-)

[EventHorizon]

Matrix Solutions expands staff, moves to the North Side

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/PGH%20Innovates/Issue%2069/matrix_solutions_300.jpg

Matrix Solutions, a leading provider of sales strategy management software for the media sales industry, has recently added four positions and plans to add three more staff next week. Matrix has also moved to a cool, new space in the Williams & Co. building on the North Side.

Since its beginnings in 2000 as founder Gary Diven's one-man operation--he started out in his basement--the company has grown to 35 employees. Matrix's flagship product, MatrixPlus, was designed to meet the unique advertising sales demands of the media industry, encompassing print, television, radio, and cable. The firm has 700 customer sites and 10,000 individual users representing more than 50 media groups throughout North America. In addition, Matrix was named on the 2007 Inc. Magazine Inner City 100 List.

“Our location in Pittsburgh’s North Shore has supported the growth of our business,” says company president DJ Cavanaugh. “In our previous space we were isolated from the rest of the Pittsburgh technology community. Our new office is a creative environment designed to encourage and foster innovation and provides room for future expansion.”

The company’s future growth will be fueled by changes in the industry itself, Cavanaugh adds. “Demands for business intelligence tools such as Matrix Solutions’ MatrixPlus are driven by the need to strategically manage operations and quickly navigate consolidation of broadcast, radio, online, and print media ownership.”

The new 15,000 sq. foot space was secured with the help of Cool Space Locator and renovated by a team of employees who were instrumental in its open, spacious design with low partitions, adds Jonathan Danial, company spokesman.


Writer: Deb Smit
Source: DJ Cavanaugh and Jonathan Danial, Matrix Solutions

Image courtesy of Matrix Solutions

http://www.popcitymedia.com/timnews/matrix0718.aspx

[EventHorizon]

It's going to be so weird seeing this church not dressed in black, but I guess it's what's best for it.


$2M restoration and landscape project underway at Trinity Cathedral downtown

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2069/trinity_church_300.jpg

Trinity Cathedral has launched a multi-phase restoration and landscape improvement project at 328 Sixth Ave. Downtown. Built in 1887 by Detroit architect Gordon Lloyd, Trinity Cathedral is part of a national historic corridor.

In June, Young Restoration Company began the Cathedral’s first exterior restoration. The three-month project involves cleaning the structure’s sandstone and limestone exterior with an environmentally friendly baking soda and water solution.

The Cathedral is also restoring its Revolutionary-era cemetery. “We have the oldest burial ground in Pittsburgh,” says Rev. Canon Cathy Brall. Architectural conservationists from the University of Pennsylvania are working to remove, clean, repair, and reinstall its historic gravestones. “They’re working along Sixth Avenue within the public view so people can watch them work.”

Andropogon Associates and Eisler Landscapes are completing landscaping work, including recreating the property’s 200-year old surface, planting greenery and rebuilding walkways. “This is a gift to the city, to honor our 200th anniversary during Pittsburgh's third Renaissance,” adds Brall, who says new lighting will illuminate the Cathedral at night. Construction Manager is LLI/CMI Construction.

“We want to open up the walkway between Sixth and Oliver and put in a “Hero’s Way” to commemorate contemporary Pittsburgh heroes,” adds Brall, who says the Cathedral draws visitors from around the globe. “We want to create more green space in the city, with a park-like setting on one side, and a plaza on the other for small concerts and a lunch area. This is everybody’s downtown Cathedral.”

The $2 million project is part of “Celebrate 250,” an initiative spearheaded by the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh that will occur in conjunction with “Pittsburgh 250,” the city’s yearlong birthday bash.

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Rev. Canon Brall, Trinity Cathedral

Photograph copyright © Jonathan Greene

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/pittsburghcathedral0718.aspx

[EventHorizon]

Majestic Star Charts New Timetable For Casino

The Story With Video (http://kdka.com/topstories/local_story_199170101.html)

(KDKA) PITTSBURGH Casino developer Don Barden appears to have overcome his last major obstacle in his plans to build a casino on Pittsburgh’s North Shore, after the State Supreme Court upheld the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s decision to award him a slots license.

Both Isle of Capri and Station Square Gaming tried to stop Barden with an appeal to the high court, but in a 36-page opinion, the court said the gaming board did not err when they gave him the license.

The court found, “at bottom, IOC and Station Square’s argument, is that they would have weighed the factors differently than the Board. [State law] does not grant us authority to act as a super board, employing our own discretion in determining which applicant we believe was the best applicant … IOC and Station Square have not established that the Board acted arbitrarily or in a capricious disregard of the evidence.”

Next Tuesday, PITG Gaming will begin the process of getting approval to pour concrete and set up steel.

Word on that could come August 7. They also need an actual building permit. Groundbreaking and construction could begin in August or September.

They say it will take 14 to 16 months to complete, which means it could open by fall or early winter of next year.

Meanwhile, there are still two lawsuits pending against Barden, brought by the Steelers and the Pirates. But he hopes these can be resolved without a court battle.

[BMikeSci]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07200/802809-336.stm

[timmydogg91]

East Liberty revitalization

http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/news/13716630/detail.html

[EventHorizon]

State subsidy revives Downtown convention hotel plans

Saturday, July 21, 2007
By Ann Belser, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Downtown Pittsburgh can finally move ahead with plans for a headquarters hotel, with 400 to 500 rooms, adjacent to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

That's because the state Legislature this week included a $34 million subsidy for the $103 million project when it approved projects paid for from the slots development fund. The fund, based on 5 percent of taxes paid by slots casinos, also is helping to pay for a replacement for Mellon Arena.

Although hotel plans have been dormant for more than a half dozen years, the Sports & Exhibition Authority will stick with developer Forest City Enterprises, of Cleveland, said SEA Executive Director Mary Conturo. The company already owns the Westin Convention Center Pittsburgh hotel, which is the hotel across Penn Avenue from the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

In a bit of irony, Forest City and partner Harrah's were turned down for a casino license at Station Square, but the firm will benefit from the slots development fund. The plan is to build a new $103 million hotel that would span 10th Street on the two empty lots between the center and Penn Avenue.

Joe McGrath, the president of VisitPittsburgh, which promotes the city for tourism and conventions, said that money should be enough to build a 400- to 500-room hotel.

"That would be a very good thing," he said.

Mr. McGrath said when convention planners choose sites other than Pittsburgh, they say the number one reason is that there is not a large enough convention center hotel.

"We've left 90,000 room-nights out there because of that," he said, referring to convention planners who have chosen to go elsewhere.

While the partial convention center collapse in February was major news in Pittsburgh, Mr. McGrath said, the city did not lose any conventions because of it. Instead, he said, it's the rooms that are key.

Kevin Evanto, a spokesman for Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, said experts have said the convention center needs about 1,000 rooms directly attached to the building. Currently, with the bridge from the Westin Convention Center Hotel, the center is linked to 600 hotel rooms.

Ms. Conturo said the new hotel would most likely be connected to the existing hotel using the same bridge and that all of it would be operated as one hotel.

The $34 million is part of $44 million the Sports & Exhibition Authority will receive. The remainder will pay back the money it spent to clear the site for the new building and for work aspects of the convention center, such as a ballroom, built to accommodate the hotel.

She said no more money will come from the city or the county to finance the hotel. The rest of the construction cost will be paid by Forest City. Now, she said, the authority and the developer have to sit down and work out the details of the agreement for the new hotel.

The administrations of both the city and county were cheered by the approval of the money for the hotel.

"Already, our world-class convention center is competing with cities nationwide, but with a connecting hotel, we can be even more competitive and bring more money into our city," Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said in a statement.

In a statement released earlier this week Mr. Onorato said the money for the hotel was part of a $500 million package that will build the hotel and the new arena, "reduce our debt for Pittsburgh International Airport and the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, and to retire debt for Allegheny County's and Pittsburgh's economic development funds. This funding will create jobs, spur additional development, and reduce pressure on taxes."


http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07202/803362-53.stm

[EventHorizon]

I hope it resembles this older rendering. I like the curved look to it ... it's better than just a box shape
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/108_tmp1541.jpg

[UrbaniDesDev]

I agree with you EventHorizon. I hope they stick with this plan. There was a submission a while ago to basically extending the Westin across Penn Avenue, which I think would be a disaster. There has been many hotel rooms added to the downtown area/North Shore since this debate over the Convention Center Hotel began and yet it still sits there vacant. Penn Avenue is becoming a vibrant restaurant corridor and apartments fill the once empty buildings and it still sits there vacant. Perhaps Forest City is not the way to go. They have done little to expand Station Square in a significant way and always held out to get there own way, which is rarely to the benefit of the city.
The curving lines of the proposal is beautiful and should be pursued. The iconic look of the Convention Center should be reflected in it's hotel. I also think they could add residential units (condos or apartments) to the development. Perhaps even having one of the curving towers as residential and one as the hotel. I would love to see these curving towers to be twice as tall as the rendering you've shown.

The new PNC tower is combining hotel space with residential units that will have hotel amenities. This could be done at a larger scale here. This project requires a developer with more imagination than Forest City reflects in any of it's projects, in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.

[Johnland]

I agree with you EventHorizon. I hope they stick with this plan. There was a submission a while ago to basically extending the Westin across Penn Avenue, which I think would be a disaster. There has been many hotel rooms added to the downtown area/North Shore since this debate over the Convention Center Hotel began and yet it still sits there vacant. Penn Avenue is becoming a vibrant restaurant corridor and apartments fill the once empty buildings and it still sits there vacant. Perhaps Forest City is not the way to go. They have done little to expand Station Square in a significant way and always held out to get there own way, which is rarely to the benefit of the city.
The curving lines of the proposal is beautiful and should be pursued. The iconic look of the Convention Center should be reflected in it's hotel. I also think they could add residential units (condos or apartments) to the development. Perhaps even having one of the curving towers as residential and one as the hotel. I would love to see these curving towers to be twice as tall as the rendering you've shown.

The new PNC tower is combining hotel space with residential units that will have hotel amenities. This could be done at a larger scale here. This project requires a developer with more imagination than Forest City reflects in any of it's projects, in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.

I agree that the height should taller. Mainly because the roof of the convention center is so big, any buildings behind it will have to rise significantly to make an impact on the skyline from most most vantage points. Actually, I don't care for the roof of the center. I think it blocks way too much of the rich architectural fabric of the existing skyline. It just doesn't blend. I know most people like to the roof, but it's just so out of scale with the rest of compact, dense downtown.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/81168639.jpg

[chucka]

Sorry, no curves for the convention center hotel. Just another box.
This is what I found on the SEA website.
http://www.pgh-sea.com/pghsea/images/dlcchotel.jpg
www.pgh-sea.com (http://www.pgh-sea.com/pghsea/cchotel.htm)

[EventHorizon]

I wonder what that rendering looks like from the front (looking from the river toward the center)?? ... it kinda looks like it might have a curve to it.?

[UrbaniDesDev]

The proposals for the hotel have changed a number of times. I just hope they don't settle for just getting it built but instead insisting on making a statement.

Yes, the center can be overwhelming. I was a little disappointed in the cladding of the roof. They said it was to have water running down it for cooling. I've never seen this done. I wish they would light the sloping roof of the convention center. It appears to be a big black box at night coming in from the North. I realize that is a green building, but with that vast roof expanse, there must be room for some solar panels and solar lighting. Just enough to show off that enormous curving roof.

[Evergrey]

The Chicago Tribune did an article on one man's grass roots efforts to transform the Mexican War Streets. Click the link to see the video.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-randyland_bdjul22,1,3631372.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

Postcard from Randyland

Randy Gilson has a landmark representing his investment in a dream to help turn around a neighborhood in Pittsburgh

By Dahleen Glanton | Tribune national correspondent
July 22, 2007

Armed with a few hundred gallons of paint and truckloads of flowers and vegetable seeds, he has embarked on a mission to help restore a once-dilapidated neighborhood to the splendor it enjoyed more than a century ago.

His quest began a decade ago when Gilson, a Westin Hotel waiter, used his credit card to purchase a crumbling three-story building in the city's historic Mexican War Streets district for about $11,300. In its declining years, the building had served in a variety of functions -- a grocery store, a political club, a nightclub and most recently, a Baptist church.

Guiding transformation

Gilson, 50, has spent every spare moment transforming it into what he calls Randyland, a yellow structure covered with hand-painted murals, some copied from postcards, and gardens filled with sculptures such as concrete alligators and, of course, an array of vibrantly colored flowers, banana trees and sweet potato vines.

The house, which sits on a corner just up the street from the city's famed Mattress Factory museum, draws thousands of onlookers each year. Three years ago, he said, the Dave Matthews Band stopped by to gaze and snap photographs.

Gilson's mission does not end there, however. Wherever there were weeds and junk on street corners and vacant lots, he replaced them with flowers and vegetables.

Within a 30-block area, Gilson said, he has planted more than 800 street gardens around the bases of trees or in whiskey barrels he began purchasing in 1982 with a $1,000 unemployment check. He also is responsible for eight parks and 50 vegetable gardens.

There is hardly anyone in this up and coming community on the edge of downtown Pittsburgh who hasn't heard of Gilson. Locally, he is known simply as the garden man. He has been recognized nationally for his community garden activism and over the years has been acknowledged as an artist, though he does not see himself that way.

Though he has fashioned much of his work in the eclectic style of one of the city's most famous residents, the late Andy Warhol, Gilson insists he is just a creator.

"I call myself a street artist," said Gilson, who trained in the culinary arts. "I'm not a trained artist. I don't know nothing about gardening either, I just do it."

Community leaders acknowledge that Gilson's dedication to the Mexican War Streets district has contributed to their movement to revitalize the neighborhood.

With his tireless energy and knack for gab, Gilson is indisputably one of the neighborhood's greatest promoters.

'Eccentric but passionate'

"He is eccentric but very passionate about everything he does. You can say that about most of the people in this neighborhood," said David McMunn, a resident and president of the Mexican War Streets Society, formed in 1969 to preserve the area's historic character.

"He really sees himself as a sort of anchor for that corner as far as neighborhood safety and getting energy in the neighborhood going. He has made a lot of friends in the area and people see it as a good thing that he is doing."

Houses, many of which have been renovated, sell for $175,000 to $399,000. Even the shells go for about $120,000, said McMunn, whose group sponsors an annual tour of homes to promote the neighborhood.

"People are buying into the neighborhood, and we are trying to keep a balance between the white population and the African-American population that has been here since the 1920s and '30s," McMunn said. "We are trying to make everyone understand the importance of our historic buildings and at the same time feel at home."

Scattered among the Randyland murals are reminders of Pittsburgh's past, before the city annexed the City of Allegheny, which in 1848 became known as the Mexican War Streets district. After returning from the war, Gen. William Robinson Jr. named the streets after battles such as Buena Vista, Monterey, and Palo Alto.

When the city discarded the old signs, Gilson went to the dump and dug them out. They now have a permanent home on an outside wall of Randyland.

Gilson, who was raised by a single mother in a poor neighborhood across town from the Mexican War Streets district, said he is living proof that anyone can make their dreams come true. One day, he hopes Randyland will become a community resource where residents can create their own dreams.

- - -

Interesting past

*The neighborhood: Pittsburgh's Mexican War Streets district dates to 1848 and the war between the U.S. and Mexico. After returning from the war, Gen. William Robinson Jr. named streets after battles and generals who fought in the conflict.

*Who lived there: Many of Pittsburgh's elite, including industrialist Andrew Carnegie, mystery novelist Mary Roberts Rinehart, Ferris wheel inventor George Ferris as well as B.F. Jones and George Laughlin, founders of Jones and Laughlin Steel Corp.

----------

dglanton@tribune.com

http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/55229347.jpg

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_518653.html

UPMC cuts Downtown vacancy rate

By Sam Spatter
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, July 24, 2007


The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's decision to lease new office space helped boost the health of the Downtown's office market in the April-June quarter, a report issued Monday shows.
UPMC's commitment to lease as much as 500,000 square feet in the 64-story U.S. Steel Tower contributed to a drop -- from 20.7 percent in the first quarter to 19.6 percent at the end of the second quarter -- in the vacancy rate in the city's central business, said the Office Market Trends Pittsburgh survey compiled by Grubb & Ellis Co., a commercial real estate firm.

UPMC won't move into its first 185,000 square feet in the city's tallest office building until March, but that space is no longer counted as vacant, said Pamela S. Lowery, client services manager at Grubb & Ellis.

The Oakland-based medical center will be taking some of the space the H.J. Heinz Co. will vacate when it moves its world headquarters from U.S. Steel Tower to One PPG Place. Heinz has committed to lease 95,000 square feet at One PPG Place and move there in March.

Also during the second quarter, Deloitte & Touche, a public accounting firm, renewed its lease for 121,000 square feet at One PPG Place, and Jones Day, a law firm, signed a new lease increasing its space at One Mellon Center from 64,000 square feet to 70,000 square feet.
Those leases, combined with other smaller leases, reduced the amount of vacant space Downtown from 5.72 million square feet to 5.42 million square feet, Grubb & Ellis said. Overall, there is 27.7 million square feet of office space in the central business district.

The suburban office market also improved. The vacancy rate at the end of June was 16.7 percent, down from 17.2 percent in the first quarter.

The report said medical device manufacturer Medrad Inc. opened a 125,000-square-foot corporate headquarters building in the Tech 21 Research Park in Marshall and that fire alarm and fire sprinkler maker SimplexGrinnell leased more than half of the new 48,500-square-foot Building 220 in Cranberry Business Park.

Combined, the overall Pittsburgh metropolitan office market had an 18.4 percent vacancy rate, down from 19.2 percent during the first quarter.




Sam Spatter can be reached at sspatter@tribweb.com or 412-320-7843.

...


other tidbits...


Urban Redevelopment Authority director Dettore has decided to not reapply for his job after the forced mass resignations throughout city government enacted by Mayor Luke last month.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_518682.html

[Evergrey]

While the numbers in this article are factual... I suspect that perhaps the Mr. Zlatos took a somewhat "the sky is falling" approach to writing this article... at first the article seems quite damning and worrisome... until you get some key pieces of info later on...

regardless... it does make me question the status of Riverparc... which was earlier slated to get underway sometime this year... it certainly isn't reassuring to read "might be developed"...

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_518689.html

Cultural Trust money woes in spotlight

By Bill Zlatos
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, July 24, 2007


The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust expects revenue from ticket sales to decrease by $5.3 million this year because of fewer attractions and underperforming shows.
"This year, for the first time in its history, the trust has been forced to make significant cuts in its programming and operations budgets," wrote J. Kevin McMahon, president and CEO of the trust, in its 2008 application to the Allegheny Regional Asset District.

The trust expects its performance revenue to drop from $17 million last year to $11.6 million. As a result, it asked RAD for $1.5 million in operating support -- more than double the $650,000 it received for this year.

Funded by half of the proceeds of a 1 percent sales tax in the county, RAD distributes money to parks, museums, libraries and other attractions. This year, the agency gave away $78.2 million to 87 groups.

The Downtown-based trust owns and operates the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts and the Byham, O'Reilly and Harris theaters. It presents performances and spurs development in the Cultural District.
"It is a true statement that some of the shows this spring did not sell as well as we had hoped," McMahon said Monday. He cited "Altar Boyz," "Edward Scissorhands" and the Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Doubt."

Officials said they have no tracking system to determine why shows are underperformers. Poor turnout for some shows surprised presenters. The trust has a contingency fund of $400,000 to cover shows that don't attract anticipated audiences.

The trust told RAD that it will cut its performance budget by 22 percent, its visual arts programming budget by 20 percent, and its operating expenses by 10 percent.

The trust's application noted that it gives more than $1 million in rental subsidies to resident companies -- such as the Pittsburgh Opera, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and Pittsburgh Dance Council -- which use the Benedum. The "overall attendance and financial situation" of those companies contributes to the problem.

McMahon said the trust is hosting "between 20 and 30 percent fewer attractions, and no blockbuster this year." In the past, it has presented "Wicked," the Rockettes and the Joffrey Ballet.

"We have to take a really hard look as to whether we can bring in those kind of blockbusters in a given year," McMahon said.

Arts group experts said the trust's situation is similar to that of presenting groups in other cities. Dan Martin, director of the Institute for the Management of Creative Enterprises at Carnegie Mellon University, cited The Kentucky Center in Louisville.

"There's been a lot of talk around the country about some of these presenters who, in an attempt to balance the budget, are scaling back the availability of space to local community arts groups," he said. "The challenge from a presenter and landlord's point of view is, 'What can I do to complement that programming without competing with it?'"

The trust is committed to earmarking more than 60 percent of the Benedum's calendar for resident companies.

The trust takes risks in bringing a wide array of programming to Pittsburgh -- risks that sometimes pay off and other times do not, said Janet Sarbaugh, director of arts and culture programs for The Heinz Endowments.

"(The situation is) not anything for the community to be concerned about," Sarbaugh said. "It's for us to be pleased that the trust can act like an accordion. It can shrink and it can expand its programs to adjust to its environment."

The trust has a budget of $39.8 million for 2007, but transferred $1.2 million from operating reserves to balance the budget. Programming accounts for $12.4 million of that budget.

The trust will bounce back with a $17.5 million budget for programming next year -- more than the past three years -- but that could be scaled back, officials said in the RAD application.

"We will do what we need to do to be fiscally responsible," McMahon said.

He said the trust isn't using revenue from performances for development activities Downtown. The trust has been involved in riverfront developments.

But McMahon cautioned that the trust eventually could lose $100,000 a year from five parking lots that might be developed as the Eighth Street Block, a proposed $460 million riverfront development.



Bill Zlatos can be reached at bzlatos@tribweb.com or (412) 320-7828.

[Evergrey]

As mentioned in that previous Trib article about office vacancy... Grubb & Ellis has just released the 2nd quarter market analysis for Pittsburgh.

Here's the office market analysis. Click the link to see charts and graphs:

http://www.grubb-ellis.com/pdf/metro_off_mkttrnd/pittsburgh.pdf

Trending Positive

Executive Summary

Following in the footsteps of the previous two quarters, the office market
remained active. Reduced vacancy, positive absorption, stable rental rates,
minimal year-to-date construction deliveries and encouraging hiring forecasts
make for a marketplace trending in a positive direction. In addition to increasingly healthy leasing fundamentals, properties continued to trade with new offerings forthcoming as Pittsburgh again capitalized on the wave of the
investment sale market.

Central Business District (CBD) /Fringe Overview

For the first time in five years, the CBD experienced significant positive
absorption during the quarter; primarily the result of the University of
Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) lease at U.S. Steel Tower. Over 2,250
employees will move, in phases, into the building and eventually occupying
close to 500,000 square feet. UPMC employees are expected to take occupancy of the initial 185,000 square feet in March of 2008. Shortly after the lease was announced, the 64-story skyscraper was put on the sales block as was the 161,000-square-foot James H. Reed Building and the 16 story State Office Building.

Other large users in the CBD that finalized their real estate decisions during the quarter included Jones Day, Deloitte and H. J. Heinz Company. Jones Day will remain in One Mellon Bank Center; Heinz will expand and relocate their world headquarters from U.S. Steel Tower to One PPG Place in March of 2008 and Deloitte will remain in One PPG Place.

Asking rental rates for Class A1 and A2 properties in the CBD remained the same as the previous quarter, posting at $23.98 and $19.45 respectively.

In the Fringe, Equitable Resources Inc. announced its search for as much
as 350,000 square feet of space, with a site next to their headquarters in
the North Shore as a possible location. Equitable is continuing its regulatory
proceedings to acquire Dominion Peoples Gas and Dominion Hope Gas.

Suburban Overview

The Westinghouse Electric Corporation transaction continues to fuel activity
in the East and North submarkets. The nuclear energy company announced
that it would lease additional space in East submarket of Monroeville while
awaiting construction of its new facility in the North submarket of Cranberry.
Westinghouse has not commented on the amount of space needed in the
Eastern submarket, however estimates based on the number of engineers
being hired have put the requirement at anywhere from 40,000 to 100,000
square feet. Westinghouse is anticipating hiring as many as 2,000 people
over the next five years. In an unrelated transaction, Gumberg Asset
Management Corp, in a joint venture with PCE LL, LP, purchased the
majority of the Penn Center East from the Soffer Organization. The complex
consists of approximately 675,000 square feet of Class A office space
and 275,000 square feet of retail space.

In the North submarket, the news of Westinghouse building and leasing a
775,000-square-foot office and research campus has driven up property
values and encouraged additional development in an already expanding
marketplace. Developer Buncher acquired 165 acres early in the quarter,
with an agreement to purchase another 24 acres. While the company has
no definitive plans for the site, a conceptual plan is expected within a year.
Medrad opened its new 125,000-square-foot corporate headquarters in
Tech 21 Research Park in the Marshall Township area of the North submarket.
Medrad is the first tenant in the 223-acre office park and has plans to
hire 500 new corporate positions during the next five years. Further,
SimplexGrinnell leased more than half of the new 48,500-square-foot
Building 220 in Cranberry Business Park.

Oakland, a tight submarket encompassing four universities/colleges, five
hospitals and significant research centers, will see continued development
with Sterling Land Company’s 110,000-square-foot Two Sterling Plaza,
Elmhurst’s 120,000-square-foot development at Bayard and Ruskin and
Carnegie Mellon University’s evaluation of a Collaborative Innovation
Center II. On the outskirts of the Oakland submarket, in the East Liberty
corridor, the redevelopment of the former Nabisco Bakery into Bakery
Square will bring 223,000 square feet of office space, 165,000 square feet
of retail space and a 120-room hotel.

In the Parkway West Submarket, the RIDC sold the 65,000-square-foot former
Dick’s headquarters building to the Redevelopment Authority of
Allegheny County and Mellon Bank placed an 18-acre parcel of land adjacent
to the RIDC Park West office park on the market for sale. Vacancy levels
in this submarket improved slightly, but remain the highest in the marketplace.

The South submarket, with the lowest vacancy rate in the region, will receive increased inventory when Southpointe II begins delivery in 2008. A 384,000-square-foot sale/lease back is being constructed for Consol Energy. Their former headquarters sold during the quarter for the second time in as many years to One 1800 Washington Road Associates
L.P. The sale includes a 186,000-square-foot office building and 19 acres of open land.

Outlook

Availabilities in select suburban markets will further diminish, prompting fewer landlord concessions and a tightening of rental rates. Opportunities for large blocks of Class A space in the CBD/Fringe have narrowed. However options are plentiful for tenants occupying less than 50,000 square feet and users willing to consider second generation space.

[Evergrey]

industrial market trends:

http://www.grubb-ellis.com/pdf/metro_ind_mkttrnd/Pittsburgh.pdf

The Market is Heating Up

Absorption for the second quarter was a robust 600,000 square feet with increased activity across the board. Several pending lease transactions are expected to result in additional absorption by year-end. Overall occupancy ended the quarter at 92 percent with occupancy levels for premium quality space at 93 percent and trending higher. Industrial investment sales experienced a boost in activity. The 900,000square-foot Allegheny Distribution Center sold for $19.7 million; one of the largest industrial property sales in years. Further, the marketing of the 400,000-square-foot multibuilding
79 North Industrial Park is expected to result in a sale during the late third
or early fourth quarter of 2007. Both properties attracted capital from institutional and private equity sources outside the region, which is a very positive sign.

Significant user sales included the purchase of the 100,000-square-foot former PPG Fiberglass Research Center by Chase Royston. Several large industrial buildings went under contract in the second quarter with planned closings in the third quarter. Among these transactions is the former 240,000-square-foot Roomful Express warehouse to UPMC.

The Northwest submarket remained the most active with a number of noteworthy lease transactions at the Leetsdale Industrial Park including VSMPO for 55,000 square feet, Air Products for 50,000 square feet and TW Metals for 22,500 square feet. In the Cranberry submarket, continued activity at both the Tri County Commerce Center and Cranberry Business Park could result in complete absorption of the remaining space in the third quarter at both locations.

In the West submarket, the construction activity around the Parkway West and I-79 intersection related to the installation of the Missing Ramps project is a promising sign. This crucial infrastructure project will be completed in 2009. This bodes well for the speculative buildings under construction at McClaren Woods Business Park, Clinton Commerce Center and Imperial Business Park, as well as the 1,000 acre WestPort project at Route 576. This development started installation of water/sewer infrastructure and should be on line in 2008.

Finally, with both the 200,000-square-foot Clinton Commerce Center and 410,000-square-foot Turnpike Distribution Center on schedule for fourth quarter completions, our market is receiving interest from both local and regional distribution users. The success of these two projects should help attract other such users to our underserved distribution market.

Our unbridled enthusiasm is somewhat curtailed by several potential plant closings including the GM Fisher Body Plant in West Mifflin and Bruce Plastics in Robinson. However, we are hopeful that losses in commodity based manufacturing will be offset by continued gains in value added manufacturing and warehouse/distribution opportunities. If the current pace of inquiries and transaction volume continues, we expect 2007 to be a very strong year for the Pittsburgh industrial market.

[Evergrey]

retail market trends:

http://www.grubb-ellis.com/pdf/metro_ret_mkttrnd/pittsburgh.pdf

The Retail Frenzy Continues

The Pittsburgh retail sector experienced significant growth over the past
several years and maintained that trend through the second half of 2006.
Among those locations in the spotlight during the second half of the year
were the North/Cranberry submarket, the CBD and the NorthShore segment
of the CBD Fringe.

In the North/Cranberry submarket, RAR Development LLC announced
plans for a 28-acre mixed-use development that will include Warrendale
Village, a 14-acre retail center. The project is near I-79 North and U.S.19
North. In Cranberry, discussions progressed for Simon Property’s
885,000-square-foot Cranberry Town Center, which will include 770,000
square feet of retail space. Adjacent to this development, Petrarca
Companies unveiled plans to develop a 250,000-square-foot power retail
center. East on Route 228, Creative Real Estate began construction on
the 130,000-square-foot Shops at Heritage Creek.

In the beginning stages of an aggressive transformation, the CBD will be
the beneficiary of over $3 billion being invested in revitalization efforts.
Millcraft Industries, which is developing Piatt Place, a mixed-use project
that will include 50,000 square feet of retail and 65 condominiums,
announced the redevelopment of the former G.C. Murphy store into apartments and street-level retail. Across the street, PNC Financial Services Group cleared the way for Three PNC Plaza, a 23-story mixed-use complex that will include condominiums, retail and office space, parking and a hotel. Furthermore, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust disclosed plans for RiverParc, an ambitious riverside housing project. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2007, with the first phase of housing being delivered in 2009. The 700-unit $460 million project is unique in that it will integrate a residential complex with the arts, retail, restaurant and green building concepts.

After months of anticipation, the location of Pittsburgh’s first slots casino was finally chosen. The new entertainment venue will be built by PITG Gaming on the NorthShore in the CBD/Fringe submarket between the Science Center and the West End Bridge. The $450 million 400,000-square-foot facility is scheduled to open in 2008. There is no doubt that Pittsburgh’s newest attraction will be the impetus for additional development.

Banks, grocers, restaurants, drug stores, fitness centers and discount retailers entered or expanded in the region. Pittsburgh welcomed several new names over the past six months, including Hyde Park Steakhouse, Stein Mart, Trader Joe’s, GFS Marketplace and Fitness 19. Numerous casual dining franchises, including Popeyes Chicken and Biscuits, IHOP, Sonic, Rooster’s, Famous Dave’s and Tijuana Flats, also announced plans to open stores in the coming year.

Healthy local employment projections and consumer confidence will help support the momentum of the Pittsburgh retail sector in the coming months. Land prices will continue to increase as will rental rates.

[themaguffin]

Thanks Evergrey. They have a great site. I usually check every couple months and I guess this is around that time where they have their quarterly update, though I though their reports were pdf's only... hope you didn't type all that...

[Evergrey]

Thanks Evergrey. They have a great site. I usually check every couple months and I guess this is around that time where they have their quarterly update, though I though their reports were pdf's only... hope you didn't type all that...

I copied and pasted from the pdfs.

Anyways... it's nice to see some momentum on all fronts over the past few quarters.

[hyperion1110]

:previous: Yes, thanks, Evergrey, for an interesting series of posts. I wouldn't be too alarmed about RiverParc, though. As I understand it, it is being privately financed, so the potential economic woes of the Cultural Trust won't have a significant impact on it.

But, perhaps I am just an optimist...

[themaguffin]

The article was mainly about the operating budget and arts orgizations like that are hard chellenging to predict as mentioned and it's not unusual for such groups to have challenging years.

[hyperion1110]

This is some good news :)

http://www.popcitymedia.com/timnews/power0725.aspx

July 25, 2007
Approval of long-term power contracts will spur growth for large industries

Large industries across the state—like U.S. Steel--received a reprieve from rising utility costs with the passage of state legislation that will allow utilities to offer long-term, fixed rates to major power users.

Local industry and business leaders, many of whom have lobbied for the bill for several years, applauded the measure, saying it will help to maintain the competitiveness of the regional business climate for investment and job growth. While the measure will lower electricity prices for these users, it also encourages construction of new power sources—everything from traditional power plants to alternatives such as wind farms.

"Signing HB 1530 into law is a critical step in maintaining and expanding industrial employment in southwestern Pennsylvania," said Michael Langley, CEO of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. "By permitting utilities to offer long-term, fixed-rate contracts to industrial users, those users -- major Pennsylvania employers -- are able to predict and better manage their operating costs, which will enable them to continue investing in facilities that create jobs in our region."

The bill provides industries with relief from rising rates, which in some areas went as high as 40 percent. Rates spiraled up as a result of electricity deregulation and the expiration of rate caps two years ago. The legislation could also facilitate major investment with the modernization of Allegheny Technologies Inc. (ATI) facilities in Western Pennsylvania, where approximately 3,000 people are employed, said L.Patrick Hassey, president and CEO of ATI.


Writer: Deb Smit
Source: Mike Langley and Shawn Bannon,
Allegheny Conference on Community Development

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_518813.html

Experts: For Downtown buildings fighting to revitalize, patience needed

By Ron DaParma
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, July 25, 2007


Patience and persistence will be required to fill Downtown buildings that have experienced the departure of major tenants in recent years, local real estate experts say.
It helps to have an owner that has the expertise and financial wherewithal to wait for the right opportunity to revitalize buildings such as the historic Union Trust Building on Grant Street, and two other buildings fighting to recover from hard times -- the Warner Centre and the former Lord & Taylor department store.

"You have to know how to deal with those kinds of properties," said Aaron Stauber, president of New Rochelle, N.Y.-based Rugby Realty, a company with substantial holdings Downtown. Its holdings include the historic Gulf Tower and Frick Building on Grant Street.

With tenants looking for space scarce in a Downtown office market with a vacancy rate still about 20 percent, it might take time to fill up those and other buildings, Stauber and others say.

That could be the case with the nearly vacant Union Trust building, which is under tentative agreement for sale to a group that includes J.J. Operating Co. of New York City and Houlihan-Parnes/iCap Realty Advisors of White Plains, N.Y.
The possible deal for that historic, block-long building comes as the Lord & Taylor site, which closed as a underperforming department store in 2004, remains vacant despite the best efforts of prominent Pittsburgh-area developer J.J. Gumberg Co. to revive it.

At the same time, J.J. Operating, which purchased the troubled Warner Centre two years ago, has about 32,000 square feet of its 86,000 square feet of useable office space to fill there -- about 37 percent -- even as the company considers its purchase of the Union Trust.

"If I was going to bet on anything, I would bet on the Gumbergs at the Lord & Taylor building," said Peter Sukernek, general manager of Hanna Commercial, the commercial real estate arm of Howard Hanna Real Estate Services.

"They have been very successful developers over a long period of time," Sukernek said. "But I think they bought it at a very reasonable price (about $2.5 million), and I think that gives them the opportunity to hold it for the right use."

"We have nothing to report at this time," said Fred Reitano, a Gumberg vice president, who is heading the firm's marketing effort.

The company originally hoped to attract one retailer, or several "productive" retailers, to the site, but it has tried to lure office tenants, including the Jones Day law firm that recently decided to remain at One Mellon Center, Downtown.

"It does take time, but we are making good progress," said Gary Roberson, who has been leasing the office space at the Warner Centre.

J.J. Operating, a privately held company that has made its mark in the Northeast by remodeling former downtown department stores for multiple retail use and office tenants, is the latest among several owners of the complex, which has run in and out of financial troubles since it was developed at the site of the old Warner Theater in 1985.

But Roberson said the building has been able to attract tenants, including by offering "aggressive leasing rates."

The space it has had to fill includes 40,000 square feet vacated by its largest tenant, the Alpern Rosenthal Co. accounting firm, which moved to the Heinz 57 Center, Downtown, just before J.J. Operating purchased the building.

"Our office space is almost now filled, with the exception of the third floor and the office space we will offer in the former food court on the second floor," said Roberson, a commercial broker from Grant Street Associates-Cushman & Wakefield.

New tenants include an office of Employment Dispute Services Inc., or EDSI, a company that in 2006 moved into about 7,000 square feet of space on the sixth floor in 2006 but has since expanded by taking an additional 19,000 square feet on fourth floor.

Urban Youth Action Inc., a nonprofit organization, took 4,000 square feet on the mezzanine level last year, and a lease recently signed is for NEED, another local nonprofit, that in October plans to move into about 3,000 square feet of former first floor retail space.

While several retail spaces remain empty, Roberson said a new clothing store recently opened in the former Sam Goody's space on the Fifth Avenue side of the building, joining tenants such as Footlocker and its sister retailer, Kids Footlocker.

Efforts to revitalize the retail corridor along Fifth and Forbes avenues, including the development of the Piatt Place residential-office-retail complex in the former Lazarus-Macy's department store, could further help draw interest in not only the Warner Centre and Lord & Taylor buildings, but even stretch as far as the Union Trust on Grant Street, Sukernek said.

So could PNC Financial Services Group's new Three PNC Plaza mixed-use project, now under construction at Fifth Avenue and Market Street.

"If you were talking three years ago about those buildings, it would seem a long way off in the future," said Sukernek, of Howard Hanna. "It was a pretty big step, but now its coming about, and it's moving up toward Grant Street."



Ron DaParma can be reached at rdaparma@tribweb.com or 412-320-7907.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/tribpm/s_518626.html

Mixing things up on Carson Street

By The Tribune-Review
Monday, July 23, 2007


The South Side is known for its bars, its tattoo parlors and its many restaurants.
But locals are hoping to make it a shopping district, too.

"I hope there are less bars coming in and more shopping," said Steve Ford, owner of the new Decade boutique. "It seems like it's happening."

In the past two years, Jupe, Ulterior Motive, Torque Denim and Original Cin have joined the likes of Pittsburgh Jean Co. and Luxx on the East Carson Street landscape -- not to mention the high-end chains at SouthSide Works. Independent boutique Karma Fashion opened in March, followed by Decade, which opened its doors late last month. Both of the newer South Side boutiques will be taking part in a fashion show Thursdaynight at Diesel Club Lounge.

"It's a way to get their names out and attract new customers," said Lindsay Weichler, assistant marketing director for Diesel. "I think a lot of people don't know about the stores that are down here."
Most people think of the South Side as a nightlife destination, Weichler said. But according to the South Side Local Development Co., retail makes up 18 percent of businesses in the South Side, compared with 11 percent for bar, liquor and beer businesses.

"A few years ago, there weren't many offerings," said Jennifer Strang, the self-described "resident shopper" and spokeswoman for the SSLDC. "Slowly, Torque Denim, Jupe and Original Cin creeped into the market."

Six years ago, Pittsburgh Jeans Company opened as one of the lone independent boutiques on East Carson Street.

"We were definitely one of the pioneers down here, before things started happening," owner Lawrence Scott said. South Side foot traffic was geared toward the bars and restaurants, but Pittsburgh Jeans managed to become a destination for designer denim, Scott said.

"But now it's turning into retail foot traffic," he said. "You see very little vacancies down here compared to five, six years ago. They're virtually nonexistent."

At Decade, Ford said he hopes any vacancies will be filled with more boutiques.

"We all kind of contribute to each other's business," he said.

Decade focuses on edgy, affordable T-shirts by Worn Free and organic cotton dresses. They carry a baby line of onesies and T-shirts stuffed into bottles with sayings like "iPood" and "I crawl the line."

At Karma, the store is filled with designer dresses, chunky belts and flowy tops.

"Each (boutique) seems to have a very distinct line and a very distinct feel," Strang said. "Stepping inside Jupe is a different experience from walking inside Original Cin or walking into Torque."

Still, owning a boutique on East Carson Street isn't easy. Rents have increased considerably with the addition of the SouthSide Works development, said Scott, of Pittsburgh Jeans. None of the boutique owners were willing to say how much they pay in rent. And while South Side boutiques say they don't compete with each other, they do have to lure people away from other shopping districts, like Shadyside.

"We want to work with people," said Nicole Abrams, a sales associate at Karma. But Abrams said some Shadyside boutiques will hear about designer lines Karma is carrying and add them at their stores.

"You really have to be a one-of-a-kind place" to compete, Scott said.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Threads Thursday Fashion Show
Where: Diesel Club Lounge, 1601 E. Carson St., South Side

When: 8:45 p.m. Thursday

Admission: $10; $13 at the door.

Details: The first 10 guys and first 10 ladies through the door at 8 p.m. will receive free T-shirts from Pittsburgh designer label Emersion. Decade and Karma Fashion will be offering 20 percent off a purchase with ticket stubs.

Details: 412-431-8800


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
South Side boutiques
Decade

1407 E. Carson St.

Karma Fashion

2737 E. Carson St.

Pittsburgh Jeans Company

2222 E. Carson St.

Jupe Boutique

2306 E. Carson St.

Ulterior Motive

1103 E. Carson St.

Luxx Boutique

1003 E. Carson St.

Torque Denim

1931 E. Carson St.

Original Cin

1922 E. Carson St.

Slacker

1321 E. Carson St.

Geraldine's Boutique

2508 E. Carson St.

Clarissa Boutique

1700 E. Carson St.

Roberta Weissburg Leathers

527 S. 27th St.

[mikeadvt]

Hi, everyone. I'm a new poster, but been obsessed with the site for awhile. Thanks for the info on Diesel Evergrey, I'll be there -- hopefully with a free shirt. Anyways, I saw an article on the Southside ice rink in one of the bizjournals back in April or so. Does anyone have any idea if anything is moving forward with this. It's a nice little area, but from what I've been told it's turned into a drug haven with a park next door. Also, anyone know anything about the pink building next to the still-under-construction 31st street bridge (when's that gonna be finished?). They're supposed to turn it into condos. Nice meeting you all.

[EventHorizon]

Soft soil stiffens cost of subway tunnel

Thursday, July 26, 2007
By Mark Roth, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

You could blame it on glaciers.

The Port Authority of Allegheny County will need to spend an additional $3 million to $4 million on cement for its transit tunnel project to the North Shore, and the problem stems from a layer of earth laid down by retreating glaciers more than 10,000 years ago.

Contractors are using cement grout to stiffen the soil on both ends of the twin-tunnel project, on the North Shore west of PNC Park and on Stanwix Street, Downtown.

Test borings done before the work started overestimated how dense the glacial layer of earth was, 35 to 60 feet below the surface, and so contractors will now need up to four times as much cement as originally estimated to fill in the spaces in the gravel and silt mixture, said Henry Nutbrown, the authority's manager of engineering and construction.

Workers are injecting the grout to create two underground walls of fortified soil, one about 20 feet wide and 60 feet deep on the North Side, and the other about 20 feet by 40 feet on Stanwix Street, Mr. Nutbrown said.

The walls will form firm vertical slabs for a $10 million tunnel boring machine to dig through at the beginnings and ends of the tunnels, he said.

The extra money needed for the cement and some other additional project costs will come from a $9 million contingency fund established for this leg of the work, and so should not raise the project's total price tag of $435 million, he said.

Mr. Nutbrown doesn't expect the faulty test borings, which were overseen by general contractor DMJM Harris, to affect the critical underwater portions of the tunnels.

The tunnels will burrow under the Allegheny River about 20 feet beneath the riverbed, and the borings taken from the river surface showed sedimentary rock at that level.

Test borings that show rock are generally more reliable than those that show a gravel-soil mixture, Mr. Nutbrown said.

There may be ways to lower the additional cement costs, he added.

Under its contract, the Port Authority will be able to renegotiate the price of most of the new cement it will need. However, because of rising demand for cement in China and other fast-growing nations, and higher fuel costs to produce cement, it's hard to know how much of a savings that might produce.

A more reliable way of economizing, Mr. Nutbrown said, will be to use fly ash -- the residue left after coal is burned at power plants -- to extend the volume of the cement grout.

The Port Authority is testing two different mixtures of cement and fly ash right now, he said, and the new formulation could shave up to $1 million off the bill.

Because some of the soil borings were inaccurate, the Port Authority is planning to talk to DMJM Harris about sharing in the additional costs, Mr. Nutbrown said.

Paul Gennaro, a DMJM Harris spokesman in New York, said the contractor "is conducting further analysis" of the test boring results and would have no further comment until that work is done.

The borings were carried out by Geomechanics Inc. of Elizabeth. Javaid Alvi, president of the firm, said yesterday that test borings can't guarantee the consistency of every square foot of an underground layer of soil because they are done at intervals.

He said he expected to participate in discussions about the work site with other contractors soon, but did not know anything about the possibility of helping to share the additional costs.

The authority also has run into about $300,000 in extra expenses for utility line relocation work so far, he said. In one case, drawings did not show a steel beam near a highway overpass on the North Shore, and in another case, several utility lines beneath Stanwix Street were at different depths than anticipated.

The Port Authority board will be asked to approve an initial allocation of $2.8 million from the project's contingency fund at its meeting tomorrow.

The 22-foot-diameter tunnel boring machine made by Herrenknecht AG in southern Germany is being shipped across the Atlantic right now.

It is expected to arrive in Pittsburgh the week of Aug. 6, and then will be assembled on the North Shore to begin drilling the first tunnel sometime in late September or early October.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07207/804514-147.stm


and in related news...

Port Authority director overseeing tunnel project to quit

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07207/804649-100.stm

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_519228.html

US Airways' local service unlikely to grow

By Rick Stouffer
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, July 27, 2007


Pittsburgh's size and attractiveness to low-cost airlines are two strikes against Pittsburgh International Airport winning additional US Airways flights, a top airline executive said Thursday.
US Airways President Scott Kirby said the Pittsburgh market is important to US Airways, as it selected the region as the site for its new $25 million to-be-built operations center. But when it comes to flights in and out of Pittsburgh International, airline passengers shouldn't expect service downsizing to reverse within the foreseeable future.

"We continue to try to make Pittsburgh work for us," said Kirby, during a conference call to discuss US Airways' second-quarter financial results. "If we can sustain the service level there we will, but we won't operate unprofitable routes."

This month, the airline further slashed its departures to 127 per day from 148 earlier this year. US Airways' departures from Pittsburgh have declined from 245 in November 2004, shortly after the airline's second bankruptcy filing, and almost 400 in fall 2003. The airline operated more than 500 flights a day in summer 2001 out of Pittsburgh, when the airport still served as a hub.

Kirby said US Airways has no further plans to pull back service in and out of Pittsburgh International, adding that many of the cuts this summer are due to its Express (commuter) partners having a difficult time finding qualified pilots.
"Pittsburgh has great public officials, including (Allegheny County Airport Authority Executive Director) Kent George, but Pittsburgh is a relatively small city, and it's very attractive to low-cost carriers," Kirby said. "Those two things don't make it attractive to a hub carrier."

"That information has been conveyed to Kent in the past," Airport Authority spokeswoman JoAnn Jenny said. "It's been the strategy of the Authority not to depend on the hub carrier, but to go out and recruit low-cost carriers. It's our job to defend and represent the area."

George on Wednesday said that the influx of low-cost carriers, including Southwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways and AirTran Airways, was the reason average fares have significantly dropped at Pittsburgh International, and why passenger volumes are increasing.

Increased expenses related to its operations improvement plan and aircraft maintenance weighed on US Airways Group Inc.'s bottom line as the air carrier yesterday reported a 13.6 percent drop in net income for the three months ended June 30.

The Tempe, Ariz.-based company reported net income of $263 million, or $2.77 a share, down from $305 million, or $3.25 a share, in the year-earlier period.

Aircraft maintenance expenses rose to $170 million from $153 million, associated with the return of leased aircraft and engine overhaul timing, along with increased investment in aircraft operations, the company said.

Revenues for the quarter slightly dropped, to $3.15 billion from $3.17 billion one year ago. Passenger revenue from mainline operations slightly increased, while Express or commuter and cargo revenues fell.

"This was our sixth consecutive quarter of profitability, showing the value of the merger," said US Airways Group CEO Doug Parker. "We are flying right now as good as any airline, and the revenue environment going into the third quarter looks rather encouraging."

Kirby added that he expects much improved revenues in the third quarter, with significant growth in business demand.

Parker said US Airways on June 30 had about $3.5 billion in cash on hand. Asked if those funds could be used for an acquisition, the US Airway's CEO said no.

"It's more important to us to have more cash on hand than anyone else, given the industry's current situation," Parker said.



Rick Stouffer can be reached at rstouffer@tribweb.com or 412-320-7853.

[Evergrey]

I have to fully agree with Mayor Ravenstahl. Pennsylvania has a dysfunctional system of municipal governance. Cities are not equipped with the proper tools to remain growing and fiscally solvent. The pension crisis is very real. The system is broken.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_519267.html

Orie rejects Pittsburgh pension bailout

By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, July 27, 2007


If the state helps Pittsburgh escape its deepening pension problem, it would set "a horrible precedent" for dozens of Pennsylvania towns in similar straits, state Sen. Jane Orie said Thursday.
"They have put themselves in this (position)," Orie, a McCandless Republican, said of Pittsburgh's government leaders during a meeting with editors and reporters at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "How can the state reward that type of conduct?"

"I think that they're going to have to start looking at changing the entire pension system," she said. "It's going to be a hard reality."

Pittsburgh's anemic pension fund hovers between 40 percent and 45 percent of the money it would need to pay its liabilities to about 3,330 active members.

As of April, the city had $374 million in its pension fund. But if all employees in the system wanted to collect their pensions right now, it would cost the city $843.3 million.
Pittsburgh must put about $31 million a year into the pension account to tread water, city records show.

Barbara McNees, chairwoman of Pittsburgh's state oversight board, agreed yesterday with Orie's take.

"It really does need a much more universal solution than the Legislature itself would be able to provide by giving money," McNees said. "If it gave money to Pittsburgh, there would be 99 other communities with their hands out."

At the Pennsylvania League of Cities and Municipalities Convention in June in Scranton, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl gave a presentation showing Pittsburgh's pension funding was the worst compared to 11 smaller towns with underfunded pensions.

Ravenstahl emphasized that Pittsburgh's problem is not unique and was decades in the making.

"It's not just Philadelphia or Pittsburgh. Most of the cities in Pennsylvania have, to a greater or lesser degree, a pension problem," said Brian Jensen, of the Pennsylvania Economy League, which is studying the state's pension problems.

One possible solution Ravenstahl and other Pennsylvania mayors have offered is folding the city's pension fund into the State Employee Retirement System, which has assets of about $33 billion.

The mayor is trying to build a consensus with his Pennsylvania counterparts, said city Finance Director Scott Kunka.

The solution won't be as simple as asking for money from the state, he said.

"We're looking for a permanent solution, so we're not in a position to say what we recommend now," Kunka said.

Orie, as the Republican-controlled state Senate's majority whip, would have significant influence on whether the Senate approves any help for Pittsburgh, said G. Terry Madonna, a political science professor at Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster County.

"I don't think there's much of an appetite in the Legislature to resolve some of the municipal pension problem," Madonna said.

Orie, whose district includes 29 towns in Allegheny and Butler counties, is unlikely to favor a bailout for Pittsburgh because she doesn't represent voters there, Madonna said.

"Republicans in particular aren't eager to resolve those problems," he said.

But Pittsburgh and its financial overseers are.

"The pension problem ... has become Pennsylvania's version of the national Social Security problem," Ravenstahl has said.



Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or (412) 765-2312.

[themaguffin]

Someone's famous (http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07208/804879-153.stm)

..just all over the place... (http://nullspace2.blogspot.com/)


:rolleyes:

[Evergrey]

:haha: Slow news day. But at least now I can say I had a column devoted to the e-version of me in a major newspaper! These are my favorite parts:

"Evergrey is a Renaissance man when it comes to knowledge of Pittsburgh's urban development. I went from mumbling "I would never have an opinion about that" to "I wish I was clever enough to have said that."

Evergrey's posts are witty, erudite about matters I have only the vaguest notions about, and deeply knowledgeable about the city's diverse and changing housing market. In short, Evergrey made me look smarter than I am."

...

"By afternoon, the PG's copyright department informed me that my image had been removed from the site. I was sad. It was only then I realized that Evergrey had flattered me in ways I had never been flattered before. Damn!

In a way, Evergrey is who I might have been had I stuck with my fledgling interest in architecture."


As usual... Chris Briem's blogpost makes a lot of sense.


Anyways... back to news... Biz Times reports UPMC will restore the old Ford factory on Baum and use it as cancer lab space. It will include 1st-floor retail.

[ColDayMan]

Pittsburgh is anti-Evergrey!

[PA Pride]

I 've been saying for years that Evergrey is the white Tony Norman!!

Just kidding... but: Awesome dude!!!!! your unending interest in all things Pgh has earned you some notice!

Tony Norman: if you're reading this, good looking out man.

[UrbaniDesDev]

That is so funny
LOL
10,782 posts!
Dude!?

[biscuit]

2 degrees of Pittsburgh indeed. Wonder what would happen if every newspaper reporter and GSPIA student posted here?

Enjoy your "anonymous" fame.

:haha: Slow news day. But at least now I can say I had a column devoted to the e-version of me in a major newspaper! These are my favorite parts:

"Evergrey is a Renaissance man when it comes to knowledge of Pittsburgh's urban development. I went from mumbling "I would never have an opinion about that" to "I wish I was clever enough to have said that."

Evergrey's posts are witty, erudite about matters I have only the vaguest notions about, and deeply knowledgeable about the city's diverse and changing housing market. In short, Evergrey made me look smarter than I am."

...

"By afternoon, the PG's copyright department informed me that my image had been removed from the site. I was sad. It was only then I realized that Evergrey had flattered me in ways I had never been flattered before. Damn!

In a way, Evergrey is who I might have been had I stuck with my fledgling interest in architecture."


As usual... Chris Briem's blogpost makes a lot of sense.


Anyways... back to news... Biz Times reports UPMC will restore the old Ford factory on Baum and use it as cancer lab space. It will include 1st-floor retail.

[hyperion1110]

HAHAHAHA!!! That's funny.

[hyperion1110]

This infuriates me! :hell:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07208/804918-85.stm

People in the ridiculously sparse population centers along I-80 are complaining about putting tolls on the highway to fund road/bridge repair and mass transit. My absolute favorite part is the "we shouldn't have to pay tolls to bail out Pittsburgh and Philadelphia" attitude. Well, I have news for all of them. The people of the Philly and Pgh metros are the ones PAYING MOST OF THE TAXES TO THE STATE! Right now, our tax dollars are literally maintaining these counties along 80, such as Elk County, where the Elk truly do outnumber the human population (roughly 35K). The state is, by far, the largest employer along this corridor. And many of these people have become so entrenched in the state "welfare" system that it's become almost dynastic. Once a man retires from, say, the department of corrections, he is invariably replaced by some relative of his, a son or a nephew. Truly, as long as you're one of the "good-old boys" you can be assured of a very well paying job that lets you retire at 50!

So, really, who is paying for whom?

[EventHorizon]

ha! oh for shame evergrey -- for shame! ;)

[Evergrey]

This infuriates me! :hell:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07208/804918-85.stm

People in the ridiculously sparse population centers along I-80 are complaining about putting tolls on the highway to fund road/bridge repair and mass transit. My absolute favorite part is the "we shouldn't have to pay tolls to bail out Pittsburgh and Philadelphia" attitude. Well, I have news for all of them. The people of the Philly and Pgh metros are the ones PAYING MOST OF THE TAXES TO THE STATE! Right now, our tax dollars are literally maintaining these counties along 80, such as Elk County, where the Elk truly do outnumber the human population (roughly 35K). The state is, by far, the largest employer along this corridor. And many of these people have become so entrenched in the state "welfare" system that it's become almost dynastic. Once a man retires from, say, the department of corrections, he is invariably replaced by some relative of his, a son or a nephew. Truly, as long as you're one of the "good-old boys" you can be assured of a very well paying job that lets you retire at 50!

So, really, who is paying for whom?

Hey... I'm a native of Elk County... I-80 doesn't pass through Elk County... and there's only like 600 or 700 elk anyways... I'm not quite sure what you're talking about with the department of corrections being the largest employer... half of Elk County's labor force is in manufacturing... there's not even a correctional facility located there

but anyways... as someone who lived both in Elk and Centre Counties for most of my life... I fully support the tolling of I-80 for the benefit of the state's mass transit systems and transportation network... 70% of PA's I-80 traffic is from out-of-state.. they're just passing through... we might as well hit them up for some cash... there's really not much of significance within the state that's connected by I-80 anyways... even Ohio's I-80 signs near Youngstown pretend we don't exist (New York: 400 miles). I'm sure Joe Schmoe will think the world is ending when he has to pay $1.10 to travel from Clarion to Brookville...

The problem with these rural areas... is they're often fed the rhetoric that all their tax dollars are draining into Philadelphia... when in fact... it's these sparsely populated areas that are usually getting a disproportionate amount of money from the state... They don't wanna pay for our mass transit... but who's paying for their extensive road network? These northern PA congressman complain how tolls will be economically devastating to their region... but how will the state's economy fare when the mass transit networks become increasingly dysfunctional and crippled... and our transportation infrastructure continues to erode?

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07209/805127-85.stm

I-80 toll fight taking alternate route to D.C.


Saturday, July 28, 2007

By Jerome L. Sherman and Tom Barnes, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



WASHINGTON -- Two congressmen are ratcheting up the political battle over proposed tolls on Interstate 80.

U.S. Reps. Phil English, R-Erie, and John Peterson, R-Venango, will travel Monday morning to a Super 8 Motel near Exit 29 of I-80 in the small town of Harrisville. They plan to announce new legislation that would block the state Legislature's proposal to turn the 311-mile interstate into a toll road.

Some state legislators also will attend the news conference, in Venango County, one of the northern tier counties where residents and traffic would be most affected by the proposed tolling.

The two congressmen have become the leading opponents of the tolling plan since Tuesday, when they caught Democrats by surprise by adding an amendment to the annual federal transportation spending bill. It would prohibit federal funds from being used to establish or install the I-80 tolls, which might be placed every 30 miles or so along the road.

Their new bill will go further to ban the proposed tolls, but Julia Wanzco, a spokeswoman for Mr. English, declined to discuss specifics yesterday. "All details will be revealed on Monday," she said.

The two congressmen blamed Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell for the tolling plan, but it wasn't his idea, said his aide, Chuck Ardo.

"If these gentlemen would have read the papers, they would know that tolling I-80 was not the governor's proposal, but rather a bipartisan compromise worked out to address the commonwealth's transportation funding crisis," he said.

Mr. Rendell preferred his own transportation plan, which he unveiled in February. It would have leased the Pennsylvania Turnpike to a private operator and imposed a new tax on oil company profits. But that plan never got much support, as critics feared the oil tax would lead to higher gasoline prices.

Mr. Ardo said that the two congressmen had supported previous legislation to toll interstate highways, so "it comes as somewhat of a surprise that they have suddenly realized they oppose it."

The approved transportation bill, House Bill 1590, was developed by state senators in late June, with much of the input coming from Sen. Vince Fumo, D-Philadelphia. It was passed by the full Senate and House two weeks ago and signed by Mr. Rendell.

It would provide $750 million this year for improvements to roads, bridges and mass transit, with $850 million next year and an average of $950 million a year in each of the ensuing eight years.

House Bill 1590 counts on two sources of funding -- Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls, which will increase by 25 percent in 2009, and the first-time tolls on I-80, starting in 2010. The money generated from those two sources would pay off a 10-year bond issue that would finance improvements to ailing roads and bridges and shore up deficit-ridden mass transit agencies.

Mr. Peterson and Mr. English say it's not fair for people in the northern, rural areas of the state to pay tolls to support mass transit in urban areas like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. But some rural state legislators, including Sen. Roger Madigan, R-Bradford, say those areas will benefit from the funds that improve roads and bridges.

A Fumo spokesman, Gary Tuma, said yesterday he wants to see exactly what the congressmen's new plan entails before commenting in depth, but supported the idea of tolling I-80.

"It captures a lot of money from out-of-state drivers, especially truckers who use that highway as one of the primary east-west corridors through the state," he said. Putting tolls on I-80 "is a way of paying for roads, bridges and mass transit without a tax increase."

Some legislators fear that if I-80 isn't tolled, east-west traffic, especially trucks, will avoid higher turnpike tolls by using I-80.

Mr. Tuma said he hopes that other members of the state's congressional delegation "would persuade the rest of the Congress that [the Peterson/English plan] isn't a wise thing to do."



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jerome L. Sherman can be reached at jsherman@post-gazette.com or 202-488-3479. Tom Barnes can be reached at tbarnes@post-gazette.com or 717-787-4254.

...


Transit service cutbacks canceled

Port Authority says $55 million due from state puts it on firmer footing, negating need for 2nd round of cuts

Saturday, July 28, 2007

By Jonathan D. Silver, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



With the promise of an extra $55 million from the state putting the Port Authority on firmer financial footing, the agency's board yesterday voted to cancel a second round of service cuts and adopt an amended operating budget for 2007-08.

But Chief Executive Officer Steve Bland and the board remain well aware that the additional funding -- although approved by the state Legislature and the governor -- still has hurdles to surmount, meaning the specter of service cuts could loom once again.

Two Republican congressmen from northwestern Pennsylvania are trying to block efforts to turn Interstate 80 into a toll road, a key provision of the state budget for mass transit. And Allegheny County has not yet solidified a way to boost its contribution to Port Authority.

The county must bump up its own funding, which currently averages about $25 million a year, for the agency to leverage the extra state funds.

Mr. Bland shrugged off the notion that Port Authority should wait until funding is more secure before undoing the 10 percent service cut that had been scheduled for September.

"Pennsylvania transit funding hasn't been firm for 40 years. That's an ongoing challenge," Mr. Bland said after yesterday's regular board meeting.

Mr. Bland said he was confident of the state funding, which is part of a massive transportation financing plan that would provide $950 million a year over the next decade. As for extra county funding, he said, "We believe those things will be worked out."

Board member Joan Ellenbogen said she and her peers decided to vote to cancel the service cuts based on the current financial picture, not anticipation of what might happen.

"We need to be able to move forward with our planning at the Port Authority, and it has to be based on what we know today," she said. "Something had to be done. We had to make decisions. If we had to wait until everybody else decided our fate, we'd never get anything done."

The state has granted County Chief Executive Dan Onorato the authority to introduce a tax on alcoholic drinks of up to 10 percent and up to a $2-a-day tax on car rentals. Mr. Onorato would like to shift the burden of subsidizing Port Authority away from property taxes.

However, interest groups and members of County Council, which would have to approve any new taxes, have spoken out against that strategy.

Mr. Onorato has said he would withhold new revenue for the Port Authority unless the agency pared management and labor costs.

In addition to preventing the elimination of 34 routes, the board's new operating budget of $336 million -- a slight increase over the $325 million budget approved last month -- averts 174 layoffs. However, it still includes a planned fare hike in January.

"If the state funding goes away or if there are additional crises that occur in our funding, we will have to make some changes and go forward from there. But as we know it today, this budget makes more sense than the one we passed in June," Ms. Ellenbogen said.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation yesterday signed off on a letter authorizing the Port Authority to float notes meant to keep it liquid throughout the fiscal year while it awaits funding from county and state sources.

PennDOT has not received anything in writing from Allegheny County promising it will make good on the $27.7 million expected this fiscal year by Port Authority.

"This was all part of the grant agreement process, and we continue to work on it," PennDOT spokesman Rich Kirkpatrick said.

Megan Dardanell, a spokeswoman for Mr. Onorato, said the process of allocating money to Port Authority this year will function the same as it always does. Next year's budget will be introduced to County Council in October and will contain a provision for the agency.

At the board meeting, Mr. Bland announced that the agency has been making progress restructuring its discounted ridership programs with the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University.

Currently, both schools pay a flat monthly fee so students, faculty and staff can ride free anywhere in the system. The agreements were set to expire at the end of the month.

Port Authority extended both agreements by two months and hiked the monthly fee by 15 percent. Pitt will now pay $324,000 a month instead of $282,000. And CMU will pay $73,000, up from $64,000.

Mr. Bland declined to speculate on how much a final monthly payment might be. But he said the biggest point of contention is getting an accurate count on how many people from each school use Port Authority transit.

Also yesterday, Mr. Bland bid an official farewell to Henry Nutbrown, manager of engineering and construction. Mr. Nutbrown, 62, will retire Aug. 30 instead of being laid off as part of the agency's restructuring.

Mr. Bland and Mr. Nutbrown confirmed that the decision was mutual following several unsuccessful months of trying to find an alternative post for Mr. Nutbrown.

The personnel move, which accompanies the folding of the engineering and construction unit into other divisions, is indicative that Port Authority will not mount any major building campaigns -- at least in the near future -- following completion of the extension of the Light Rail Transit system to the North Shore.

"It's a changing priority period for the authority. We don't have a massive capital expansion plan," Mr. Bland said.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jonathan D. Silver can be reached at jsilver@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1962.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07209/805161-53.stm

Downtown condo to get grocery

Saturday, July 28, 2007

By Ed Blazina, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette



After years of having to go to a convenience store or pharmacy for staples such as milk and bread, Downtown residents and workers soon will have a small grocery store to buy those items, as well as fresh fish and produce.

The Encore on 7th apartment complex will announce Tuesday who will operate a 3,000-square-foot grocery on the first floor. The 18-story, 151-unit building opened last year at Seventh Street and Fort Duquesne Boulevard and has more than 200 residents.

The building's owner, Lincoln Property Co., announced in May that it was negotiating with a potential grocery store operator. The grocery would take one of three available retail spaces on the first floor of the building.

The apartment complex is considering options including a hair salon, art gallery or jewelry store for the other retail spaces.

A grocery is considered a natural outgrowth of the continuing boom in Downtown housing. Nearly 2,000 condominiums and apartments are under development in the Golden Triangle.

The news conference Tuesday is expected to be attended by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl; Tom Grealish, chairman of the board of directors of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership; Kevin McMahon, president of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, which helped to develop the apartment building; and Kevin Keane, president of Lincoln Property.

The grocery at The Encore probably won't be the only one Downtown for long.

Millcraft Industries has plans to include a market as part of its redevelopment of the former G.C. Murphy department store. The main tenant of that project will be the new Downtown YMCA, but plans call for a 7,500-square-foot store.

That store, projected to open by the end of 2008, would offer prepared foods including entrees, soups and salads. It also is expected to have a deli, speciality breads, fresh meat and fish, and produce.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ed Blazina can be reached at eblazina@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1470.

[themaguffin]

The rural areas are absolutely ridiculous. Additionally a toll won't prevent growth in these areas that dont have it to begin with. There is nothing there to prohibit growth...

[hyperion1110]

Evergrey, did you actually read my post? You repeated the same commentary that I did right after you misread what I wrote. The department of corrections example was nothing but an instance of the fact that these rural regions are a drain on the taxpayers of PA. And I know, first hand, about the impact of the state economy on rural counties...I went to college in one of them. Most of my friends came from these selfsame rural counties, and the largest employers, or very near to them, are Corrections or SSHE or the State Police some other state agency.

If you look at the following link, you will see the locations of SCI facilities. Note the proportion of them in sparsely populated counties (and no, it is NOT for public safety concerns):

http://www.cor.state.pa.us/portal/cwp/view.asp?a=376&q=126815&portalNav=|

What's best about being a state employee is this notion of "time in." So long as you work for the state for between 25-30 years (depending on the department, in some cases), you can retire. I know of a husband and wife from Cambria County, who are 53 and 51, respectively, who have just retired! We should all be so lucky.

And regarding Elk County, as I said, it was an example. And although I-80 does not pass through the county proper, it does pass just a few miles to the south of it (just north of DuBois). And it is most assuredly part of the 1-80 corridor.

So, please, don't be so picky. You knew exactly what I was trying to say. You just needed to discount what I said so you could seem intelligent by saying the exact same thing a different way.

[Evergrey]

Evergrey, did you actually read my post? You repeated the same commentary that I did right after you misread what I wrote. The department of corrections example was nothing but an instance of the fact that these rural regions are a drain on the taxpayers of PA. And I know, first hand, about the impact of the state economy on rural counties...I went to college in one of them. Most of my friends came from these selfsame rural counties, and the largest employers, or very near to them, are Corrections or SSHE or the State Police some other state agency.

If you look at the following link, you will see the locations of SCI facilities. Note the proportion of them in sparsely populated counties (and no, it is NOT for public safety concerns):

http://www.cor.state.pa.us/portal/cwp/view.asp?a=376&q=126815&portalNav=|

What's best about being a state employee is this notion of "time in." So long as you work for the state for between 25-30 years (depending on the department, in some cases), you can retire. I know of a husband and wife from Cambria County, who are 53 and 51, respectively, who have just retired! We should all be so lucky.

And regarding Elk County, as I said, it was an example. And although I-80 does not pass through the county proper, it does pass just a few miles to the south of it (just north of DuBois). And it is most assuredly part of the 1-80 corridor.

So, please, don't be so picky. You knew exactly what I was trying to say. You just needed to discount what I said so you could seem intelligent by saying the exact same thing a different way.

Calm down... I just had to stick up for my home county! ;)

[hyperion1110]

Alright, I can accept that...we're all about hometown, or home-county, in this case, pride in Western PA. I just think I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.

My apologies.

:daz: I don't know what the heck this thing is supposed to be, but it's funny!

[Wheelingman04]

Evergrey is now famous.:banana:

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_519558.html

Long Island real estate guru behind reviving much of Downtown

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/2007-07-28/0729rugby-a.jpg
The Frick Building, Downtown, is one of the many buildings real estate mogul Aaron Stauber, president of Rugby Realty Inc., has purchased and transformed. The 44-year-old Long Island resident has been connected with Pittsburgh since 1989.
Justin Merriman/Tribune-Review

By Bonnie Pfister
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, July 29, 2007


Late one Wednesday night about a month ago, New York-based real estate developer Aaron Stauber stepped out of the Westin Convention Center Hotel and strolled west on Penn Avenue.
"I'm looking, and I see this crowd in front of the building -- my building. And I'm a little concerned," Stauber recalled.

As he approached 930 Penn Ave., he realized he saw diners from Seviche, the chic Latin American bistro on the ground floor of the six-story warehouse-turned-luxury-apartment building. There was no Pirates game that night, no special event Downtown and yet patrons were lingering at sidewalk tables. Business was brisk nearby, too, at August Henry's City Saloon and restaurant Nine on Nine.

"I just couldn't believe what I saw," Stauber said. "It was Wednesday night. In Pittsburgh. Believe me, nine years ago if you were standing on Penn Avenue at ten-thirty, you would have seen some activity, but it wouldn't have been that."

While the creation of a lively Cultural District is a collective work in progress involving taxpayer and foundation support, private investment, such as that of Stauber's Rugby Realty, is vital, those involved say.
In the past decade, Stauber has amassed more than 2 million square feet of commercial space Downtown, in the Strip District and on the North Side -- and invested more than $150 million in purchases and major renovations. Rugby Realty owns several of Pittsburgh's iconic buildings, including the century-old Frick Building and the Gulf Tower, both on Grant Street. Stauber's speciality is acquiring and transforming underoccupied historic buildings and transforming them into new uses.

"Development is critically important," said Kevin McMahon, president of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, which since the mid-1980s has led the redevelopment of such Downtown theaters as the Byham, the Benedum and the Harris. While public funding for infrastructure improvements along Penn and Liberty avenues was essential, private investment" is the final key ... that rounds out the population and keep the restaurants and coffee shops busy. It's important to have someone like Aaron, and others, to further leverage the work of the trust."

The 44-year-old Long Island resident's ties to Pittsburgh stretch back to 1989. As vice president of Richard Penzer's Taylor Development, Stauber helped oversee the purchase of more than 1.6 million square feet of commercial property, including such buildings as 500 Wood Street, the Warner Centre and the long-vacant former Gimbels Department Store -- developing it into the Heinz 57 retail and office center.

Peter Sukernek, general manger of Howard Hanna Commercial Real Estate Services, said Stauber's even-keeled personality was important to Penzer's success. "Richard was a very frenetic guy, very forceful, difficult to deal with. Aaron knows how to work with people. He works more on a win-win basis."

Many of those properties became part of then-Mayor Tom Murphy's sweeping Fifth and Forbes revitalization project. Murphy's plan fell apart, as did Taylor Development over a well-publicized dispute among the principles. But it still made what Stauber called a significant profit, which he declined to disclose, by selling those structures to the city. Timing was on Taylor's side because the city wanted to buy, although Murphy's approach was not one Stauber said he would have recommended.

"The best growth is organic growth, where somebody's building not because they've got this grand-scheme idea ... but where there's a demand," Stauber said. "That's what you're seeing on the North Shore and South Side now; (companies) want to be close to Downtown, but they have parking or other issues that make sense for them to build nearby."

When Taylor dissolved in 1995, Stauber took a surprising break from real estate: He spent two years teaching Talmudic studies to 10th- and 12th-graders at a Long Island private school. Raised Orthodox in Miami Beach and with a year of studies at a seminary in Hadera, Israel, Stauber said it was a way to see if he could articulate his ideas to others.

"It was a tremendous and valuable exercise," he said. "I try to do as much as possible to practice business in line with my philosophical/religious beliefs." Stauber described those as a commitment to truth in all dealings, and the legendary Rabbi Hillel's summation of the Torah: "What is hateful to you, do not do to your friend."


"In many cities, it's like, 'I can forget everything I hold dear; business has it's own rules,' " Stauber said. Doing business here is enjoyable because "Pittsburgh, by and large, puts a high value on ethical business practices. You often hear, 'A handshake is still a handshake.' "

In 1997, he joined Rugby, where his new partners were primarily focused on running A&E Stores Inc., their chain of New York women's discount clothiers.

Sukernet recalls that Rugby had purchased the Gulf Tower a decade earlier as a vacant, 38-story tax shelter.

"Aaron worked with the real estate community and did a great job in getting it leased," Sukernek said. "Then he started looking to acquire other undervalued properties. He's got an excellent eye."

In January 2003, Rugby partnered with Pittsburgh loft pioneer no walls productions to acquire 930 Penn Ave., together putting nearly $7 million in improvements to renovate a building now home to Seviche, a Subway and 20 apartments renting for as much $2,400 a month.

Francisco Escalante, no wall's project manager, offered "honorable" as the word to describe Stauber.

"Fairness is something that's important to him, and it's applied equally ... in how he treats his employees, to issues with tenants and contractors," Escalante said. "When he's presented with something that is reasonable and fair but maybe not in his best business interest, he really listens and strives to do the right thing."

But the fresh eyes of the outsider is perhaps the most essential thing that Stauber has brought to a city that for many years discounted the value of its historic structures.

"It's not like we found something that was hidden someplace. The Gimbels building. The Ewart Building. They were in full view for 20 years, shuttered up. I saw what could be a tremendous opportunity," Stauber said. "One of the biggest impediments to a full-blown revival is the native Pittsburgher's reluctance to believe in how great a city it really is."



Bonnie Pfister can be reached at bpfister@tribweb.com or 412-320-7886.

[JAM1218]

Frick Bldg is nice, but can't shine a candle to the Union Trust, completed two years after Frick. The circular central atrium opens up to magnificent stained glass, and on the upper floors is a magnificent, though perhaps gaudy, double-level theater, with gilded moldings and red velvet seats (great place to sit though PowerPoint presentations, because the room is a wonderful distraction). Marble floors throughout, except for beehive tiles in the loos. Once of my favorite buildings DT, except, possibly the Bank Bldg on Fourth. Hard to appreciate some of these structures untill you see them from above. Little details that aren't visible from the street abound on these buildings.

[PA Pride]

Wow, the Tribune posted an awesome article... Cool! Good posting of that article Evergrey. I really enjoy stories like that. I want to be a developer who makes "significant profits" and helps turn the city I love around. Here is one native Pittsburgher who understands the potential and what a great city Pgh already is and what changes can make it way better!!!

[hyperion1110]

This is a very interesting article, as it discusses the ongoing city-county consolidation saga. I'm not sure how much benefit there would be from a merger if all the municipal governments were left in tact. Still, even seeing the jump in the population of Pittsburgh from 300K to 1.3 million would have a huge impact on perception, both regionally and nationally. We would no longer be lumped in the same category with Charlotte or Minneapolis. Rather, our city would be the population equivalent of Phoenix, Houston, or Philadelphia.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07210/805331-181.stm


Issues strain the ties between Pittsburgh mayor and Allegheny County executive
Is the lovefest between Ravenstahl and Onorato over?

Sunday, July 29, 2007
By Rich Lord and Ann Belser, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

At first blush, it looked like the fates had aligned to bring the city and county together.

Two North Siders and family friends, Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato and Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, showed every indication of being able work closely together. They talked openly about the ability to consolidate services and perhaps make history on Grant Street.

On Oct. 19, they unveiled the Advisory Committee to Enhance Efficiency and Effectiveness of County and City Government, with an eye to exploring everything from minor collaborations to a full merger of city and county government.

"A year from now, when you ask the question, 'Should the city merge with the county?', we'll have the answer," Mr. Ravenstahl said then.

Nine months later, that answer seems far off, because the relationship between the mayor and chief executive has apparently cooled just as differences in philosophy on city-county relations emerge.

Mr. Onorato, the more established politician with apparent gubernatorial ambitions and the ability to raise millions, has found himself by turns overshadowed by, or dragged into stories about, the mayor. After a July 16 trip to Louisville, Ky., to study that city's consolidation with its county, their differences extended into the policy arena.

Mr. Onorato has touted the Louisville model, in which city government folds into the county while suburban municipalities are left untouched. Mr. Ravenstahl said on Friday that he's unconvinced.

Louisville officials "were quite honest that the savings were not there," the mayor said. "I'm not interested in consolidating just to consolidate. I'm interested in consolidating to provide a more efficient and better government of the residents of the city ... If not, why have the discussion?"

The two maintain that their relationship is healthy, though they don't always meet weekly, a practice Mr. Onorato and the late Mayor Bob O'Connor started.

"Sometimes our schedules force us to be flexible, but we have a positive working relationship and we continue to work as partners with the shared goal of the revitalization of our region," said Mr. Onorato, in a brief e-mail from Milan, Italy, where he was attending a conference.

"I'd characterize our relationship as good," said Mr. Ravenstahl.

There was a time when the two seemed politically inseparable.

On Dec. 4, Mr. Onorato and U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle flanked the mayor as he announced his bid for election to the office he's held since the Sept. 1 death of Mr. O'Connor.

"Luke had no bigger supporter than Dan Onorato, and there was nobody who guaranteed Luke the Mayor's Office as much," said city Councilman William Peduto, who launched a bid for mayor but, behind in the polls, withdrew in late March.

Mr. Onorato was the biggest donor to Mr. Ravenstahl's campaign and helped him raise other funds and secure the Democratic Committee endorsement. Mr. Peduto said the county executive even told contributors not to donate to the challenger, making him "the creator of the Ravenstahl administration."

In January came the first hint of a payoff for taxpayers from that close relationship, when the city and county announced they would jointly buy uniforms, fuel, office supplies and other goods. Though that fell short of a full purchasing merger sought by Mr. Onorato, the two leaders said it would shave $700,000 to $1 million from the city's costs.

The two also engineered a joint purchase of telephone services.

They avoided any dustups over Port Authority bus route cuts, with the mayor at one forum calling the executive "the boss" when asked about the issue.

Starting last month, though, the mayor made it abundantly clear that he's nobody's caddy.

First he seized the lead on using the U.S. Open to publicize the city, launching a billboard campaign and spending much time working the media at Oakmont Country Club -- despite the fact that it sits in the county, but far outside the city.

Then, on June 14, he announced that he was requesting the resignations of 10 city and authority officials (an eleventh was later requested) including Pittsburgh Parking Authority Executive Director David Onorato, the county executive's brother. All were asked to reapply as part of a search process, and just one, Urban Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Jerome Dettore, has said that he will leave.

Dan Onorato hasn't talked publicly about the request for his brother's resignation.

Another political figure whose brother was asked to resign is state Sen. Jay Costa, D-Forest Hills, brother of city Public Works Director Guy Costa. Sen. Costa said he found out that the mayor had asked for his brother's resignation after the letters went out, but isn't upset.

"I've got no issues with Luke Ravenstahl and the mayor's office," he said, adding that he spent the last month and a half in Harrisburg putting together a $60 million economic package benefitting the city and county.

In early July, news broke that Mr. Ravenstahl attended the exclusive Mario Lemieux Celebrity Invitational charity golf tournament as a guest of the Penguins one day, and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center the next. The city Ethics Hearing Board is reviewing whether that violated a city code ban on accepting gifts from parties with matters before the city.

Mr. Onorato faces no such gift ban -- he is just required to report gifts he receives annually. But news that Mr. Onorato, too, attended the invitational brought attention to the comparative looseness of ethics rules on the county side.

"There seems to be a sort of cooling of the relationship," said former county executive Jim Roddey, whose comments jibed with those made privately in the Onorato and Ravenstahl camps. "Luke seems to be listening to people around him and not listening to Dan Onorato."

Mr. Peduto agreed.

"I think Dan Onorato has seen the public's perception change toward Luke and he has not been as visibly connected at the hip with him," he said.

County Councilman Jim Burn, D-Millvale, the chairman of the Allegheny County Democratic Committee, said his work with both men recently has demonstrated their relationship is still strong. He said sometimes when the issues get heated in politics, people read more into them than they should.

Concerns about the strength of the relationship between Mr. Onorato and Mr. Ravenstahl peaked after the two went to Louisville. Several others who went on the trip said there was no outward animosity, but agreed that the mayor's administration has been, as one put it, "fairly noncommittal" about more city-county consolidation.

While several attendees seemed impressed by Louisville's city-county merger, the mayor said his primary question went unanswered.

"I kept coming back to the question: 'What are the benefits?'" Mr. Ravenstahl said. "How are [city residents'] lives better because of consolidation?"

The answer he got, he said, was that residents' lives didn't get any worse -- a result he finds underwhelming.

In early 2005, Mr. Onorato and Mr. Murphy said they had been meeting for months to develop a ballot question about the merger that they wanted to put to a referendum that November.

Back then, Mr. Onorato said the region should follow the Louisville model of merging the city and county while leaving the municipalities around the city intact. "We're going to streamline government. We're going to make it a big city again. We're going to make it business friendly. Companies are going to want to be here," he said.

The referendum never materialized, but Mr. Onorato has repeatedly reiterated his hope for a merger.

Mr. Ravenstahl has kept his options open, insisting that any change benefit taxpayers and give city residents a strong voice in their future. He has focused on negotiating pacts with his neighbors, like an 8-month-old deal to collect trash in Wilkinsburg. He's in talks with other municipalities about more refuse collection pacts, and perhaps shared policing arrangements.

"There's a lot more commonalities, to be quite frank, between us and other municipalities than there are between us and the county," he said.

The issue is about to come to a head.

The efficiency committee, led by University of Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg, has essentially finished its fact-finding phase.

The process of sorting through the information and making recommendations is about to begin, with five meetings scheduled between now and the end of October. That schedule means any report won't come until after the Nov. 6 General Election, in which Mr. Onorato is unopposed, but Mr. Ravenstahl faces Republican businessman Mark DeSantis.

Mr. DeSantis wants a phased consolidation, starting with combining of similar functions, leading toward a full merger.

The efficiency committee has hired Rand Corp. to study the economic performance of metropolitan areas in which cities and counties have merged, according to Mr. Nordenberg's office. The chancellor's office would not say when the committee, which has operated quietly so far, plans to get public input.

Also unanswered: when a report is expected, and whether its contents will be decided by consensus or majority vote. The 13-member committee includes representatives of the city and county, plus business and labor leaders.

Consolidation backers said that any chill in relationships across Forbes Avenue wouldn't necessarily kill cooperation efforts, but would slow them.

"I did not have a good relationship with Tom Murphy," said Mr. Roddey, who was county executive from 2000 through 2003. "We were able to get the 911 [dispatch system] combined, but that took four years."

It was finalized early in Mr. Onorato's term.

Mr. Onorato and Mr. Murphy merged the city's fingerprinting program into the county's and, under a court order, the Pittsburgh Magistrates Court was consolidated into the Court of Common Pleas.

Some county officials want more of the city's work.

County Treasurer John Weinstein presented the idea of collecting city taxes to Mr. Murphy when he was mayor, then Mr. O'Connor, and now Mr. Ravenstahl. He said at the very least it would save the costs of printing and postage if one bill went out to city taxpayers.

"I can collect taxes and invest the money and generate a better rate of return by pooling our resources," Mr. Weinstein said. He also wants the county to take over issuing dog licenses for the city.

Mr. Weinstein said Mr. Ravenstahl has been "very positive" about his ideas.

Mr. Roddey said they should be trying to combine parks departments, all purchasing, mail rooms and other departments. He said that's crucial for the city, which is expected to seek further state help with its finances, but must first "demonstrate that they can get a lot more efficient."

Kevin Joyce, owner of the Carlton restaurant, Downtown, and chairman of the Pennsylvania Restaurant Association, said such talks are important to the county, too, which is now weighing a drink tax to fund the Port Authority. "It seems to me that this money could be found through city-county consolidation, and I don't see the mayor and the county executive working on that."

[hyperion1110]

Well, I don't like what had to happen in order to make this a reality, but PA will finally have an National Park.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07210/805354-85.stm

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20070729wap_93memorial_450.jpg

The design for a memorial is shown in this artist's rendering titled "Entry Portal" by The Partner Organization for The Flight 93 Memorial. The memorial is to be built on the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, crash near Shanksville. Architects are Aleksander Novak-Zemplinski.


Park Service approves Flight 93 memorial plan
$57 million project on track to open in Shanksville in 2011

Sunday, July 29, 2007
By Len Barcousky, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A top National Park Service executive has approved plans for the Flight 93 memorial, a step that keeps the $57 million project on track to open in 2011.

The decision by John Latschar, the acting northeast regional director for the Park Service, was announced yesterday in Somerset at a quarterly meeting of the project's advisory group.

The new national park will be built near Shanksville in Stonycreek Township where United Flight 93 crashed on Sept. 11, 2001. Strong evidence indicates that the plane came down as some of the 40 passengers and crew members battled terrorists who had taken control of their aircraft. Officials believe the hijackers had intended to fly the plane into either the White House or the Capitol.

About three dozen people attended the three-hour session in the Somerset County Courthouse.

Advisory group members also received an update on site visitation and fundraising efforts.

During July, about 20,000 people are expected to travel to the temporary memorial at the crash site, according to Donna Glessner, Flight 93 Ambassadors coordinator. The volunteer Ambassadors explain to visitors what happened in Somerset County on Sept. 11 and answer their questions.

Visitors continue to leave hundreds of personal memorials at the site, Ms. Glessner said. She showed images of some of the 140 ceramic tiles made by students from South Amherst, Ohio.

The Ohio visitors came to Shanksville recently after visiting Washington, D.C. Many school groups are making similar journeys, she said. "It took courage ... they had bravery," said one tile. "Another offered a "Salute to the people who died."

Ed Root, president of Families of Flight 93 Inc., reported that Somerset County has turned over about $616,000 to the group he heads. Most of the money had been donated in the weeks and months right after Sept. 11, and had been held in trust by the county.

The bulk of the funds likely will be applied toward land acquisition for the memorial and park, he said.

Mr. Root's cousin, Lorraine Bay, was a flight attendant on Flight 93.

Final planning for a $30 million fundraising effort is under way, according to Loretta Cooper of the National Parks Foundation.

Ms. Cooper said that while everyone agrees that the 40 passengers and crew members on Flight 93 were heroes, those who are working to honor them also are heroic.

"Those men and women have dedicated a huge chunk of their lives to the construction of an honorable and just form of recognition for the heroes of Flight 93," she said.

The foundation's capital campaign will get under way in October.

Groundbreaking for the memorial is scheduled for sometime in 2009, according to Jeff Reinbold, former Park Service project manager. At least part of the permanent memorial should be completed by 2011.

The decision by Mr. Latschar to approve the memorial design met with disapproval from one member of the public. Alec Rawls told the advisory committee he opposed the design because it included what he describes as "Islamic terrorist" geometric elements. Mr. Rawls has written a book, "Crescent of Betrayal," detailing his objections.

The memorial's original design, unveiled in September 2005, had included what designer Paul Murdoch called a "crescent of embrace." That element was modified to form a rough circle or bowl in response to complaints that the crescent was a symbol too closely associated with Islam. The Flight 93 hijackers all were Muslims.

Mr. Rawls' continued criticism of the design drew rebukes from Mr. Root and from a member of the advisory group.

The winning design for the Flight 93 memorial was chosen from among about 1,000 proposals through a process that Mr. Root described as inclusive and democratic.

Advisory group member Ed Linenthal called Mr. Rawls' complaints "bizarre." For Mr. Rawls to be correct, the hundreds of people who worked on the design selection process had to be "too blind to see .. too uncaring or cowardly to act."

The advisory group, made up of representatives from the Flight 93 Memorial Task Force and the Flight 93 Advisory Commission, includes many relatives of passengers and crew.

The group's next session will be Oct. 27 near New York City at a soon-to-be picked location. Flight 93 originated at Newark International Airport.

Len Barcousky can be reached at lbarcousky@post-gazette.com or 724-772-0184.

[BMikeSci]

Great article Evergrey!

[JAM1218]

I can't believe those Shadyside Market House condos are so supremely ugly from the exterior. It makes me sad, since I've got a roll of site plans for them leaning against my bookcase, my SO spent nearly 2.5 years on them (before quitting in utter disgust over how much he had to correct):shrug: :shrug:

[Evergrey]

how incredibly annoying... Mt. Washington is such an under-performing area... the view is incomparable... it should be one of Pittsburgh's premiere "magnets for investment"... but Grandview Ave. and its glorious view that should be bringing in $$$ for the city is squandered on decade-old dirt pits and bland low-density single-family housing... especially western Grandview past the proposed Bella Vista site... where crummy ranch houses hog huge weedy lots offering the best urban vista in America... it's pathetic and embarrassing... especially when you compare it to the condo high-rise development on the hilltops of Cincinnati... they know how to exploit a view

I'm not suggesting a wall of high-rises... but there would be nothing wrong at all with a few more Trimonts or smaller condo complexes... Mt. Washington's potential is through the roof... More available quality housing on Mt. Washington would be one of the most effective ways for attempting to increase the population (especially high-wage population)... as a lot of suburban-leaning people would probably consider a Mt. Washington condo even if they weren't thinking about living anywhere else in the city... due to its view... and supreme convenience to downtown...

The NIMBYs on Mt. Washington... like many people in the Pittsburgh area... like to pretend they don't live in a major city... and they seem to prefer their neighborhood to retain the status quo and stagnate... as opposed to evolving and acheiving greatness... they want to keep that view all for themselves... no newcomers and their fancy condos allowed! Pretend it's a suburb and keep everything nice and low-density and low-height. Heck, it's only been in the past year that their tiny business district on Shiloh has reached the humble status of "mediocre". Enough of my ranting... I just think Mt. Washington should be so much more than a crummy area from which you can view Downtown (if it isn't obscured by sumac)

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07211/805460-53.stm

Mount Washington residents, developer remain at odds over 2 condo projects

Monday, July 30, 2007

By Diana Nelson Jones, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After years of opposition to Craig Cozza's two proposed condominium developments, some Mount Washington residents have reached the point of just wanting him to do something.

They say he has tied up two huge pieces of prime real estate on Grandview Avenue for years and turned them into eyesores. The parcels are at 341 Grandview, at Bertha Street, and in the 1400 block, between Sweetbriar and Augusta streets.

The antagonism that several dozen Mount Washington residents have harbored for Mr. Cozza over the years has become something of an epic as neighborhood fights go. Mr. Cozza may be their poster boy, but he said the people who are complaining about his inaction are the reason for it, having challenged him in court and in the hearing rooms of the city.

"We had hoped [the condos] would have been built already," he said Friday, "but a small group of people don't want these to happen."

Of the property at 341 Grandview, where a sign announces "VICI on Grandview," an "exclusive 14-unit luxury condominium project," he said, "We just started moving dirt and will continue doing site work. It should start going up this year."

The update amuses many neighbors who have listened to such promises for years.

"No one believes him anymore," said Joyce Renne. "He does just enough to keep a project going, and it's not really a project. He moves dirt around."

"It's certainly not our intent" to drag it out, Mr. Cozza said. Investments on both projects amount to $44 million, he said. "Obviously, we didn't buy these just to sit on them."

Mr. Cozza told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 1999 that he planned to build a high-rise with underground parking on the site of three properties in the 1400 block. The 37-condo, 10-story complex would be just west of Trimont, a 25-story apartment building. He hoped to break ground that year and begin selling units in 2000.

In February 2002, he said he was ready to break ground in a month.

Today, the steel beams in a retaining wall are rusted. The wall is the height of a two-story parking garage. Adjacent to the wall is a house that neighbors say is uninhabitable because of the dig. The owners could not be reached.

Mr. Cozza said he had intended to buy the house but that the owners, David and Annette Hostoffer, "bought it out from under me" in 1999 and since have sued him. He said he thinks it was a strategy to stop him.

With the proposed name Bella Vista, Italian for "beautiful view," the open-air pit inspires Frank Valenta's sarcasm.

"This is a great view, isn't it?" said Mr. Valenta, a longtime antagonist and vice president of Mount Washington Community Development Corp., sweeping his arm over the pit. "This is prime real estate. How could the neighborhood have let this happen?"

He said the system is failing neighborhoods by not setting time limits.

"The guy has to be held accountable," he said.

Residents did protest long and loud over the years, arguing that a townhouse-height development would better suit the scale of the neighborhood.

In June 2004, more than 50 residents crowded a city planning commission hearing, most to support changing the height limit for new buildings on Grandview between Shiloh Street and Bigham Street from 100 to 40 feet, in part to stymie Mr. Cozza's efforts at 341 Grandview.

Later that month, the planning commission and Zoning Board of Adjustment granted the special exceptions Mr. Cozza needed for the 14-condo project to be 73 feet high as he had proposed.

Residents appealed to Common Pleas Court.

Mr. Cozza also was sued by the owner of half a duplex near the project at 341 Grandview after he bought the other half and began making plans to raze it. He eventually bought the plaintiff out and has recently bought another house nearby and had it demolished, he said.

It has been more than two years since Judge Joseph James affirmed the city's decision that the complex at 341 Grandview could exceed 40 feet. Mr. Cozza told the Post-Gazette then that he expected to break ground that summer, 2005.

The lawsuit at 1400 Grandview is tying his hands on the Bella Vista project, he said, but the way is clear on the other.

Asked why it has gone nowhere in two years, he said, "We've been doing other projects" during the challenges on Grandview. "It's slow ... slower than we'd like."

Paul Tellers, board president of Mount Washington Community Development Corp., said he initially wanted "to give the guy a break, because financing can take time." But no longer, he said.

"Vici in Italian means 'I conquer,' which is kind of interesting," he said. "We're wondering what legal recourse we have" to force a deadline, "but we're not coming up with much. We're stuck in a mode of giving him time whether we like it or not."



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Diana Nelson Jones can be reached at djones@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1626.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_519653.html

Market Square may get historical makeover

By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, July 30, 2007


Two Market Square landmarks could be poised to regain their early-20th century charm when the city's Historic Review Commission weighs renovation plans Wednesday.
Developers and architects believe the improvements will heighten the appeal of the square -- a place many avoid because of the prevalence of homeless people and panhandlers.

Washington County developer Lucas Piatt said exterior renovations to the vacant G.C. Murphy Building will restore a 1920s or '30s era look, based on photographs of the store in its heyday. On the opposite side of Market Square, Nicholas Coffee Co. plans to turn a closed bar into a coffee shop with an old-style European look.

Most of Piatt's $32 million renovation project is to begin by year's end. Retail space will occupy the first floor of the G.C. Murphy Building, and most of the 38,000-square-foot headquarters of the YMCA will be on the second floor. The Y will occupy a portion of another floor as well.

"The benefit of having the activity back in the building is huge," Piatt said. "The tax repercussions for the city will be phenomenal."
Piatt's project will receive about $6 million in state aid and benefit from tax credits for restoring historic buildings.

Downtown architecture firm Strada LLC is handling the design work on the G.C. Murphy Building and nearby structures, such as the adjoining seven-story D&K Building.

"There's a combination of architectural styles within all these buildings," said John Martin, a Strada principal. "We're trying to bring the buildings as close as we can to their own original look."

Original brick that was painted over will be exposed, decorative stone fixtures at the entrance will be rebuilt, and windows will be replaced.

"The (historic commission) would rather you don't invent," Martin said. "They don't want it to be Disneyized."

To avoid that, he's relying on photographs of the buildings from the 1930s to help guide the design. Martin said he thinks the commission will approve the project. The changes still would need approval from the state Museum and Historic Commission.

Nicholas Coffee hopes to expand its imported coffee, tea and spices business to include the former Mick McGuire's bar next door on Graeme Street. The Irish pub was closed Jan. 12 after police arrested three people accused of dealing drugs from the business.

Architect Doug Sipp of Sipp & Tepe Architects has designed about $50,000 worth of facade renovations for coffee shop owner Nicholas G. Nicholas. The interior would be changed into a cafe offering coffee, espresso, pastries and other treats.

"The facade will be like a step-down European storefront," said Mike Kratsas, project manager. "There will be large windows like an old-time storefront."

Arthur Ziegler, president of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, welcomed both of the historically sensitive upgrades to Market Square.

"I think that both coming together give a great deal of substance to the effort to make the square a vital part of the residential Downtown," Ziegler said. "Restoring historic buildings creates an environment where people want to be."


Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or (412) 765-2312.

[UrbaniDesDev]

repeat

[UrbaniDesDev]

I love the article on Aaron Stauber. The type of outside visionary needed here.

I80
I personally hate the idea of I 80 becoming toll road. I have a deep mistrust of anything the Turnpike Commission is involved with, and hate that the entire highway system in Pa. will be under their tight control. I don't believe this was the only option to turning around the states miserable infrastructure and mass transportation problems. I believe it to reflect badly on the state. I never take I 80, mostly because it's deteriorated state, particularly in the NE. I hate the fact that I80 is a decrepit crumble of a 4 lane highway with no median in the NE then crosses into NJ to become a wide 8 lane toll free road in Jersey with wide median. When ever possible, I always try to take the route that is toll free. I often take 22 that becomes a wide "toll free" freeway through the middle of the state. I don't feel the Turnpike Commissions choices over the years were in the states best interests but made for their own interests as the primary goal and the benefit of the state secondary.

Mount Washington
It's time that Mount Washington residents give up their strangle hold on development up there. They have stifled development with some misconceived notion that they are in some far out of the way area of the city and not a district that borders on Downtown.

The Trimont was originally to be built as a twin tower, now a huge vacant lot sits there on Grandview. Grandview is lined with empty lots and commonplace houses, other than the ones that can eek out a view of the city. The neighborhood away from Grandview is middle of the road at best. Their argument always seems to be there is not the infrastructure in place to handle the traffic that taller buildings will bring. Does noone else agree that the solution to that problem might be to upgrade the infrastructure to allow for construction of major developments rather than stopping them all together?

Perhaps by focusing on the less notable access routes onto Mount Washington. McCardle Roadway is NOT the only road to the top! Greenleaf Street at it's west, Shaler Street, Merrimac and Woodruff Streets. East Sycamore Street, William Street and Warrington Avenues all have fairly easy access to Grandview but are, either in terrible condition or need upgraded to handle more traffic. Particularly Shaler which has nearly direct access to the Parkway, as well as the West End, along the back of the Mountain. It is an underutilized street that can be potentially a huge asset as well as being lush and green.

I would like to see a complete upgrade and beautification of Shaler Street, Wabash Street and Woodville Avenue. Their impotance to both Mount Washington and the West End is immeasurable.
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/MountWashington.jpg

It's this outdated mentality that infuriates me. I love Pittsburgh's tight historical neighborhoods. I've never considered Mount Washington, as a whole, to be one of them. In fact, outside of a few pockets, I find it to be a mish mash of early century homes to an odd collection of 50s and 60s suburban style ranches. Hardly a district that warrants the tight regulations that stop development continuing that would benefit the city immeasurably. For too long they consider themselves untouchable. I have never heard an argument from their group that would justify their stance.

What is up with that building just to the East of the Mon Incline? A strategic property that hangs over the side of the mountain at the very eastern edge of Grandview and has sat there empty for years? What property has more going for it? Steps from the incline, a short walk across the Smithfield and a world class view. Empty for years and deteriorating!?

[themaguffin]

It's interesting that Luke has recently been down playing the consolidation thing. I'm sure it has nothing to do with his awful decision making skills and the fact that such a change in government would affect his job (even though he has to realize how far off this is).

It is painful to hear him speak.

[BMikeSci]

I was up on Mt Washington last night looking at the great views. It really is a magnificent location. It should be developed and made into a show place. I mean why not? More housing isn't like putting in a factory or waste conversion facility. NIMBYs should be concentrating on getting rid of coal fired furnaces - not upscale architecture - that is, so long as the projects include their own parking.

Also, great news about market square. Now that the buses are out, I go there frequently to play chess. Years ago I visited Florence Italy. They have a large square bordered by many cafes. At night the town plays video recordings of symphonic performances. The visuals are directed against a large brick wall - so the visual quality was not great, but the music is wonderful, and people stay out in the cafes talking, eating, and drinking til late. We could have that here too. Perhaps the symphony would sponsor it, show their own video performances, and possibly build their fan base. They can call it Symphony in the Square. If the restaurants make enough, they could pay for the video jockey. I don't think it would cost very much at all. It should be possible to track down a projector of some sort. The city, no doubt, already owns audio/visual equipment; so the costs would be:

Equipment transportation, setup, and removal
VJ
Cleanup
Publicity
Security

Now that the square is looking better with less noise and no deisel fumes, people will go there if they have a reason. It would be a real shame, if the whole summer passed by without a few night-time events there. Something following fireworks night at PNC park would be great. People are already in town for that; so a few flyers handed out at the bridge from PNC park to the downtown would likely draw a good sized crowd.

Building a reason to go to market square now should aid development a lot. Show that Market Square is a destination, and more businesses will open, more restoration projects will happen, and more development will occurr.

There are any number of quiet places to visit in the downtown. I have favorite benches and parks I like to visit. IMO, Market Square and PPG Place are the two best active spots that are pleasant for sitting and people watching. These two spots should be enhanced.

I've come to really like the fountain at PPG Place. I found out that the plaza there is not designed by Phillip Johnson - as the buildings are. At one time te street went through. So the fountain, pavers, and obilisque are new and by a different designer. I've heard that the obilisque is suppposed to be a visual rhyme with the top of one of the older buildings in that area. I just don't get it though. To me the obilisque is simply out of place. It's like putting tassels on the Parthenon. It doesn't fit the design. As I said, the fountain is great, but I really hate that obilisque. Is the designer buried under it? It looks like something from a cemetary. Who did design it? Was it an idiot relative of the chairman of PPG? And speaking of cemetaries, Philiip Johnson must be turning over in his grave;-)

[BMikeSci]

BTW, there is an old awning that is just about falling apart. It is in that small street that goes out to Fifth. I think it is attached to part of the G.C. Murphy building. It would take about ten minutes to remove it and greatly improve the look of that part of the square. $32 million renovations are great, but somethings can be done cheaply and to great benefit. That awning is also unsafe.

Similarly, the demolition project that is ongoing at a snails place on the next block west looks very dangerous to me for a number of reasons: First, there is probably asbestos in those exposed walls; Second, the two buildings with their backs off look ready to collapse, and finally, construction materials oftenfall off from just a little wind, and since the dumpster has been removed, the area is not fenced off. With all the attention the square is getting - including events for children, these kinds of safety issues shouldn't be allowed.

[hyperion1110]

BMikeSci, the Symphony in the Square is an excellent idea. It's almost like a high culture version of the movies in the parks. I think it would be a wonderful idea that could be made a reality with little work.

As far as the obelisk goes, though...I actually enjoy it. The monolith hearkens back to the Italian piazzas, such as those in Rome, which feature Egyptian obelisks prominently. The only thing I would say is that it should be taller so that it looks less like a hunk of stone and more like a monument.

[BMikeSci]

BMikeSci, the Symphony in the Square is an excellent idea. It's almost like a high culture version of the movies in the parks. I think it would be a wonderful idea that could be made a reality with little work.

As far as the obelisk goes, though...I actually enjoy it. The monolith hearkens back to the Italian piazzas, such as those in Rome, which feature Egyptian obelisks prominently. The only thing I would say is that it should be taller so that it looks less like a hunk of stone and more like a monument.

At one time the city was asking for projects of this sort and giving small grants to make them a reality. Do you know if this is still going on? I would be willing to try to do some coordination to get this to happen.

[Grego43]

how incredibly annoying... Mt. Washington is such an under-performing area... the view is incomparable...it's pathetic and embarrassing... especially when you compare it to the condo high-rise development on the hilltops of Cincinnati... they know how to exploit a view

I'm not suggesting a wall of high-rises... but there would be nothing wrong at all with a few more Trimonts or smaller condo complexes... .


Wow, Evergrey...

Today I returned to Florida from Cincinnati...(a visit to my partner's family). Every time I'm there I am amazed at the amount of high-quality, mid-to-highrise residential buildings utilizing a view not half as beautiful as that from Mt. Washington. Not only is there great density (but not over powering density) on the bluffs overlooking the city, but there is tons of infill construction along the river vistas as well. I've seen price points from the entry level on up into the millions. I'm told that some buyers are young, first-time home buyers, some wealthy empty nesters, and everyone in between. If memory serves me, the braintrust in Pittsburgh changed the zoning of Mt. Washington after Trimont's construction to prevent additional highrises. Am I correct? I am also saddened by the huge amount of drab frame houses with million dollar views in Pittsburgh that never seem to get a coat of paint or a re-no. I would love to be able to move back some day, buy one of those gems, and make it shine.

[hyperion1110]

At one time the city was asking for projects of this sort and giving small grants to make them a reality. Do you know if this is still going on? I would be willing to try to do some coordination to get this to happen.

I don't know if they still have those programs. I would be inclined to say that they no longer have them, given the current financial status of the city. However, they could also be funded separately from the general budget and still exist.

I would contact the city Parks and Recreation Department:

http://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/parks/

They could likely tell you whether those moneys are still available.

I hope you're successful, if you pursue it. I think it would be a wonderful program.

[PA Pride]

Drop an atomic bomb on Mt Washington and rebuild it as a nightlife/restaurant/entertainment/highrise neighborhood!

[PA Pride]

I can't believe those Shadyside Market House condos are so supremely ugly from the exterior. It makes me sad, since I've got a roll of site plans for them leaning against my bookcase, my SO spent nearly 2.5 years on them (before quitting in utter disgust over how much he had to correct)

I agree with you completely JAM1218! No one else agrees that it is a square, ugly block of a building but I have to admit, the pictures I've seen of the interiors look quite comfortable and stylish for the price range they are in.



how incredibly annoying... Mt. Washington is such an under-performing area... the view is incomparable... it should be one of Pittsburgh's premiere "magnets for investment"... but Grandview Ave. and its glorious view that should be bringing in $$$ for the city is squandered on decade-old dirt pits and bland low-density single-family housing... especially western Grandview past the proposed Bella Vista site... where crummy ranch houses hog huge weedy lots offering the best urban vista in America... it's pathetic and embarrassing... especially when you compare it to the condo high-rise development on the hilltops of Cincinnati... they know how to exploit a view

I'm not suggesting a wall of high-rises... but there would be nothing wrong at all with a few more Trimonts or smaller condo complexes... Mt. Washington's potential is through the roof... More available quality housing on Mt. Washington would be one of the most effective ways for attempting to increase the population (especially high-wage population)... as a lot of suburban-leaning people would probably consider a Mt. Washington condo even if they weren't thinking about living anywhere else in the city... due to its view... and supreme convenience to downtown...

The NIMBYs on Mt. Washington... like many people in the Pittsburgh area... like to pretend they don't live in a major city... and they seem to prefer their neighborhood to retain the status quo and stagnate... as opposed to evolving and acheiving greatness... they want to keep that view all for themselves... no newcomers and their fancy condos allowed! Pretend it's a suburb and keep everything nice and low-density and low-height. Heck, it's only been in the past year that their tiny business district on Shiloh has reached the humble status of "mediocre". Enough of my ranting... I just think Mt. Washington should be so much more than a crummy area from which you can view Downtown (if it isn't obscured by sumac)


I feel the same way Evergrey. It's selfishand rude for Mt Wash residents to do this kind of thing. You have to remember there's alot of people in life who have very boring, sad , unimportant existences and any waves they can make or loud stupid opinions they can voice make them feel important.

[PA Pride]

-edit-

[Evergrey]

how exciting

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/pittsburghgrocery0801.aspx

Vidalia Fine Foods to open 3,100 sf market at The Encore Downtown

The Encore, a 151-unit residential development located at 100 Seventh Ave., will soon be home to Downtown’s first grocery store.

Vidalia Fine Foods, operated by local business developer and owner Robin Fernandez, will open on the ground-level of The Encore in October. Serving Downtown’s 4,000 residents, as well as the city’s many employees, visitors and businesses, the 3,100 square-foot market will carry fine foods, including locally-grown produce, fresh and frozen seafood from Wholey’s, Boar's Head deli meats and cheeses, baked goods, and prepared foods. Vidalia will also sell flowers, magazines, pet food, and cleaning supplies.

“Since the beginning of our Downtown living program, we’ve known that a grocery store is really a neighborhood icon. People are really looking to that as a signal that Downtown residential has arrived. This is the sign,” say Patty Burk with Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. “We’ve been talking with several potential possible vendors over the years. This vendor has been able to pull it together and get it underway.”

Hugh Boyd Architects designed the store’s layout; Design Stream will oversee the project’s completion. Vidalia’s catering and delivery service will be available to Encore residents and may expand to additional locations. The shop will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. “Our grocery store feasibility study recommended the hybrid store as the most appropriate model for Downtown,” says Burk, of research that shows that total grocery expenses for current Downtown households is $2.8 million per year.

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Patty Burk, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership

Photograph copyright © Jonathan Greene

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2071/encore_300.jpg

[Evergrey]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/pittsburghhotel0801.aspx

$30M 135-room Hotel Indigo in the works for East Liberty

A boutique hotel is next up to join East Liberty’s mix of new shops, markets and restaurants. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which leads the hotel industry in terms of number of rooms, is building a new 135-room Hotel Indigo at the corner of Highland Ave. and Broad St.

Pennsylvania's first Hotel Indigo, the five-story development will feature 1,200 square-feet of meeting space, a fitness center and The Golden Bean, a casual gourmet restaurant and bar. Amenities will include a 24-hour business center and high-speed Internet access in guestrooms and public areas. The hotel will feature changing artwork, music, flora, and signage. Plans for the $30 million development also call for additional restaurants.

“Hotel Indigo draws on local influences. We steer clear of cookie cutter brands, to offer consistency of services but also the unique feel of each locale,” says IHG spokesperson Joel Wascher, who cites plans for an exterior mural featuring flowers native to western Pennsylvania. “We see how much East Liberty is moving forward as far as development. You can see the area transforming. By the time the hotel opens, it will be an extremely trendy part of Pittsburgh.”

Chad Chalmers with mossArchitects is designing the hotel; project developer is Nigel Parkinson with Washington, D.C.-based Governors Hotel, Inc. Construction is slated to begin during the second quarter of 2008. The hotel is expected to open in 2009.

In 2004, IHG opened its first Hotel Indigo in Atlanta. Considered the industry's first branded boutique hotel, Hotel Indigo operates eight locations, with more than 50 in the works, throughout the U.S.

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Joel Wascher, IHG

Image courtesy of Moss Architects/InterContinental Hotels Group

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2071/indigo_pittsburgh_300.jpg

[JAM1218]

I agree with you completely JAM1218! No one else agrees that it is a square, ugly block of a building but I have to admit, the pictures I've seen of the interiors look quite comfortable and stylish for the price range they are in.

I haven't seen the interiors. Do you know if they still have the 'pineapple' doorknockers? The site plans I have (my SO kept them for portfolio reasons), the interiors seemed fantastic. I know one of the many changes the archictects had to make was to scale it down in height, so they started focusing on the interior details.

I'm sure a few details were changed after he left, but not too many - construction was well underway by then. The only exterior details he worked on were rooftops; he mostly worked on the floorplans. The firm that designed this was hampered by a few internal problems (death of an emplyee no-one knew was ill, the mistakes by that ill employee, and then heaping on of the deceased employee's work to another, whom was also, at the time, un-diagnosed of hypothyroidism and hypertension. Amazing it got done, in a way.

[BMikeSci]

More Market Square development

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_519653.html

[PA Pride]

Jam: I don't know man; I've never been to the place. I've just seen pictures. The inside is beautiful:

http://www.howardhanna.com/apps/propertysearch/homes/index.cfm?search_LN=682034&action=detail&lnsrc=c&MLSTYPE=WPML

[t-viz]

I just went to Southside works a couple days ago when I was in Pitsburgh and it was great. I liked Urban Outfitters.

[Evergrey]

http://extra.upmc.com/070713/Images/PittSkyLine.jpg

[PA Pride]

I see the sign! (and it opened up my eyes...)

[Wheelingman04]

I am so happy Pittsburgh is finally getting a downtown grocery store.:banana:

[JAM1218]

http://extra.upmc.com/070713/Images/PittSkyLine.jpg

Is this a rendering?