[PA Pride]

That article about the East Lib YMCA lead me to do a search for the building. Here is a great PopCity article from 2006 with several sweet pictures of the neighborhood: http://www.popcitymedia.com/features/37moveEL.aspx

[PA Pride]

Not suprising Riverparc is being delayed with much tighter commercial lending right now. I just hope this first big delay doesn't lead to significant downsizing or cancellation, as delays often do.

The good part about it is the Cultural Trust truly is a very solid organization and I have faith they will get something accomplished one way or the other.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_549348.html

Union Trust sale nears completion

By Ron DaParma
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, January 26, 2008


An investment group led by executives of the Mika Realty Group in Los Angeles is expected to complete the purchase of the historic Union Trust Building next week.
"Things have gone smoothly, and there have been no snags," said Jeffrey Ackerman, commercial real estate broker with CB Richard Ellis/Pittsburgh, who has been marketing the 11-story, 800,000-square-foot structure on Grant Street since last year.

The Tribune-Review reported in November that the building was under purchase agreement to the group that includes Michael Kamen, founder of privately held Mika, and a business associate, Gerson Fox, also of Los Angeles.

A purchase price has not been disclosed, but the building is assessed at $30.75 million, according to Allegheny County records.

Ackerman is working on behalf of the building's owner, Teal Rock 501 Grant Street LP, a partnership owned by Philadelphia-based Cigna Corp.
"We look at the Union Trust Building as a classic building that can't be duplicated," Rick Barreca, CEO of Mika Realty, told the Tribune-Review in November. Barreca also one of the investors in the deal.

A list of developers carried by a California business publication showed Mika as the 13th-largest developer in the Los Angeles area, with some 5.9 million square feet in commercial real estate developed.

"The buyers have hired an architectural firm to help design improvements for the building," Ackerman said. The group has said it wants to upgrade the building without disturbing its historic character.

The building, which has been known as Two Mellon Bank Center, is widely regarded as one of the city's most architecturally significant landmark buildings. It was designed in Flemish Gothic style by noted Pittsburgh architect F.J. Osterling and built in 1916 for industrialist Henry Clay Frick.

It has been nearly empty since Mellon Financial Corp. -- now Bank of New York Mellon Corp. -- moved its personnel out of the structure in May 2006.

A small number of mostly retail tenants remain on the first level, the largest being Lorrimer's clothing store.

CB Richard Ellis will handle management of the building once the sale completed, Ackerman said.

Two of its brokers, Hugh "Herky" Pollock and Jeremy Kronman, already have been working on behalf of the buyers to pitch space there to potential tenants for first floor retail and the upper floor office space, Ackerman said.

"A number of large office users have looked at the building, and they also have some very exciting prospects for the retail," said Ackerman, without disclosing names of companies involved.

"The office market really is very active right now," said Kronman. He's shown the building to numerous prospective tenants, in fact, "enough to fill up four times the available space," he said.

"We have people looking for 50,000- to 200,000-square-foot blocks, and we haven't really started our leasing campaign," he said.

The national credit crunch that has had a major impact on the U.S. residential market hasn't caused any problems with the Union Trust building deal, Ackerman said.

"The buyer has secured lender financing," he said.

Securing financing was said to be a problem with a previous potential buyer, a New York investment group that included Houlihan-Parnes/iCap Realty Advisors of White Plains and J.J. Operating Corp. of New York City.



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


http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/80605204.jpg

[Evergrey]

speaking of the Union Trust...

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08026/852416-53.stm

Equitable considers expansion options

Saturday, January 26, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Equitable Resources is considering at least three locations Downtown as well as the North Shore, SouthSide Works and Cranberry for possible expansion.

Among the sites Downtown the firm is exploring are the former Lazarus-Macy's store, now known as Piatt Place, at Fifth Avenue and Wood Street; the Union Trust Building on Grant Street; and 625 Liberty Ave., formerly known as Dominion Tower and CNG Tower.

Equitable spokesman David Spigelmyer said yesterday there are also other locations Downtown in the mix, although he did not identify them. The firm also is considering the SouthSide Works and Cranberry in Butler County, as well as possible expansion on the North Shore, where it opened a $30 million headquarters building in 2005.

Mr. Spigelmyer said that regardless of where Equitable chooses to expand, it probably will keep at least some employees on the North Shore.

One big reason is that Equitable still has 18 years to go on its North Shore lease. It probably would have to find someone to sublease the space if it were to move elsewhere.

"We very likely will maintain a presence on the North Shore because of that," Mr. Spigelmyer said.

Equitable has outgrown the 180,000-square-foot office building it occupies.

Despite the collapse of Equitable's purchase of Dominion Peoples last week, the company is still in the midst of a period of "extraordinary growth" with $1.3 billion worth of capital expansion this year alone, company officials said.

Equitable has 460 employees on the North Shore and 788 in Pennsylvania as a whole, although 75 percent of its operations are based in Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky.

While Cranberry is among the locations Equitable is considering, "our preference is to stay in Pittsburgh," Mr. Spigelmyer said.

He added that Piatt Place, the Union Trust Building or the other locations under study could end up being supplemental sites to the company's headquarters.

David Koch, a senior vice president with Fischer & Co. who is representing Equitable in its search, declined comment.

The possible expansion could generate fierce competition, given the Downtown office vacancy rate of 18.2 percent at the end of 2007.

"They're certainly a large tenant and they're going to attract a lot of attention," said Patrick Greene, a senior vice president at CB Richard Ellis, which is marketing 625 Liberty Ave.

The building totals 615,000 square feet and more than 200,000 square feet of space is available.

The Soffer Organization has offered Equitable either one or both of the new office buildings it is planning at SouthSide Works, said Mark Dellana, executive vice president of operations, development and construction.

He said Soffer submitted its offer last week when a request for proposals sent out by Equitable was due.

At Piatt Place, about 200,000 square feet of office space is available over three floors, and nearly 40,000 square feet more next door at the old Revco Building. Both are owned by developer Millcraft Industries.

Lucas Piatt, Millcraft vice president of real estate, declined comment.

Some 500,000 square feet of space could be leased at the Union Trust Building, which is on the verge of new ownership. The new owner, Mika Realty, of Los Angeles, expects to close on the $25 million purchase next week.

Jeremy Kronman, who is handling the leasing of the space for CB Richard Ellis, had no comment on Equitable.

As Equitable looks, Continental plans to make its pitch to keep the company on the North Shore. The developer has offered to build Equitable a second office building next to the existing headquarters, said Barry Ford, president of development in Pittsburgh.

He said he plans to meet with Equitable in the next couple of weeks.

"We need to make a compelling case for the North Shore, which I believe we can do. I'm anxious to continue the dialogue with them," he said.

At the same time, the city and Allegheny County are working with the state to offer possible financial incentives to Equitable to keep the firm in Pittsburgh.

Equitable hopes to make a decision on where to expand late this winter or in early spring.

Dan Fitzpatrick contributed to this report. Mark Belko can be reached at mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262.
First published on January 26, 2008 at 12:00 am

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08026/852422-53.stm

Port Authority looks to reroute East Liberty

Saturday, January 26, 2008
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

An emerging deal between the Port Authority and developer The Mosites Co. could improve bus and car flow in East Liberty and bring more stores to the booming Eastside district, the transit agency's board learned yesterday.

Once they're done rearranging a four-acre site where the East Busway, Penn Avenue and Penn Circle meet, it may include yet another complex of stores and offices in the neighborhood. Gone may be a clumsy bus loop, and cars should be able to travel both north and south along the eastern flank of Penn Circle.

The site is dubbed the Eastern Gateway because it "really is, to our mind, the gateway to East Liberty," said Ernie Hogan, deputy director of East Liberty Development Inc., which is involved in the plan. "Right now it functions as a one-way gateway."

One-way traffic along most of Penn Circle is viewed as one of the biggest barriers to yet more growth in East Liberty. It prevents the easy flow of people from the neighborhood's residential, northern half to the booming Baum-Centre corridor to the south.

Studies showed that two-way traffic from South Highland Avenue to Collins Avenue wouldn't work as long as the bus turn-around came right up to the Penn Avenue intersection. The city of Pittsburgh would need a slice of land there to make the altered intersection work.

Meanwhile, Robinson-based Mosites, which is trying to build on the success of its Eastside development, was frustrated by the site's property lines. The bus turn-around covers around 1.5 acres, while the developer's 2.5 acres is occupied by the National Indoor Tennis facility, the former Kingsley Association building and a parking lot.

Now, the developer and the agency plan to share or swap land to allow alteration of the bus flow and construction of a new store-and-office complex. Mark Minnerly, Mosites director of real estate development, said the site could support 120,000 square feet of stores and an equal amount of office space, though the exact mix would depend on the tenants and the need for a parking garage or deck.

The arrangement with Port Authority "allows us each to use essentially the same amount of land, but more efficiently," Mr. Minnerly said. This year they'll plan the site, and construction may start in 2009.

Port Authority hasn't estimated its construction costs, nor plotted the service changes that will occur while the loop is changed.

Port Authority spokesman David Whipkey said 33,000 riders pass through its East Liberty hub daily.

He said the agreement to cooperate on the site "shows that we're interested in helping to cultivate the area as a whole, and bring East Liberty back to where it once was. There's a lot of potential there."

Making Penn Circle more navigable is crucial to both the developer's and the neighborhood group's efforts.

"Two-way traffic would be a key to having a major anchor tenant such as a Target or another major retailer," said Mr. Minnerly. Target wouldn't fit on the Eastern Gateway site, he said, but could go elsewhere in the neighborhood.

ELDI plans to build 40 rental units and 50 for-sale homes on part of the former Liberty Park public housing development near Collins Avenue, Mr. Hogan said. Two-way traffic from there to South Highland would give residents a straight shot to jobs in Shadyside and Oakland.

It also would allow easy travel between East Liberty stores like Whole Foods and Larimer's emerging Bakery Square, a 285,000-square-foot retail-and-office complex at the former Nabisco bakery.

Bakery Square, a Walnut Capital project, is pivotal to funding the repair of Penn Circle.

The city expects to spend $2.8 million making the circle's eastern edge a two-way street. Of that, $2.5 million will be financed with new tax revenue from Bakery Square.

Rich Lord can be reached at rlord@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1542.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08026/852417-53.stm

And now comes the boring part

Giant machine begins drilling subway tunnels on North Shore

Saturday, January 26, 2008
By Mark Roth, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/images/200801/20080126smbore02_500.jpg
Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette
Tunnel inspector Nick Fossum walks past the tunnel boring machine that is digging on the North Shore near PNC Park. The machine will be used to create twin tunnels linking the North Shore with Downtown.The new subway tunnel connecting Downtown to the North Shore is finally getting under way.

The $10 million German-built tunnel boring machine actually got to work on Tuesday, but yesterday was when Port Authority engineers and contractors showed off their latest project.

When it's done in three years, there will be two 2,400-foot-long tunnels snaking beneath the Allegheny River, extending light-rail service to the fast-developing areas around PNC Park and Heinz Field.

Yesterday, the 500-ton machine made by Herrenknecht AG was taking a breather as workers installed giant rings behind it, which its 20 hydraulic arms will push against to keep moving through the soil.

The white, cylindrical drill, sporting the signatures of those who helped install it, sat in a concrete-lined pit 55 feet beneath street level near PNC Park.

Beginning Monday, it will start churning again and spend the next three to four weeks moving about 100 yards forward and slightly downward as it heads toward the bank of the Allegheny, said Winston Simmonds, Port Authority engineering manager.

Once it reaches that point, drilling will halt for another three weeks or so while workers finish installing the trailing gear that extends from the rear of the machine -- the control cab, the hydraulic and electrical lines that power the machine, and pipes that pump a water-and-clay mixture to the front of the cutting heads to help them slice through the earth, and then transport earth and stone back to the surface.

Because the bentonite clay that makes up the slurry is a valuable commodity, contractors have built an entire structure on the North Shore to separate the clay from the excavated earth so the clay can be reused.

Sometime in March, the machine will start "continuous mining," as Mr. Simmonds put it, moving about one foot an hour.

Asked yesterday how an observer could tell the drilling machine was at work, tunneling expert Steve Minassian pointed to a ring near the front and said, "That'll move about half an inch to an inch per minute. It's not going to spin like the engine on a 747 or the Space Shuttle."

At no point will the machine encounter water. It will burrow at least 20 feet beneath the Allegheny riverbed, and even deeper toward the center of the river.

After the machine emerges into a receiving pit underneath Stanwix Street, Downtown, it will be turned around to dig a second parallel tunnel back to the North Side.

The $435 million project is designed to capitalize on the fast-developing area around PNC Park and Heinz Field, ferrying people to that area for games and other entertainment, and bringing commuters into the city to work.

It includes plans for a new Downtown station and two new North Side stations -- an underground station near PNC Park and an above-ground station near Heinz Field.

Mark Roth can be reached at mroth@post-gazette.com or at 412-263-1130.

[PittPenn 03]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_549505.html


Budget living options on rise Downtown

By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Sunday, January 27, 2008

The Craigslist ad might go something like this: bird's-eye view of Market Square's raucous St. Patrick's Day bash; coffee shop downstairs; chance to be part of small but growing Downtown residential scene.

Bill Jacobowitz, 80, of Oakland is counting on two 1,000-square-foot lofts he's putting in above the Starbucks in Market Square to be an easy sell to young professionals who "want to roll out of bed and walk to work" and enjoy the nearby Cultural District.

"There are apartments all around town, but I think this is going to develop into a real Downtown residential area," said Jacobowitz, who since 1980 has owned the two-story building where he once ran a hardware store. "We thought we had really good space and a terrific location."

Downtown abodes largely have been the domain of luxury condo developers and wealthy residents, but Jacobowitz is eager to join a small vanguard of landlords renovating empty pockets of building space into nonluxury lofts, making the new wave of Downtown living affordable to young professionals.

The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's "Vacant Upper Floors Initiative" paid architect Rob Pfaffman to design Jacobowitz's two lofts, which could rent for about $1,200 a month. Some for-sale apartments inspired by the Upper Floors Initiative aim to fill the gap below the $330,000 minimum price tag on the luxury pads of Piatt Place or the $250,000 minimum of 151 First Side.

"The whole plan from the get-go was our belief in the marketability of Downtown residences," said Rob Chiarelli, who is managing Arriba Construction's renovations to put 12 apartments in the Keystone Picture Frame Building on Liberty Avenue.

"We didn't think they made sense at $350,000 or $300,000, so ours will priced starting at about $200,000," said Chiarelli, whose wife, Karina Chavez, owns Arriba and the building.

Patty Burk, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's vice president of housing and economic development, said the group is targeting 265 Downtown buildings that have empty, wasted space that could to be renovated into residential space. The group performed a "windshield survey" of Downtown buildings between two and eight stories tall with vacant space that could be turned into living space.

According to a 2006 study the partnership commissioned, renovating those Golden Triangle buildings could add 750 to 1,000 residential units. The PDP estimates there are about 5,724 Downtown housing units.

The PDP's assistance program has a $1.2 million annual budget and has caught on slowly since 2006. Twelve building owners, including Jacobowitz and Chirelli, have either taken free architectural work worth $7,000 to $12,000 or simply have been inspired by the partnership's vision to add Downtown residents.

According to 2000 U.S. Census data, 5,222 people lived Downtown.

"These places can be put in cheaper than a high rise," Burk said.

"Downtowns across the country are focusing on residential because that's what brings vibrancy back," she said. "We've had a great office market and visitor business, but the residential is what we're focusing on because residential is lagging behind."

Vacant office space Downtown has fallen steadily to 16.6 percent by the end of 2007, according to commercial real estate firm Grubb & Ellis. The vacancy rate was 19.2 at the end of 2006.

A 2005 Brookings Institution report on the residential growth of 45 U.S. downtowns put Pittsburgh's in a "slow-growing" category behind "established" downtowns in cities such as Philadelphia and Chicago and quickly "emerging" ones in Denver, Cleveland and Milwaukee.

Small investments in downtown living give Pittsburgh a chance to join the ranks of the nation's well-established city centers, said Pfaffman, the architect assisting Jacobowitz.

Primanti Bros. owner Jim Patrinos pioneered apartment living in Market Square by putting two lofts above his Market Square restaurant -- next door to the Starbucks. High demand has kept the lofts rented since opening, Pfaffman said.

"The idea of living on Market Square above the coffee shop sounds appealing to me," Pfaffman said. "It was an interesting process. As an elderly couple, they don't necessarily understand how young people think about housing. The lifestyles are a bit different. But once they had help and figured it out, they were really excited about it."

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

[PA Pride]

Downtown is still woefully under-utilized for residential. I wouldn't be suprised to see downtowns residential population grow to 10 times it's current size in our lifetime. Even more if developers could find a way to offer condos for purchase in about the 150-220k range. They would sell out quickly.

[Wheelingman04]

^ It is definately possible.

[Brentsters]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/01/28/story7.html?b=1201496400%5E1581264

Buhl Building has new owners, makeover could soon follow

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Tim Schooley
Friday, January 25, 2008

One of Downtown's most distinctive structures might be poised for revitalization.

N&P Properties LLC has acquired the Buhl Building, a 1910 structure based at the edge of Market Square, from Lirudo Co., which is operated by the family of local real estate investor Bill Rudolph.

N&P's initials are familiar in Market Square as the partnership between Nick Nicholas, owner of Nicholas Coffee, and Jim Patrinos, owner of Primanti Bros. Restaurants, both of which have locations in the square.

According to county records, N&P paid $1.35 million for the six-story, 18,000-square-foot building that includes two other adjoining properties.

After closing on the sale last month, Nicholas said the partners are studying how to reposition the building, whose upper floors are vacant and in need of renovations. The street level is occupied by retail tenants, including a Parkvale Bank branch.

N&P considered turning the building into a boutique hotel, but it is now evaluating its potential as office space or apartments. Nicholas said one option includes replacing the smaller adjoining structures with a larger building that would double the Buhl's floor size to 6,000 square feet, enough for five apartments per floor.

Besides its attractive blue terra cotta exterior, the Buhl Building boasts an appealing location, across the street from where Three PNC Plaza is being built. That 23-story mixed-used project includes a Fairmont Hotel, upscale condos and the corporate headquarters of Reed Smith LLP.

"It's going to be a great asset with PNC across the street," Nicholas said, adding that he hopes the Buhl Building will one day serve as a key gateway to Market Square. "We're excited about participating in the resurgence of Market Square."

On the other side of the Buhl Building, Washington-based Millcraft Industries is redeveloping the G.C. Murphy building. At the same time, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership is working to rejuvenate Market Square with the help of the Heinz Endowments and the Colcom Foundation to encourage more outdoor dining and be more inviting to pedestrians and nearby residents, said PDP Executive Director Mike Edwards.

The Buhl Building is registered with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. But it offers a limited amount of space and the cost of rehabilitating it could be significant, Nicholas said.

"It's not an easy deal," Nicholas said. "I'm doing this more from a love for the city than the economics of it."

Ed Shriver, a principal of Downtown-based Strada Architecture LLC who considered the Buhl Building last year as a possible joint headquarters for the Community Design Center of Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Institute of Architects and a few other local nonprofits, said that the Buhl's small floors make it difficult to renovate cost effectively.

"It's a gorgeous building. It's stunning," Shriver said. "But the floor plates are tiny, and the costs are enormous."

http://img.groundspeak.com/waymarking/a20f052b-cb52-4d8d-b21f-96fc6e77a22d.jpg

Hope this goes through, as it would really tie together all the projects where Fifth Ave and Market Sq meet. As for the 2 adjacent structures, the buildings are pretty bastardized and now house a barber shop and a nail salon. IIRC, the former was padlocked last summer for drug trafficking, so if they have to demolish them to make it cost effective I won't lose sleep.

Oh, and hopefully they put in central air so they can take out all of those AC units. :yuck:

[PA Pride]

Goddamn that's a good angle of that building!!

[Brentsters]

yeah I don't think that angle's possible anymore

[UrbaniDesDev]

With such small floor plates, wouldn't this make for wonderful unique loft apartments?
http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/BuhlBuiling.jpg

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08029/852989-85.stm

City to 'blitz' Hazelwood, tearing down 59 houses

Tuesday, January 29, 2008
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/images/200801/20080129dsdemolish_160.jpg
Darrell Sapp/Post-Gazette
This house at 409 Flowers Ave. in Hazelwood is on the list of 59 structures to be demolished.

The city of Pittsburgh plans to open bids today for the job of demolishing one in every 50 houses in Hazelwood. The aim is to dramatically improve some neighborhood blocks around the city -- and move toward abandonment of others.

The city's decision to have 59 houses in Hazelwood razed by the end of June reflects the city's new strategy of blitzing targeted neighborhoods in an effort to cut crime and fires associated with derelict structures and stabilize neighborhoods, rather than taking down houses here and there.

"For the psyche of the neighborhood, it's going to give residents the feeling that the city's taking notice of them," said Jim Richter, executive director of the Hazelwood Initiative, which helped pick the properties. "Whether or not it's going to bring long-term, substantive change, I can't tell you."

The Hazelwood blitz follows Mayor Luke Ravenstahl's decision to double the demolition budget this year to $4 million, enough to raze as many as 600 homes. The city will bid out some scattered demolition jobs to address fires and dangerous conditions, but will put much of its money into six to eight concentrated neighborhood take-downs.

Hazelwood is up first in part to prevent a repeat of the Path Way fire 13 months ago that started in an abandoned house and destroyed 12 row houses. Some of its condemned houses have been the scenes of multiple 911 calls for illicit activity, including one on Roma Way that saw 28 public safety calls in 2006.

"This is going to make a significant impact on that neighborhood," said Public Safety Director Mike Huss. The city also hopes to save money by hiring one contractor to do lots of work in one area. Demolition usually costs around $6,500 per house.

Next up may be the Allentown and Beltzhoover area, also scenes of abandoned house fires.

The Hazelwood Initiative plans to encourage neighbors to buy the resulting empty lots for side yards, and may later consider building new homes on some. The immediate result, though, may be sighs of relief from neighbors.

Ricshawn Robinson said she's glad to learn the crumbling house next to her Flowers Avenue home is going down.

"Kids play in it from time to time," she said. "It was on fire in 2004 from kids going in and playing with matches."

A block away, nature seems poised to take over. On the 400 block of Nansen Street, four homes are slated for demolition, another eight are boarded up or falling down, and just two appear occupied as weeds the size of trees encroach.

Mr. Ravenstahl's administration is honing a strategy that would merge some of the city's largely abandoned blocks into existing greenways. By the Urban Redevelopment Authority's count, 540 of the city's 1,254 condemned structures are within 300 feet of woods.

The city is working with the Penn State Cooperative Extension to identify attractive plants that would require little maintenance and could grow on abandoned lots. Also under consideration is creation of a "Green-Up Crew" within the Department of Public Works, similar to the Redd-Up Campaign but focused on improving neighborhood environments.

Some residents don't want to live in a forest.

"I think they ought to build up the city, not tear it down," said Naomi Milner, a Pittsburgh Public Schools employee and author. "We're like a ghost town now, no stores, no nothing."

The house next to hers on Chatsworth Street is among the 59 doomed structures. "That's a good, brick house," she said. She'd like to see it fixed.

A few of the houses "tugged at peoples' heart strings" said Rob Stephany, the Urban Redevelopment Authority's deputy executive director of planning and development. In the end, though, all were viewed as unsalvageable.

The 59 houses were picked from around 120 in Hazelwood that are condemned or should be condemned, said Mr. Richter. He and city Council President Doug Shields joined officials from several city departments to pick them from among more than 400 abandoned homes in the neighborhood, which census data says includes 2,746 housing units.

The condemned houses are privately owned, Mr. Huss said. The city has notified the owners of record of their impending demolition.

"Mom and pop died, kids don't want it," said Mr. Richter. "Almost all of them saw people come in and steal whatever it is they could."

Rich Lord can be reached at rlord@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1542.

[Evergrey]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/features/brubach0123.aspx

Holly Brubach: Coming Home in Style

By: Evan Pattak

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/brubach_6014_450.jpg

January 30, 2008
She’s lived in New York, where she served as a writer and editor for such magazines as Vogue and Atlantic Monthly. And in Paris where she was a staff writer for The New Yorker. And also in Milan, where she helped a promising Internet start-up named YOOX through its formative phase. She’s written three books as well as Balanchine, a television documentary of the choreographer’s life and work, for WNET.

But when Holly Brubach was ready to make her next move, she knew it was time to come home to Pittsburgh.

And Downtown will be more vital for it, as Brubach is in the process of redevelopment of the historic Granite Building on Sixth Avenue, which she envisions as a site for both residential and office condos.

Brubach, a 1971 graduate of Shaler High School, came late to her love affair with her hometown.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/granite_6052_300.jpg

“The whole time I was growing up here I never really appreciated Pittsburgh,” she says. “I thought it was an ugly city. My idea of beauty was Paris. Pittsburgh was industrial. It seemed provincial to me. Partly I’ve changed, and partly the world has changed. Industrial is now an aesthetic. People decorate in the industrial style.

“And the Internet has decentralized culture. When I was growing up and you wanted to be in magazine publishing or dance or art, the only place to be was New York. Now, there is no ‘only’ place to be. You can do that work from anywhere.”

A promising dancer forced by injury into premature retirement, Brubach graduated from Duke University before embarking on her cosmopolitan career. Her decision to return was motivated in part by the economics of life in New York City, where she was living in a loft in the trendy Tribecca district.

“The value of my loft has skyrocketed,” she says. “Life in Lower Manhattan is very expensive, and I was sitting on my equity. I felt like I was working overtime to meet my overhead.”

Once here, she found a growing cohort of contemporaries choosing Pittsburgh — for much the same reasons.

“There really are a number of people who see the possibilities here; that population will only grow as cities like New York price these people right out of the market,” she says. “The friends I have in Manhattan are moving to Brooklyn. The friends I have in Brooklyn are moving to Queens. And the people who can’t afford Queens are moving to Hoboken.”

Life in Pittsburgh has afforded her a number of lifestyle opportunities not easily available in New York. She has, for example, rowed on the Allegheny River. An avid golfer, she intends to familiarize herself with the multitude of courses in the region. And she’s become reacquainted with her car — walking everywhere, as she did in Manhattan, is out of the question. But in most regards, her hometown has exceeded her expectations.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/brubach_6037_300.jpg

“I’ve always been a dance lover. The ballet here is a good company,” she notes. “I love art. The Carnegie and the Warhol between them are very plugged into the art world. There’s a terrific literary community here. I love what the Mattress Factory does. There are some small theater companies I haven’t even begun to explore yet. I love the architecture here.

“Even though it’s a small city, when you meet people who share certain interests, you sort of assume they know everybody else who shares that interest. But they don’t, and I think, ‘Wow, how amazing that all these people here haven’t met each other.’ That’s actually kind of nice. It makes me feel not claustrophobic.”

But it’s the Granite Building that makes her feel especially upbeat about Pittsburgh. The handsome, 8.5-story structure, built in 1889 for German National Bank, is an architectural gem that occupies a choice Downtown location; its neighbors include the Duquesne Club, First Presbyterian Church and Trinity Cathedral. The building features ceilings at least 12 feet high, up to 20 windows per floor and many of the original architectural elements, including tile wainscoting, decorative arches and marble fire stairs

“I very much like the notion of historic preservation where instead of mothballing a historic structure and turning it into a museum, you find a viable new use for it,” Brubach says. “I looked at everything that was for sale Downtown. I didn’t see anything I really liked until the Granite Building. I didn’t think I needed a whole building and so kept looking for a condo. Everything I saw made me like the Granite Building even more. So I decided to take the leap and see if there was anybody else out there who would feel the same about it.”

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/window_6044_300.jpg

Dollar Bank felt the same way, providing some of the capital that allowed Brubach to purchase the building in December 2005. The floors are so spacious — about 2,700 square feet each along with a mezzanine that measures roughly 2,000 square feet — that Brubach initially envisioned the building for residential purposes only.

Indeed, that’s very much in synch with the rising popularity of Downtown living, accelerated by such upscale properties as The Encore on 7th and 151 First Side. The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh estimates that 5,000 Downtown housing units are available, with another 500 units expected to come on line. For all that, the immediate response to the Granite Building was underwhelming.

“Various service aspects of Downtown living aren’t in place yet,” Brubach says. “In other cities where I’ve lived, people in that financial bracket tend to be willing to forego some conveniences and pioneer a neighborhood because the space is great. That certainly hasn’t been true here. Many people have adopted a wait-and-see attitude about Downtown living at the high end of the market.”

Now, Brubach is marketing the building as a mixed-use property with both residential and office condos. She may divide the mezzanine into offices, with residential occupants having the option of an office as well. It’s a unique model that is yielding results. Brubach sold the first residential unit this month.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/light-bulbs_6027_300.jpg

“The nice thing about a building this size is you can be really flexible and base your plans on buyers and their needs,” she says.

She won’t have to worry about selling two floors — she’ll relocate there from her current rented space in the Strip District. Brubach is proving the theory that people can live in relatively inexpensive Pittsburgh and work anywhere. She’s consulting and working on several books, even as she contributes columns on books for the New York Times Magazine T supplements. She’s also consulting for her old friends at YOOX, the once fledgling site that has become a hot seller of end-of-season designer merchandise. And she’s on the prowl for Pittsburgh buildings that she and other investors can acquire and transform.

“It’s interesting how much current development here is from out-of-town developers,” she says. “They see the city through a different lens. I have friends in New York who say to me, ‘Your building is great, find one for us.’ So I always have my eyes open for anything out there. There are loads of opportunities here.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Captions:

Holly Brubach

The Granite Building from the First Presbyterian Church

Brubach at the Granite Building

The View Across Sixth Avenue

Detail

All photographs copyright Brian Cohen

[PA Pride]

Very interesting to hear that womans remarks about Pittsburgh and New York.

[Evergrey]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/cork0130.aspx

Cork Factory leases 70% of retail space, adds upscale wine bar and specialty grocer

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2095/cork_factory_2_300.jpg

The Cork Factory has leased seventy percent of its retail space in the Strip District. Among its first retail tenants will be an upscale 10,000-square-foot wine-cigar bar and restaurant, and a 22,000-square-foot specialty grocery store.

The new shops will be located directly across the street from the lofts at 2349 Railroad St. Both tenants will open during the spring of 2008; construction will begin immediately.

The bar-restaurant and grocer are owned by Pittsburgh-based groups that will be announced shortly. “They’re solid groups with partnerships in place and very strong backing. We're bringing in a high-quality grocer, a local operator who has been in the business for twenty-five years. It’s extremely exciting,” says Katie Pliscott, with McCaffery Interests. “They’re at the pinnacle of the excitement of Downtown’s revitalization, both in residential and now the rebirth of retail. They feel that this is a prime location, and that shopping is already established here. They think this will be a catalyst for the Strip.”

The Cork Factory, which features 295 rental lofts and opened in May of 2007, has reached eighty-seven percent occupancy. Plans are underway to bring a full-service marina to the development’s riverfront property.

“We’d love to see a spa, cookware shop and dry cleaner. We’re talking to the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board about a spirits shop,” adds Pliscott, who says the remaining 10,000 square feet of retail may be divided. “We have ample parking, the built-in cushion of 300 residents at our doorstep, plus the surrounding neighborhoods.”

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Katie Pliscott, McCaffery Interests

Image courtesy McCaffery Interests


...

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08030/853222-85.stm

Restaurant, grocer signed for Cork Factory retail space

Wednesday, January 30, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The owner of the Clark Bar and Grill on the North Side and Caffe Amante, Downtown, plans to open a restaurant and cigar and wine bar as part of the Cork Factory development in the Strip District.

The restaurant is one of two businesses planning to occupy the retail space located directly across the street from the Cork Factory, a 297-unit apartment complex at Railroad and 23rd streets that opened in May.

A specialty grocery store also is in the works. It will occupy nearly half of the 45,000 square feet of retail space available in the 3.5-acre Cork Factory development.

Both the restaurant and the grocer have executed leases and are expected to open for business this spring, according to a news release issued yesterday by Cork Factory developer McCaffery Interests.

"This is a catalyst project that I believe is going to create great change, not only for the Strip but for Downtown Pittsburgh," said Katie Pliscott, leasing director of McCaffery.

The restaurant will be operated by Angelo Lamatrice and his son, David. The Lamatrices currently own and operate the Clark Bar and Grill on the North Side near the stadiums and Caffe Amante in Fifth Avenue Place, Downtown.

Angelo Lamatrice did not want to talk about the Cork Factory venture yesterday, saying plans were still being finalized.

"It's early," he said.

But according to the developer, the restaurant will occupy about 10,000 square feet of space and will feature a "sophisticated" wine and cigar bar. There also will be VIP rooms, Ms. Pliscott said.

The operator of the specialty grocery store has not been identified. Ms. Pliscott would give few details about the store, but said it would be operated by a Pittsburgh businessman.

With the plans for the restaurant and grocer, only about 11,000 square feet of retail space remains in the complex.

Since opening last year, the Cork Factory has rented 87 percent of its units, which range from studio apartments to three-bedroom lofts. Rents run from $1,200 a month to $3,900 a month.

Besides the retail development within the complex, there are plans to develop a full-service marina on the Allegheny riverfront.

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

[Evergrey]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/eastlib0130.aspx

New pedestrian bridge, transit-oriented development coming to East Liberty

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2095/bridge_300.jpg

Pedestrians, residents and commuters will soon have creative new choices for navigating East Liberty’s streets and shops.

A much-anticipated pedestrian bridge that will connect East Liberty to Shadyside is the subject of a community meeting on Jan 30 at Reizenstein School. The meeting will start at 5:30 p.m. at 129 Denniston Ave.

Bridge artist Sheila Klein will unveil 3-D design renderings, facilitate a dialogue about her conceptual approach and present past work. Kim Baker, the City’s manager of public art, will take questions. The Washington state-based artist—who hails from Pittsburgh—is designing the 87-foot bridge, which will sit 23 feet above the ground and link Ellsworth Ave. to Eastside.

Artists have designed bridges in counties around the globe, and in U.S. cities such as Tucson, Atlanta and Tacoma. “It’s exciting to have an artist work with architects and engineers on the bridge. We believe it’s the first time it’s happened in Pittsburgh or Pennsylvania,” says Baker, who expects Klein to establish partnerships with local organizations. “There’s potential for working with the Glass Center on pieces incorporated into the bridge. It’s exactly the kind of thing we want to do.”

In other East Liberty news, Port Authority and a public-private redevelopment team lead by The Mosites Company are exploring a joint venture—the first of its kind for the transit agency—to help foster revitalization in East Liberty. Central to the plan is converting Penn Circle back to two-way traffic. A transit-oriented development near the MLK, Jr. East Busway could include links to new retail, traffic pattern improvements, public parking, and better connections to Shadyside and Oakland.

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Sources: Kim Baker, City of Pittsburgh; Port Authority

Image courtesy of Office of Public Art

[Evergrey]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/developmentnews/loftsel0130.aspx

$1.1M investment assists mixed-use projects in Pittsburgh's East Liberty neighborhood

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Dev%20News/Issue%2095/YMCA_300.jpg

East Liberty Development, Inc. (ELDI) has received $1,135,000 from Landmarks Community Capital Corporation (LCCC) and the URA for two key redevelopment projects.

LCCC, a subsidiary of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, has awarded $885,000—its largest single loan—to ELDI, which will use the funds to acquire and renovate the YMCA building located at 120 Whitfield St. and rehabilitate two Queen Anne style homes located at 5809-15 Rippey St.

Built in 1908 by Thomas Hannah, the 50,000-square-foot YMCA property will feature up to 36 for-sale loft-style condos ranging in size from 700 to 1,500 square feet. The $6 million project will also include underground parking. The five-story property's exterior will be restored. First-floor retail may include a bookstore, coffeehouse, jazz club, or fitness center. ELDI is working with Denver-based MEIZ Development Co., which is also renovating the adjacent Laughlin building. Both projects are being designed by mossArchitects.

“People genuinely love this building, not only because of the architecture, but because they played basketball there when they were young. There’s a sense that it's owned by the community. There’s enthusiasm because people believe in the project,” says Valentina Vavasis, with ELDI. “We intend to make the building as green as we can, both because it's good for mankind, and because our target buyer is younger and hipper--they are sensitive to environmental issues and would like live in a historical building."

The URA has committed $250,000 to the project, which requires funds to support an environmental cleanup. Pre-sales are expected to start by the end of 2008. The project is crucial to the redevelopment of East Liberty’s town square, which will seek historic designation.

Writer: Jennifer Baron
Sources: Valentia Vavasis, ELDI; Andrew Moss, mossArchitects

Image courtesy ELDI, Inc. and mossArchitects

[Johnland]

http://www.popcitymedia.com/features/brubach0123.aspx

Holly Brubach: Coming Home in Style

By: Evan Pattak

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/brubach_6014_450.jpg

January 30, 2008
She’s lived in New York, where she served as a writer and editor for such magazines as Vogue and Atlantic Monthly. And in Paris where she was a staff writer for The New Yorker. And also in Milan, where she helped a promising Internet start-up named YOOX through its formative phase. She’s written three books as well as Balanchine, a television documentary of the choreographer’s life and work, for WNET.

But when Holly Brubach was ready to make her next move, she knew it was time to come home to Pittsburgh.

And Downtown will be more vital for it, as Brubach is in the process of redevelopment of the historic Granite Building on Sixth Avenue, which she envisions as a site for both residential and office condos.

Brubach, a 1971 graduate of Shaler High School, came late to her love affair with her hometown.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/granite_6052_300.jpg

“The whole time I was growing up here I never really appreciated Pittsburgh,” she says. “I thought it was an ugly city. My idea of beauty was Paris. Pittsburgh was industrial. It seemed provincial to me. Partly I’ve changed, and partly the world has changed. Industrial is now an aesthetic. People decorate in the industrial style.

“And the Internet has decentralized culture. When I was growing up and you wanted to be in magazine publishing or dance or art, the only place to be was New York. Now, there is no ‘only’ place to be. You can do that work from anywhere.”

A promising dancer forced by injury into premature retirement, Brubach graduated from Duke University before embarking on her cosmopolitan career. Her decision to return was motivated in part by the economics of life in New York City, where she was living in a loft in the trendy Tribecca district.

“The value of my loft has skyrocketed,” she says. “Life in Lower Manhattan is very expensive, and I was sitting on my equity. I felt like I was working overtime to meet my overhead.”

Once here, she found a growing cohort of contemporaries choosing Pittsburgh — for much the same reasons.

“There really are a number of people who see the possibilities here; that population will only grow as cities like New York price these people right out of the market,” she says. “The friends I have in Manhattan are moving to Brooklyn. The friends I have in Brooklyn are moving to Queens. And the people who can’t afford Queens are moving to Hoboken.”

Life in Pittsburgh has afforded her a number of lifestyle opportunities not easily available in New York. She has, for example, rowed on the Allegheny River. An avid golfer, she intends to familiarize herself with the multitude of courses in the region. And she’s become reacquainted with her car — walking everywhere, as she did in Manhattan, is out of the question. But in most regards, her hometown has exceeded her expectations.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/brubach_6037_300.jpg

“I’ve always been a dance lover. The ballet here is a good company,” she notes. “I love art. The Carnegie and the Warhol between them are very plugged into the art world. There’s a terrific literary community here. I love what the Mattress Factory does. There are some small theater companies I haven’t even begun to explore yet. I love the architecture here.

“Even though it’s a small city, when you meet people who share certain interests, you sort of assume they know everybody else who shares that interest. But they don’t, and I think, ‘Wow, how amazing that all these people here haven’t met each other.’ That’s actually kind of nice. It makes me feel not claustrophobic.”

But it’s the Granite Building that makes her feel especially upbeat about Pittsburgh. The handsome, 8.5-story structure, built in 1889 for German National Bank, is an architectural gem that occupies a choice Downtown location; its neighbors include the Duquesne Club, First Presbyterian Church and Trinity Cathedral. The building features ceilings at least 12 feet high, up to 20 windows per floor and many of the original architectural elements, including tile wainscoting, decorative arches and marble fire stairs

“I very much like the notion of historic preservation where instead of mothballing a historic structure and turning it into a museum, you find a viable new use for it,” Brubach says. “I looked at everything that was for sale Downtown. I didn’t see anything I really liked until the Granite Building. I didn’t think I needed a whole building and so kept looking for a condo. Everything I saw made me like the Granite Building even more. So I decided to take the leap and see if there was anybody else out there who would feel the same about it.”

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/window_6044_300.jpg

Dollar Bank felt the same way, providing some of the capital that allowed Brubach to purchase the building in December 2005. The floors are so spacious — about 2,700 square feet each along with a mezzanine that measures roughly 2,000 square feet — that Brubach initially envisioned the building for residential purposes only.

Indeed, that’s very much in synch with the rising popularity of Downtown living, accelerated by such upscale properties as The Encore on 7th and 151 First Side. The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh estimates that 5,000 Downtown housing units are available, with another 500 units expected to come on line. For all that, the immediate response to the Granite Building was underwhelming.

“Various service aspects of Downtown living aren’t in place yet,” Brubach says. “In other cities where I’ve lived, people in that financial bracket tend to be willing to forego some conveniences and pioneer a neighborhood because the space is great. That certainly hasn’t been true here. Many people have adopted a wait-and-see attitude about Downtown living at the high end of the market.”

Now, Brubach is marketing the building as a mixed-use property with both residential and office condos. She may divide the mezzanine into offices, with residential occupants having the option of an office as well. It’s a unique model that is yielding results. Brubach sold the first residential unit this month.

http://www.popcitymedia.com/galleries/Default/Features/Issue%2094/Holly%20Brubach/light-bulbs_6027_300.jpg

“The nice thing about a building this size is you can be really flexible and base your plans on buyers and their needs,” she says.

She won’t have to worry about selling two floors — she’ll relocate there from her current rented space in the Strip District. Brubach is proving the theory that people can live in relatively inexpensive Pittsburgh and work anywhere. She’s consulting and working on several books, even as she contributes columns on books for the New York Times Magazine T supplements. She’s also consulting for her old friends at YOOX, the once fledgling site that has become a hot seller of end-of-season designer merchandise. And she’s on the prowl for Pittsburgh buildings that she and other investors can acquire and transform.

“It’s interesting how much current development here is from out-of-town developers,” she says. “They see the city through a different lens. I have friends in New York who say to me, ‘Your building is great, find one for us.’ So I always have my eyes open for anything out there. There are loads of opportunities here.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Captions:

Holly Brubach

The Granite Building from the First Presbyterian Church

Brubach at the Granite Building

The View Across Sixth Avenue

Detail

All photographs copyright Brian Cohen

Man, I love that building. Fantastic windows and interior space. Plus, the beautiful architecture and historic quality.

[PA Pride]

I can't believe the crush of East Lib stories. There is literally one or two new new stories about projects or plans for redevelopment every day.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08030/853227-85.stm

Law firm to put name in lights

Wednesday, January 30, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Downtown's skyline is getting another name.

The Reed Smith law firm won approval from the city planning commission yesterday to add its name to the skyline when it moves into the new PNC skyscraper in 2009.

Reed Smith will be displayed in red letters on the north and south facades of the 23-story Three PNC Plaza building, which is under construction on Fifth Avenue, Downtown.

The law firm's name will be visible from PNC Park, the Fort Pitt Bridge, Station Square and other locations. It will join Mellon, Federated, Citizens, Highmark and others prominently displayed on the city skyline, where so-called "high-wall signs" are becoming more and more common.

UPMC is in the process of putting its name on the U.S. Steel Tower, where it has offices. Huntington National Bank will put its name on Centre City Tower and the K & L Gates law firm will be adding its to One Oliver Plaza.

The Reed Smith name will occupy less than half of the space permitted for such signs under city zoning laws.

"It's not something that's going to scream out from every angle," said Joel Aaronson, the Reed Smith attorney who represented the law firm before the planning commission yesterday.

Asked why Reed Smith wanted to put its name in lights, Mr. Aaronson replied, "It's identification. It's presence."

He said the law firm plans to move into Three PNC Plaza in the second or third quarter of 2009. The firm's present building on Sixth Avenue likely will be sold, he said.

Reed Smith, which won unanimous approval yesterday, had a far easier time than UPMC.

The planning commission initially rejected the 20-foot-tall UPMC sign in June. It reversed itself two weeks later after it was told that the health care giant met all of the legal requirements for the sign.

Fragasso Financial Advisors also won approval from the commission yesterday to put its name on the top floor of the four-story Brooks Brothers building on Smithfield Street.

Also yesterday, the commission was briefed on plans for a new restaurant at PNC Park to replace the Outback Steakhouse, which closed at the end of November.

A new stairway will be built inside the center field gate to accommodate fans. The restaurant will have an outdoor deck as well as more open interior space that also can be used for weddings, banquets and other types of events.

It also will get new windows on the ballpark side that will open so that fans will get more of the "game day experience." The restaurant, which hasn't been identified yet, is expected to open in time for the regular season.

The commission also approved plans for a 727-space parking garage at the Pittsburgh Technology Center despite misgivings about the design of the facade facing Second Avenue, which it will revisit. "It's a little monolithic," member Barbara Mistick said.

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

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08032/853922-53.stm

Station Square getting new nightclub, eatery, office tenants

Friday, February 01, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Changes are in the wind at Station Square, the South Side entertainment spot that will be adding a new nightclub, two new office tenants and another restaurant this year.

The new nightclub will be called Zen and will be located in the Freight House Shops in space once occupied by the Palm Bar and Crawford Grill. It will be run by the owners of Privilege Ultralounge in the Strip District and is expected to open in the spring.

It is billed as a luxurious multilevel upscale nightclub with an Asian theme, and imagery and decor from the Far East.

Alcatel-Lucent, a global communications solutions and servicing company, will move this year from other Pittsburgh area locations into 36,953 square feet of space in Commerce Court, the seven-story office building Station Square owner Forest City Enterprises acquired last February,

Also, as announced last month, CardWorks, which services credit, debit and prefunded cards and other such products, will move from Smithfield Street, Downtown, into 57,511 square feet in Commerce Court.

Aided by $468,000 in state aid, CardWorks is planning a $1.8 million state-of-the-art facility at Station Square. It had the option of moving from Pittsburgh to another office in Woodbury, N.Y.

Both companies are expected to be in the building in the fall.

Since acquiring Commerce Court last year, Forest City has boosted the occupancy from 67 percent to 92 percent.

Also, GSP Consulting, which has offices in the Landmark Building, has signed a new seven-year lease and will be expanding from 6,100 square feet on two floors to 11,480 square feet on the fifth floor.

Separately, Island Cafe, a restaurant that features American and Greek fare, will open this month in vacant space next to Starbucks in Bessemer Court. It will serve breakfast, lunch and dinner. Val's Pizza, a pizza and pasta eatery, opened in the Freight House Shops food court in December. Both are owned by the Liadis family. They also have eateries in PPG Place and U.S. Steel Tower.

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

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08032/853939-53.stm

Point Park may turn building into dorm

Friday, February 01, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

An office building on the Boulevard of the Allies, Downtown, could be home to as many as 100 students by next September.

Point Park University intends to convert the five upper floors of its newly acquired building at 322 Boulevard of the Allies into a 100-bed dormitory if it gets approval from the city Zoning Board of Adjustment.

Zoning board members took testimony on the project yesterday, but did not render a ruling. Point Park is seeking a special exception to use the building for dormitory space.

The new units would supplement existing dormitory space in the university's Lawrence and Thayer halls and in two leased buildings, Pioneer Hall and Conestoga Hall, on Wood Street.

Point Park initially is planning 20 to 25 rooms and 100 beds on the fourth through eighth floors in the Boulevard of the Allies building, which it acquired in December.

Like those at Pioneer and Conestoga halls, the rooms will be set up like apartments or suites.

In the new building, the suites will range from two to four bedrooms. Each will feature a kitchen and a living room area and each of the bedrooms, which can hold multiple students, will have a private bath.

The suites are a far cry from the spartan dorms of yesteryear, and the amenities they offer are in heavy demand.

"Basically they're competing with all the other schools," said Joe Serrao, a principal in TKA Architects, which is handling the project.

Mr. Serrao said the university hopes to start construction this winter and have it completed in August in time for students to move in for the fall semester.

The eventual goal is to convert the entire building into dormitory space with the possible exception of the first floor, Mr. Serrao said. The 100 beds will serve as "kind of a stopgap" to fill the university's immediate needs, he added.

The new dormitory will be staffed around the clock.

The building and another next door at 312 Boulevard of the Allies were purchased by the university for $4.3 million. No use for the second building has been determined.

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

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_550464.html

PNC Bank president to lead real estate fund

By Thomas Olson
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, February 2, 2008


Veteran banker Sy Holzer, president of PNC Bank, Pittsburgh, was named chairman of the Strategic Investment Fund, which provides gap financing for key real estate projects in the Pittsburgh region, the Downtown organization said Friday.
Holzer, 59, succeeds Tom O'Brien, former chairman of PNC Financial Services Group, the bank's holding company. O'Brien had chaired the fund since its inception in 1996.

"Our region is in the midst of a resurgence with development under way, both in our urban core and beyond, that rivals Renaissance I and II," said Holzer, who has worked at PNC for about 37 years.

The Strategic Investment Fund is an affiliate of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development and serves the 10-county Pittsburgh region. It began with $40.3 million in capital from 33 local corporations, foundations and individuals in 1996, followed by a second pool of $29.7 million raised in 2002.

For instance, the fund committed $3 million last year toward construction of a $46.5 million, 150,000-square-foot office building on 1.7 acres of Pittsburgh Technology Center property in South Oakland. The fund also invested $2.3 million last year in a $16 million project to renovate the Downtown's Century Building on Seventh Street into 60 apartment units.


Thomas Olson can be reached at tolson@tribweb.com or 412-320-7854.

[Johnland]

Evergrey, I saw your great pic posted on the other thread - Northeast. They all made me so homesick for Pittsburgh. I love winter scenes of downtown because the cold clear air really sharpens the architectural details in Pittsburgh terrific collection of buildings in photographs.

I can't post to that thread (or I would've responded there), but in a picture of downtown from Mt Wash., there's a low three story building just to the left of the former black Westinghouse building. I believe this low building is or was the newspaper headquarters - the Press or Post Gazette perhaps. Anyway, I've always eyed that squat, tired, mediocre building a candidate for a site for a really beautiful new highrise for Pittsburgh's premiere location. Being righ on Point Park's edge, it would command spectacular views of the Park, the rivers and Mt. Washington. (Unfortunately, it would also gaze upon the coming eyesore of the casino garage.) It would be front and center of every photo of Pittsburgh, and thus become an iconic image of Pittsburgh.

I would love to see a developer buy the little building, tear that down, and replace it with a beautifully designed building to add to Pittsburgh's already photogenic skyline.

[Evergrey]

Evergrey, I saw your great pic posted on the other thread - Northeast. They all made me so homesick for Pittsburgh. I love winter scenes of downtown because the cold clear air really sharpens the architectural details in Pittsburgh terrific collection of buildings in photographs.

I can't post to that thread (or I would've responded there), but in a picture of downtown from Mt Wash., there's a low three story building just to the left of the former black Westinghouse building. I believe this low building is or was the newspaper headquarters - the Press or Post Gazette perhaps. Anyway, I've always eyed that squat, tired, mediocre building a candidate for a site for a really beautiful new highrise for Pittsburgh's premiere location. Being righ on Point Park's edge, it would command spectacular views of the Park, the rivers and Mt. Washington. (Unfortunately, it would also gaze upon the coming eyesore of the casino garage.) It would be front and center of every photo of Pittsburgh, and thus become an iconic image of Pittsburgh.

I would love to see a developer buy the little building, tear that down, and replace it with a beautifully designed building to add to Pittsburgh's already photogenic skyline.

That "squat, tired, mediocre building" was once a proud brick Romanesque structure, built in 1923 and suffering the indignity of an aluminum "modernization" in 1962.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06192/704827-51.stm

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20060711ho_oldpgbldg_450.jpg

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20060711mf_pgbldg_450.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2310/2209195195_0928bd4e6d_b.jpg

[Johnland]

That "squat, tired, mediocre building" was once a proud brick Romanesque structure, built in 1923 and suffering the indignity of an aluminum "modernization" in 1962.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06192/704827-51.stm

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20060711ho_oldpgbldg_450.jpg

http://www.post-gazette.com/images4/20060711mf_pgbldg_450.jpg


http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2310/2209195195_0928bd4e6d_b.jpg

It always amazed me how so much time, money and effort can be spent to make such crap! Now that I see what is underneath the exterior, I would advocate a restoration, if that's even possible. A classic brick building juxtaposed against its modern neighbors would be interesting. The black and white photo says 'loft potential' to me.

Thanks for the additional pictures. I can see that spot is really a choice block. Park views on one side, and city skyline on the other, plus the rivers and bridges. And if Market Square rises up to the potential that allthe developers are planning, it would be located close to newly emerging downtown residential/retail area.

[Evergrey]

tidbits from Pittsburgh Business Times:

1. Many of you are probably familiar with the controversial 10% "Drink Tax" that the County enacted at the beginning of the year in order to fund our Port Authority mass transit system. The state gave the county only two options to raise the revenue, the drink tax or increased property taxes. Many restaurateurs, bar owners, etc. (and drinkers) are outraged at the tax and wonder why they have been targeted to pay for the county's mass transit agency, which has been plagued by mind-blowingly bloated pensions and inefficiencies.

Many restaurateurs claim the Drink Tax is hurting business, and some pledge that they will not open new restaurants in Allegheny County. I would like to see an impartial economic analysis of this tax. While I believe funding Port Authority transit is critical, I am concerned about the potential negative economic consequences that the Drink Tax may have on the region. However, a dramatically reduced transit system would have far greater consequences on the region. If the Drink Tax is indeed a poor choice as a revenue stream, perhaps the state and county governments should evaluate new options for revenue. The Drink Tax is bundled with a tax on rental cars (and I think there's some other taxes I'm forgetting), which generates little opposition since that is a tax that largely hits outsiders. There may be opportunities for revenues that minimize the "dead weight loss" on the consumers and producers in our regional economy.

Despite the implementation of the Drink Tax, there is a boom in new restaurants in Allegheny County (though many of these were in the pipeline before the tax took effect). Michael Chen (of China Palace, Sushi Too and My Thai) is developing an Asian restaurant with a display kitchen for the Bakery Square development. Chen's son, Allen, is opening an Asian-Latin fusion restaurant called Tamari in Lawrenceville. Michael Chen says he will keep opening restaurants if the opportunity presents itself, despite the tax.

Angelo Lamatrice (Cafe Amante, Clark Bar & Grille) is opening the 10,000 sq. ft. Cioppino Seafood & Chop House in the retail space of the Cork Factory parking garage. It will feature a cigar bar.

Kathy and Richard Chen (Ya Fei) are opening a restaurant at EastSide in East Liberty (Whole Foods).

Ned Sokoloff, principal of a restaurant services firm, claims that there's been an uptick in new bars and restaurants opening. "We have never been busier."

However, Ed Dunlap (LeMont) claims he will open new restaurants in Murrysville, Peters or Cranberry instead of Allegheny County. Due to the Drink Tax, he decided against establishing a chop house / cigar bar in the former Cliffside Restaurant on Mt. Washington. Instead, he will convert the building to apartments.

The owner of Atria's will open the Oakland (Schenley Plaza) location but is pessimistic about future restaurant development in the county.

2. There's some more information on the massive (and still quite preliminary) Oakland Portal Project. Developer Frank Gustine is seeking $30 million in state funds to support infrastructure for the project, which may include a mix of 700,000 sq. ft. of office space, two garages containing 2,100 parking spaces, hotel and conference center and condos and student housing. The development site is at the western edge of Oakland, bounded by Fifth Ave., Blvd. of the Allies and Craft Ave. The developer hopes to begin construction this year. Oakland is the region's tightest office submarket, as the area is very popular with medical and technology companies.

[hyperion1110]

That Oakland Portal Project should be amazing. The entrance to Oakland should be the most opulent in the region, given the status of the area as the regions only real economic engine.

[PA Pride]

^Yep. I've got an idea; How about two statues of big crossing swords like those ones in Baghdad?!?

[Evergrey]

The entrance to Oakland should be the most opulent in the region, given the status of the area as the regions only real economic engine.

uhhhh... :koko:

[Tombstoner]

Any renderings of the Oakland Portal project?

[Gilamonster]

Here is an update on some of the downtown construction.

The new Greyhound Terminal/Hotel:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/2239216380_8c91b88cab.jpg?v=0

Still lots of work to do on the August Wilson Center:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2190/2238453357_984b0f795f.jpg

And A couple from the biggie....3 PNC:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2358/2238423959_a6ce435793.jpg?v=0

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2249/2238423101_981d4acef8.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2128/2238424389_e018ab16f2.jpg

There will be a few more of 3 PNC on that building's thread.

[hyperion1110]

uhhhh... :koko:

Haha...yeah, I'm not really sure where I was going with that...woops :)

[PA Pride]

Thanks for the update Gila!

I have to say, I am really unimpressed with the greyhound building. It is turning out just like the rendering: Ugly.

Also, I didn't know they started on the African American center. What is the timetable on that? Does anyone know what the estimated completion date is?

[Gilamonster]

There was an official groundbreaking for the August Wilson Center on Oct. 18, 2007. I believe that construction was to start within weeks, but they didn't start turning soil on the site until sometime in Dec. The most recent completion date I found was in an article from the Baltimore Sun which mentioned January 2009. The building was just a footnote in another article so consider the source. The progress does seem slow there, but that might not be unusual. Who knows what kind of tangle of old utilities they found when they started excavating. Does anybody know what used to be there? I'm assuming it was another structure.

[Evergrey]

there used to be a block of strip clubs there

[cdc]

Many restaurateurs claim the Drink Tax is hurting business, and some pledge that they will not open new restaurants in Allegheny County. I would like to see an impartial economic analysis of this tax.


The closest I've seen on this was an article in the PG looking at
Philly's experience with this tax:

"Drink tax not what either side predicted in Philadelphia"
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07203/803532-85.stm

[tooluther]

Here is an update on some of the downtown construction.

The new Greyhound Terminal/Hotel:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2189/2239216380_8c91b88cab.jpg?v=0


FYI, there is no hotel component at the Grant Street Project

[tooluther]

lucky you guys, here (http://www.downtownpittsburgh.com/cms/assets/documents/4th%20quarter%202007%20master.pdf)is the PDP's 4th quarter downtown residential report. It won't even go out to the distribution list until tonight...so its a sneak peak!

[Gilamonster]

I thought I remember reading that there would be a hotel component along with the Greyhound terminal, but I did some research now and see that's not the case. I apologize for the misinformation.

[AaronPGH]

Nice!!!! 94.6% occupancy rate!

[Evergrey]

Nice!!!! 94.6% occupancy rate!

Huh?

[hyperion1110]

Huh?

94.6% is the average occupancy rate in the pdf.

[PA Pride]

Technically wouldn't downtown occupancy be at about 125% counting the people living on the street? I assume those people are waiting for just the right residential unit that meets their specifications to be built.

[PA Pride]

lucky you guys, here (http://www.downtownpittsburgh.com/cms/assets/documents/4th%20quarter%202007%20master.pdf)is the PDP's 4th quarter downtown residential report. It won't even go out to the distribution list until tonight...so its a sneak peak!

WOOHOO!! Me and Evergrey just spent an hour talking to each other and pouring over the report just like last time.

Do you know anything about the 50 million dollar Continental proposal for the northside? Was that the 18 story tower kinda behind PNC park?

Also, how is your white box project going?

[Evergrey]

http://pittsburgh.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/02/04/story9.html?f=et177&b=1202101200%5E1584886&ana=e_vert

Friday, February 1, 2008

Developer seeks $30 million in state funds for Oakland Portal

Project could include offices, hotel, condos, student housing

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Ben Semmes

The developer of the proposed mixed-use Oakland Portal project is seeking roughly $30 million in state government assistance, according to a state legislator who recently was briefed on the plans.

Sen. Wayne Fontana, a Brookline Democrat whose district includes part of the site at the western edge of Oakland, said he plans to work with Green Tree-based FWG Real Estate Inc. to file a funding proposal early this year. Fontana and FWG will petition for the funds in the state's capital budget to support infrastructure and parking for the project.

A tentative site plan, prepared last spring by Downtown-based Perkins Eastman Architects and obtained by the Business Times, shows 700,000 square feet of office space, two new garages containing 2,100 parking spaces and a hotel and conference center, as well as an unspecified number of condominiums and student housing units. Fontana said FWG hopes to begin construction this year.

Frank Gustine and Ed Pope, principals at FWG, did not return messages seeking comment.

Fontana said FWG is targeting funds from the state's Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program, which requires a minimum project cost of $1 million as well as a matching investment from the developer. FWG also will ask for funding from the state Department of Environmental Protection, Fontana said.

"I think they are going to build green," Fontana said. "There may be some money through the state DEP."

FWG has spent more than two years acquiring property in the vicinity of Fifth, Forbes and Craft avenues for the project, seen as a gateway into the Oakland business district. The company has purchased more than $7 million of property over the last two years, including land formerly owned by Lamar Advertising Co. and The Buncher Co.

Fontana said that while his office will submit a proposal for the full $30 million, how much money, if any, is allocated for the project will be decided as the state Legislature debates the budget for the next fiscal year starting in July.

"I assume if they get a good portion of that, they would be happy," Fontana said.

The developer, which has met with state and local officials in recent weeks, will likely also seek approval for tax-increment financing from the city of Pittsburgh, Fontana said.

Economic development officials with the city and Allegheny County said they have recently met with FWG but had limited discussion about financial support.

County Economic Development Director Dennis Davin said he supports the project, but city officials sounded a more tentative note.

"It's very, very preliminary," said Kyra Straussman, director of real estate with the city's Urban Redevelopment Authority.

Still, the URA is interested in the project because it would provide much needed space in one of Pittsburgh's tightest office markets, Straussman said.

"We have all of our biggest institutions and employers ... in Oakland," Straussman said. "There's nowhere to go. It's a provocative project."

bsemmes@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3829

[PA Pride]

Was there ever any renderings or drawings released from Perkins Eastman of the portal?

[xyagentguy]

So downtown residency is almost at 95% occupancy?? I suppose that pdf directly shows that we can indeed call it a downtown Pittsburgh housing "boom" and that is IS being absorbed very well?

[PittPenn 03]

So downtown residency is almost at 95% occupancy?? I suppose that pdf directly shows that we can indeed call it a downtown Pittsburgh housing "boom" and that is IS being absorbed very well?

Is it? That was my first question when I read this pdf. Are these considered good numbers? They seem like they are, but are they to people in the industry?

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_551157.html

Union Trust sale a done deal

By Ron DaParma
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, February 7, 2008


The sale of the historic Union Trust Building, Downtown, was completed Wednesday to principals of Mika Realty Group of Los Angeles.
Purchase price for the ornate, 11-story building that covers a full block of Grant Street, was $24.1 million, according to documents filed with the Allegheny County Recorder of Deeds office.

The purchase was expected to be completed last week. It was delayed because of the complicated nature of the transaction, said Jeffery Ackerman, commercial real estate broker with CB Richard Ellis/Pittsburgh, who negotiated the deal.

The new owners intend to restore the grandeur of the building that was designed in Flemish Gothic style by noted Pittsburgh architect F.J. Osterling and built in 1916 for industrialist Henry Clay Frick. The buyers were not available for comment yesterday.

The group, which includes Michael Kamen, founder of privately held Mika, and a business associate, Gerson Fox, also of Los Angeles, plans to continue using the structure as an office building and to attract a mix of upscale retail tenants to the first level.
The sale price was about $6 million below its $30.75 million market value, including land, as listed in public records. But local real estate experts said it was not a bargain-basement deal, noting that the building is nearly empty with the exception of a few retail tenants on the first floor.

"It's a beautiful building with a lot of character," said Jim Geiger, senior vice president with Grant Street Associates-Cushman & Wakefield, a Downtown commercial real estate firm. "It has a lot of things going for it, but it will be a challenge to fill the office space in light of today's office market."

Seller of the building at 501 Grant St. was Teal Rock 501 Grant Street LP, a unit of Cigna Corp. of Philadelphia.

Cigna has controlled the property since 2006, when it assumed ownership from long-time owner, Florida-based DeBartolo Property Group LLC, which defaulted on a mortgage held by Cigna.

The building ran into trouble after Mellon Financial Corp., its major tenant, relocated employees to other buildings Downtown in May 2006, and most other tenants followed suit due to uncertainties with their leases.

For the buyer, the purchase price, which works out to about $40.50 per square foot based on the 595,000-square-feet of leasable space in the building, is lower than it would cost to try to duplicate such a grand structure in the city, said Ned Doran, of GVA Oxford, the commercial leasing arm of Oxford Development Co.

Questions to be determined are how much they will spend to upgrade the building and their ability to attract tenants, Doran said.

Ackerman has said a number of large office users and retail prospects already have looked at the building.

The purchase was welcomed by Tom Michael, who owns upscale Larrimor's clothing store in the building, the largest remaining retail tenant. Michael said he had talked to Michael Kamen of Mika recently.

"We are optimistic about moving forward and filling the building with quality tenants," said Michael. "They have a large plan in the works for the building."



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

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08038/855547-85.stm

Vive la Downtown! Business grants available to instill a touch of Paris

Thursday, February 07, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Whether it's flowers spilling into the street from a florist shop or sipping coffee at an outdoor cafe, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership wants to bring a bit of Paris to the city of steel.

Through a $1 million grant from the Colcom Foundation, the partnership is offering matching funds to Downtown restaurants, retailers and businesses as incentive to perk up their facades and sidewalks.

The Paris to Pittsburgh program is one of two initiatives being launched by the partnership this year in a bid to add vibrancy to the heart of the Golden Triangle.

It also is offering property owners loans to convert vacant or under-used upper floors into apartments in the hope of providing more affordable options for people who want to live Downtown.

One of the goals of the Paris to Pittsburgh program is to make store and restaurant fronts more transparent, with large window or garage door-like openings that will allow patrons to move freely between the indoor and outdoor spaces.

"This is a way to activate [the sidewalks] and to create more dynamic space for people to use," said Mike Edwards, the partnership's president and chief executive officer.

The partnership already is working with MixStirs Cafe, a Market Square restaurant that opened last fall, on improvements. The restaurant has added retractable awnings that will allow for outdoor dining in the warmer weather, and new lights and signs.

As spring approaches, it plans to take out part of a wall facing the square and add a 20-foot window or door. The restaurant also will add about 25 seats outside.

The work will cost about $60,000, with the cost split between the partnership and the restaurant owner.

MixStirs owner Mike Pfeuffer said the improvements will give the restaurant "more of a European feel" and enhance Market Square.

"We're trying to make Market Square a more pedestrian friendly place, a destination spot for families and businessmen. These enhancements are only going to add to that," he said.

Under the program, matching grants can be used for a multitude of improvements, including awnings and umbrellas, flower boxes, outdoor tables and chairs, heating lanterns for dining in cooler weather, lighting, signs, landscaping, outdoor music and better access..

For example, florists could use the money to display flowers outdoors, Mr. Edwards said. Markets could do the same with fruits and vegetables. Bookstores could put racks of books on the sidewalks. Jenny Lee Bakery could serve coffee and doughnuts outdoors.

"Those are the kinds of things that we think will make Downtown a much deeper experience," Mr. Edwards said.

Robin Fernandez, owner of the Bossa Nova restaurant, who is opening a market in the Encore on 7th apartment building in March, said he would like to display fresh vegetables and flowers on the sidewalk. He said he may take advantage of the program for the store and his Downtown restaurants.

He said such initiatives are important for improving Downtown.

"It just adds to the vibrancy. Street activity is always great for business. The busier the sidewalks are the busier the businesses are," he said.

The partnership hopes to award matching grants for 68 projects Downtown. It hopes to do 32 to 35 this year alone. An advisory committee that will include urban design professionals will review applications from businesses.

It also wants to develop sidewalk parties and other street level programs to complement and play off improvements.

The partnership's other major initiative this year is a loan program to help property owners convert upper floor space into apartments. The program is being funded with the help of a $1.75 million grant from the Heinz Endowments and $1.75 million from the city Urban Redevelopment Authority.

Mr. Edwards said the partnership hopes to award five to eight loans this year and create 50 rental units Downtown. He said the goal is to create more affordable housing than some of the upper-end residential projects that have been completed or are being developed in the city.

Projects can have up to eight floors of residential development.

Coupled with the facade and street improvements, "we think it's going to create a much more vibrant Downtown," Mr. Edwards said.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said the program fits in with his plans for Downtown, noting that "growing our residential base is one of my primary goals and I am pleased that the city can join the foundation community in turning great ideas into reality."

The partnership plans to discuss both initiatives at its annual meeting next week.

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


...

[PA Pride]

Nice, Evergrey! I love sidewalk cafes.

[tooluther]

There will be additional information on Paris to Pittsburgh in both papers tommorow.

[themaguffin]

what no press release yet.....

[Evergrey]

very interesting... I certainly don't mind seeing dealerships vacate urban neighborhoods (though they can be useful when in need of parts and service) as they tend to have a negative impact on the urban environment... especially large lots of automobiles... though most of the luxury places in the Baum Blvd area don't seem to be too bad as they're largely enclosed facilities... the West Liberty auto corridor is in the city... but really isn't "in the city" so I don't think it really relates to Don Allen's situation

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08038/855363-185.stm

Is auto dealer's closure part of trend away from cities?

Thursday, February 07, 2008
By Don Hammonds, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Don Allen Auto City in Shadyside, which recently announced it was selling its dealer complex to make way for a real estate development, is part of a national trend that worries manufacturers.

Put simply, the dealership found that the real estate upon which its business was located was far more valuable than the store itself. The DOC-Economou partnership intends to spend $18 million buying the dealership, a contiguous home at 466 S. Atlantic Ave. and a site at 5425 Baum Blvd. owned by The Children's Home of Pittsburgh. The partnership plans to build a mix of townhouses and condominiums, a 120-room hotel, and 700,000 square feet of office, medical and retail space on the site. The project is expected to cost $220 million to $230 million and take as long as four years.

But the high price of real estate is not the only challenge faced by Don Allen Auto City and some other city dealerships.

"Overdealerization" -- too many stores selling the same brands within a small geographic area -- reduces profits for everyone, and spreads an already limited number of customers too thin.

Then there are issues such as trying to maintain older buildings, finding enough space to store cars, and the increasing difficulty getting financing for the many customers with mediocre or bad credit who often patronize inner-city stores.

But writing off the city as a good place for a car dealer would be a bad bet.

Pittsburgh still has West Liberty Avenue, one of the busiest corridors in the region for automobile sales. Within a few blocks in a stretch that also takes in a small portion of Dormont, are stores for Saturn, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Mazda, GMC, Buick, Pontiac, Nissan, Volvo, Toyota, Lexus, Jeep, Chevy, Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep and Cadillac.

Several car dealers along West Liberty have recently remodeled their facilities, including Three Rivers Chrysler Jeep Dodge, which opened a spacious, airy new facility in the fall of 2006.

"When you are on West Liberty, you're on a street that is still one of Pittsburgh's highest traffic count roads because it's a commuting route for the South Hills. And there's still a lot of people who work Downtown. Being somewhere between the suburbs and only a few blocks away from Downtown really works," said Ted Cole, general manager of the dealer.

"We're a destination point here because of all the history here with all the car dealers. People come here because of that. The dealers are all congregated here, and people know that. The younger clientele may go to Cranberry and the deep south locations in Washington County, but for older customers. this is still the place to come."

Meanwhile, the Shadyside/Oakland area continues to be a choice spot for luxury car makers or those dealers selling trendy cars. There are Porsche, Mercedes-Benz/Smart, BMW and Mini stores within a mile or so of the Don Allen facility, and all reportedly are doing well, with some even planning to expand.

But at Don Allen, a "perfect storm" of factors came together to result in the decision to close.

First, the value of the Shadyside land upon which the Don Allen complex sits has skyrocketed. When a comparison is made between the profit that can be made by selling the land for other purposes and keeping it as a car dealership, selling makes far more sense, company officials said.

"We've been inundated with phone calls for years from developers for various projects," said David K. Voelker, president of the auto company.

And keeping the old building going had become a financial drain, Mr. Voelker said.

"After all, we are in a 1922 building. When you move cars in here, it shakes. We've had to make repairs to the elevators and replaced floors, but it's all become too costly, and the gas bills, for instance, are astronomical," Mr. Voelker said.

Another issue was the current lending crunch. A large portion of Don Allen's customers had credit records that weren't as sterling as those for some suburban customers.

"We often had to use secondary credit and subprime lenders in order to serve people who were left in the city. That meant we had to come up with different creative ways to keep our volumes up to cover expenses," Mr. Voelker added.

Meanwhile, "overdealering" hasn't helped. In recent years, manufacturers, particularly for domestic brands, have been working feverishly to reduce the number of stores selling the same brand in small geographic locations. That's being done to help increase the chance of profitability for remaining dealers.

General Motors, according to Automotive News, will announce at an upcoming dealers convention that it wants to create "metro megastores," in major metropolitan areas. Such a facility would house all of its brands under one roof. Given the limits of real estate availability and cost, dealers would not have service departments at the megastores, but instead open nearby satellite service centers.

Like many other car companies, GM is concerned about keeping a presence in inner cities because, in spite of falling population and other difficulties, cities still have large populations, one GM dealer said, that don't want to go to a distant suburban dealer.

Meanwhile, luxury automakers are finding city locations to be beneficial. Overdealerization isn't a problem for luxury car makers because they usually only have one or two stores in a region anyway. That means a much bigger territory from which to draw customers, a situation which makes for a lot more profit per dealer and a need to have a central location.

That helps explain why Mercedes-Benz of Pittsburgh, a member of the Bobby Rahal Automotive Group; P&W Foreign Car Service Inc., which sells BMWs and Mini Coopers; BMW/Mini and Auto Palace Porsche are all located along Baum Boulevard close to universities and hospitals.

"For us, the location couldn't be better," said Bill Schmitt, motoring manager with Mini of Pittsburgh, part of P&W Foreign Car Service.

"There's the proximity to the hospitals, to UPMC Shadyside and to UPMC West Penn, and soon to Children's Hospital. It's those people who work there -- the doctors, for instance -- and the lawyers who work Downtown who buy the cars."

He added, "Those people like convenience. And we have a pick-up and delivery service here. They can drop the cars off and we can take them to work nearby."

For the Mini brand, a city location is especially nice because the car sells itself well on city roads and streets, Mr. Schmitt said.

"We have Schenley Park nearby, so people go and drive the Vintage Grand Prix route as part of the test drive. In fact, we have a great location for test drives because you can hit I-279 not far from here, go up a couple of exits to test the car and come back," he said.

Mr. Schmitt recalled that Mercedes had closed a nearby dealership around 2001, but reversed itself about a year ago and opened the new Mercedes Benz of Pittsburgh dealership.

"There were lots of people in Shadyside, Squirrel Hill and other places who said, 'I'm not driving out to Wexford. It's too far out," Mr. Schmitt said.

Don Hammonds can be reached at dhammonds@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1538.

[tooluther]

what no press release yet.....
Happy now? There is more information on thePDP Website (http://www.downtownpittsburgh.com/index.aspx)

Two new PDP initiatives will be formally announced at the 2008 Annual Meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 12.

Paris to Pittsburgh

The Colcom Foundation provided the PDP with a $1 million dollar grant to stimulate matching private building and/or business-owner investment in their Downtown storefronts and streetscape. The Colcom Foundation will provide 100% matching grants for interested property and business owners who present eligible projects that will activate the streetscape throughout the Golden Triangle using high-quality, pedestrian-oriented design elements.

What is Paris to Pittsburgh?

Paris to Pittsburgh is a coordinated effort to enhance the environment of the Golden Triangle. Because the quality of the built environment impacts the success of urban centers, Paris to Pittsburgh’s goal is to activate the Golden Triangle through pedestrian-oriented streetscape design. This program promotes physical improvements that will help to enliven downtown Pittsburgh and looks to Paris’ vibrant street environment for inspiration.



What else do I need to know?

You can download a comprehensive Paris to Pittsburgh design guidelines brochure here. For information about the application process and to apply for the program, click here.

If you have questions about the program, contact Sean Luther, Economic Development Specialist at 412.325.0157, or at sluther@downtownpittsburgh.com

Vacant Upper Floors Loan Fund


The Upstairs Fund is a private development fund owned by the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. It is funded through investments by public and private investors, including the Heinz Endowments, McCune Foundation, and the City of Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority.

The Upstairs Fund is administered by the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.

What is Vacant Upper Floors?

The Upstairs Fund is intended to stimulate the economic revitalization of downtown Pittsburgh by creating the opportunity for downtown housing among the buildings with vacant upper floors. These residential developments will create a diverse, lower cost supply of housing that will attract residents to the downtown. To accomplish this goal, the Upstairs Fund will provide financing for building owners and developers who intend to convert vacant and/or under-utilized upper floors of downtown buildings to residential uses.

The Upstairs Fund provides gap financing for financially-viable conversion projects. The Upstairs Fund is part of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership’s Vacant Upper Floors Initiative and its overall strategy to promote economic development in the Golden Triangle.

These guidelines are intended to inform potential applicants about the program and the expectations and requirements for successful projects.

Interested in additional information?

To learn more about Vacant Upper Floors, click here to read about the Program Guidelines.

For questions, contact Patty Burk, VP of Housing & Economic Development at 412.325.0163, or at pburk@downtownpittsburgh.com.

[PA Pride]

Downtown is gonna be one of the premier residential neighborhoods in the metro before long with initiatives like 'Upper Floors' and 'Paris to Pittsburgh' and with all the new residential construction and conversion. People who want to live downtown and are smart, will buy in the next couple years before prices skyrocket, IMO.

[cdc]

very interesting... I certainly don't mind seeing dealerships vacate urban neighborhoods (though they can be useful when in need of parts and service) as they tend to have a negative impact on the urban environment... especially large lots of automobiles... though most of the luxury places in the Baum Blvd area don't seem to be too bad as they're largely enclosed facilities... the West Liberty auto corridor is in the city... but really isn't "in the city" so I don't think it really relates to Don Allen's situation


Not having dealers in the East End sucks big time. The West Liberty
auto corridor is no substitute either because if you live in Sq Hill
and you want to go over there you end up getting stuck in commuting
traffic trying to get through the Liberty Tubes.

I hate it when I have to take one of my cars to the Toyota dealer over
there. I'm just glad I don't have to deal with that traffic on a
daily basis! And I don't really want or need a luxury car.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_551341.html

Investors flock to Penn's 900 block

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/2008-02-07/0208bpenn-a.jpg
Christine Goodis, owner of Salon Christine, moved her business to 954 Penn Ave. late last year after being on Wood Street for 12 years. Christine said she "wanted to move to the fastest-growing area in Pittsburgh" and likes the "sense of neighborhood" at the new location.
J.C. Schisler/Tribune-Review

By Sam Spatter
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, February 8, 2008


Christine Goodis likes what she sees in a district she calls "the fastest-growing area" in Pittsburgh.
That's why, after spending 12 years at a location on Wood Street, Downtown, she moved Salon Christine, her beauty salon and spa, to the 900 block of Penn Avenue in the city's Cultural District late last year.

So much is her faith in the block that she sold her house in the North Hills and moved into the 117-unit Penn Garrison Apartments at 915 Penn Ave.

"I feel very safe there and have found people living or working there as very progressive, professional and urban," said Goodis, whose business at 954 Penn offers eco-friendly hair and skin care products and a variety of beauty items.

She says she likes the "sense of the neighborhood" she's found.
Herb Mathias wasn't surprised Goodis selected to operate out of his building. But he is amazed at what has happened in the 900 block over the past years.

Since 1976, when he purchased the two-story building at 950 Penn Ave. for his reprographics firm, A.H. Mathias & Co. Inc., he's seen restaurants open, older buildings turned into condominiums and apartments, and a host of office and retail tenants locate in the block between Ninth and 10th streets.

"I can remember when the Greyhound Bus Station on 10th Street at Penn was probably the major traffic generator on the street," he said.

Although he sold his company to Ridgway's Ltd., which is still in the building, he and his sons, Todd and Chris, are involved in other venues there.

Todd Mathias has opened August Henry's City Saloon at 946 Penn, and Chris Mathias operates Allegheny Visual Solutions on the second floor at 950.

Their father remains active, serving as building manager.

A major investor in the 900 block over the past few years is Aaron Stauber, president of New Rochelle, N.Y.-based Rugby Realty Co.. He estimates that between $150 million and $200 million in new investment has occurred there during that time.

He owns at least seven buildings there, housing everything from rental apartments and residential condominiums to restaurants, retail and office space. His apartment building at 930 Penn, a former office/warehouse, is nearly fully leased, and two restaurants -- Seviche, a chic Latin American bistro, and a Subway -- are popular spots on the first level.

"Seviche is amazing in that regardless of what night of the week it is open, it is packed," he said.

His most recent acquisition is a two-story building at 936 Penn, with 5,000 square feet, where he hopes to land a restaurant.

Last year, he purchased 925 Penn, a six-story, 45,000-square-foot building that is to be converted to house 30 luxury condominiums, with retail on the first floor. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2009.


Jack Benoff of Philadelphia-based Solara Inc. said some of his friends and associates branded him "as crazy" for starting a condominium project along Penn.

"But I felt good about the street and what was happening there," he said.

His decision proved to be the right one, he said. All but three of the 18 units he's developed at 941 Penn have been sold, priced from about $350,000. Owners will begin moving in by May or June, he said.

On the first level of the building, a buyer plans to place a commercial office, Benoff said.

One of the earliest changes on the street occurred about the turn of the century when Oxford Development Co. converted two former office buildings at 911-15 Penn into the Penn Garrison apartments. Later, Oxford converted two former office buildings into the 182-guest room Courtyard by Marriott hotel at 945 Penn.

Still another investor in the area is Bill Gatti of Trek Development, who converted 900 Penn into 22 apartment units. That's also the location for Nine on Nine, a restaurant and bar.

Now, there are 162 residential units between 8th and 10th streets along Penn, and another 22 units under construction, according to the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.

David P. Bridge, a piano and classic organ consultant for Trombino Piano Gallarie at 942 Penn Ave., said that store has been at its present location since the 1980s.

Of the activity on the block, he said, "It's very exciting ... and bringing things back to life."



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


http://www.pittsburghlive.com/images/video/2008_pdfs/GX-PennAVE-bn-02-08.pdf

http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/81175039.jpg

[cdc]

more broken PGH transportation infrastructure... an 8 inch drop? wow!

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08039/855912-100.stm

"PennDOT ordered the emergency closure of the Birmingham Bridge this
morning due to an unexplained drop of up to 8 inches in a portion of
the span over the Monongahela River."

[PA Pride]

That's one of the best blocks downtown. Not suprising it became so popular. It has really helped transform the cultural district, which in turn will spread to other parts of downtown.
So this block has been a great catalyst.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_551506.html

$62 million SouthSide Works projects slated to start

By Sam Spatter
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, February 9, 2008


Three new projects at the Soffer Organization's SouthSide Works development will be under construction in 30 days.
"We expect construction will begin on the $3 million Hofbrauhaus, the $48 million four-star hotel and the first phase of SouthShore Riverfront Park," R. Damian Soffer, owner and chairman of the Pittsburgh-based development firm, told about 100 local commercial real estate brokers Thursday at the SouthSide Works Cinema.

The Hofbrauhaus, a German beer restaurant, will have 18,000 square feet and seating for 1,080. Expected to be open by year's end, it could attract up to 450,000 visitors annually, officials said.

The hotel, a 140-room facility to be built by development firm DOC-Economou, will include a business center and two-story ballroom. Also part of the complex will be 23 residential condominiums on the upper floors and 20,000 square feet of riverfront retail space. The facility is expected to open by summer 2009.

The $11 million SouthShore Riverfront Park will be located between the Monongahela River bank and the Hofbrauhaus and is expected to take several years to complete.
Already under construction is Quantum III, a five-story, 150,000-square-foot office structure that will be the home for the next wave of workers from American Eagle Inc. when it is completed in the second half of 2009.

Last year, the clothing retailer moved about 400 people from its headquarters in Marshall to its new corporate office at the Quantum II building along Hot Metal Street at the SouthSide Works.

If American Eagle's growth continues, it could be a potential tenant for another office building, Quantum IV, although plans for that building have yet to be announced.

In the meantime, Soffer said, the company won't proceed with construction of its planned 150,000-square-foot Quantum V office building until the structure is about 60 to 70 percent pre-leased.

Quantum V would be located next to Hofbrauhaus, which will be behind the Cheesecake Factory.

Grant Street Associates, a Downtown-based commercial real estate brokerage, has been selected to find tenants for the five- or six-story building, which will have retail on the first level and up to two levels of underground parking.

It could be increased to 350,000 to 400,000 square feet, depending on how many tenants are secured, Soffer said.

"Once we are ready to build, construction will take 18 to 24 months," said Scott Astorino of Grant Street Associates. He said rental rates will range from the upper $20s to the low $30s per square foot.


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

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_551518.html

CEOs pledge to travel on KLM

By Thomas Olson
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Saturday, February 9, 2008


In meetings with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines' chief executive last week, the CEOs of four large Pittsburgh corporations pledged to book all of their locally originated travel to Europe on KLM/Northwest if the Dutch airline agreed to fly nonstop to Pittsburgh.
The full-corporate presses, which took place Jan. 28 and 29 in Amsterdam, were "the most positive we've had yet on flights to Europe with any airline," Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato said on Friday.

Pittsburgh-area officials have been pressing international airlines, including KLM and Lufthansa, to start nonstop flights from Pittsburgh to Europe since US Airways stopped flying from Pittsburgh International Airport to Frankfurt and London in fall 2004. Also pushing is the Regional Air Service Partnership, a business coalition.

Pitching their business to KLM were the CEOs of Westinghouse Electric Co., Medrad Inc., Lanxess Corp. and Heinz Continental Europe, said Onorato.

"None of these CEOs had business in Amsterdam at the time," said Onorato, who accompanied the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra during its recent concert tour of Europe. "They purposely made a side trip to be with me because this is how important it was to make their pitch privately."
An executive from a fifth, soon-to-be-local corporation, Royal Philips Electronics, also met with KLM's CEO, he said. Philips, based in Amsterdam, has agreed to acquire Respironics Inc. of Murrysville in a $5.1 billion deal that should close in March.

The big five are among the more than 70 local companies and organizations that recently wrote KLM letters urging nonstop flights from Pittsburgh to Europe, said Ken Zapinski, a spokesman for the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, which organized the air-service partnership. Also lobbying KLM was partnership chairman Dan Booker, a senior attorney at Reed Smith, a Downtown firm with six offices in Europe.

Those companies "conservatively" represent more than $19 million in annual trans-Atlantic fares, said Zapinski.

For instance, Lanxess of Findlay Township accounted for 500 business passengers on flights to Germany in 2006, spokeswoman Amanda Mushrush said. Executives of Lanxess Corp., whose world headquarters is in Leverkusen, Germany, mostly take business flights to Cologne or Dusseldorf and usually on US Airways.

"We don't have a contract with US Airways per se, but that's who we usually wind up with," said Mushrush. But such one- or two-stop flights mean a plane change in Charlotte, Newark, New York's JFK or even Chicago, she said, adding time and tedium to a trip.

Onorato could not say when KLM/Northwest, a Northwest Airlines partnership for trans-Atlantic service, would make a decision. Northwest spokesman Dean Breest said the Minneapolis-based airline does not comment on specific routes until they are finalized.

Westinghouse personnel logged more than 5,200 flights last year to Europe, the Middle East and Africa, company spokesman Vaughn Gilbert said. Of the flights, nearly 4,000 began or concluded in Pittsburgh, he said.

"We're thrilled that direct overseas flights may be coming to the Pittsburgh region," Lanxess CEO Randy Dearth said in a statement. "These direct flights would have a major, positive impact on existing and future global businesses in southwestern Pennsylvania."



Thomas Olson can be reached at tolson@tribweb.com or 412-320-7854.

[PA Pride]

^I love that article. Pittsburgh flexing it's economic muscle by pooling together some of our best European linked companies to entice a direct flight. That probably IS our best bet. Hopefully it works, cause not having direct flights to Europe is gonna kill our chances of business growth in the future.


I miss the 80s/90s when I was a young kid; Every day at dinner we watched the 6PM flight to London on a British Airways 747 fly right over my house...

[Evergrey]

tidbits from this week's Pittsburgh Business Times:

1. Port Authority is moving ahead with "transit-oriented development" throughout the county that includes retail and residential units. These include: opening Penn Circle to two-way traffic to accomodate the growth of Mosites' EastSide development in East Liberty, high-density housing near T stations in Dormont, Mt. Lebanon and Castle Shannon, and office/retail development at South Hills Village and near PIT. PAT is hoping TOD development will increase ridership and be a boon to the coffers of many municipalities in the county. PAT suffered a 3.5% ridership loss in 2007 due to the service reductions, which is less than the projected 5%.

2. Renewed leases of thriving wholesalers at the URA-owned 45,000 sq. ft. Pennsylvania Railroad Fruit Auction & Sales Building along Smallman Street in the Strip District could thwart Neighbors in the Strip's long-sought plan for a public market in that building. However, there may be an opportunity to incorporate the existing wholesalers into a modified public market plan.

[Evergrey]

here's a page with some information on the Birmingham Bridge (and every bridge in this county of bridges)... it's one of our newest bridges... built in 1976... and connecting the South Side to Oakland/Uptown/Hill District (which combined with the Blvd of the Allies bridge replacement project, will make getting around in this area quite the chore). At least a motorist noticed the problems before we had our own I-35.

http://pghbridges.com/pittsburghE/0587-4476/birmingham.htm

ever wonder why the Birmingham Bridge is so different (and so anti-neighborhood) than the other non-interstate bridges in the city? from that website:

"An icon for plans that never materialized, the Birmingham Bridge was massively overbuilt in anticipation of an innercity belt highway. The 1963 map shows a highway system laid over the Pittsburgh area which would have used the Birmingham Bridge as a connection between the Mon Valley and PA28 in the Allegheny Valley. Some of the ghost ramps still show as stubs on the southern approach."

http://pghbridges.com/maps/pghhwy1963.jpg

holy shit... i bet the Mon-Fay proponents would love this map

the site has a pic of the Brady Street Bridge (built in 1896), which was replaced by the Birmingham...
http://pghbridges.com/pittsburghE/0587-4476/Brady2rLarryWoods.JPG

some Birmingham Bridge photos from the vault:

There's the green monster in the distance... from top: Birmingham, 10th St., Liberty, Panhandle (LRT)
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2154/1509967810_69581fa198_b.jpg

Birmingham with the Hot Metal Bridge in the foreground
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1012/1464941501_be16a0a91c_b.jpg

at night
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1334/1263036879_de9555e590_b.jpg

Carnegie-Mellon above the bridge
http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/80459282.jpg

the overbuilt bridge slicing into the South Side with Uptown in the distance... notice the ghost ramp?
http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/78967271.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/84283237.jpg

Monongahela River bridges from foreground: Smithfield, Panhandle, Liberty, 10th, Birmingham, Hot Metal
http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/84285025.jpg

http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/86475981.jpg

[Johnland]

tidbits from this week's Pittsburgh Business Times:

1. Port Authority is moving ahead with "transit-oriented development" throughout the county that includes retail and residential units.

2. Renewed leases of thriving wholesalers at the URA-owned 45,000 sq. ft. Pennsylvania Railroad Fruit Auction & Sales Building along Smallman Street in the Strip District could thwart Neighbors in the Strip's long-sought plan for a public market in that building. However, there may be an opportunity to incorporate the existing wholesalers into a modified public market plan.

Regarding TOD, I can't believe they've waited this long - like what - 30 years!! I'm glad there's actually a push to be more aggressive on that front.

As for the Strip, I'm not sure how I feel about this. There's absolutely nothing like it here in Tampa. The Strip is a Pittsburgh gem. I'm a foodie, and loved the Strip when I lived in Pittsburgh. I always thought it was just fine as an unassuming destination for good food and produce.

[PA Pride]

Great picture Evergrey:
http://www.pbase.com/deadwing/image/80459282.jpg

[mind field]

Pittsburghers! Linked is a thread from the forums at the Fabulous Ruins of Detroit website. In that thread forumers compare Pittsburgh to Detroit, I'm sure there are a lot of outsider "innaccuracies and perceptions". Enjoy reading. I always find it interesting how outsiders view my hometown, I'm sure you guys do too.

http://www.atdetroit.net/forum/messages/5/127831.html?1202715701

Edit: make sure to read the whole thread from the beginning. Hit the archive link at the very top of the thread.

[Evergrey]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/02/11/story3.html?b=1202706000^1588138

Friday, February 8, 2008

Transit development plans moving forward

Retail, residential units in the mix

Pittsburgh Business Times - by Erin Lawley and Kim Lyons

http://cll.bizjournals.com/story_image/110021-400-0.jpg
Joe Wojcik
Passengers await a trolley at the Potomac T stop in Dormont. It’s one of several stops slated for commercial and retail development.

The Port Authority of Allegheny County is taking some new tactics to move forward with its development projects.

Last month, the Port Authority announced it is working with the Mosites Co. and county agencies to make Penn Circle more friendly to pedestrians and more attractive to businesses.

Plans call for opening Penn Circle to two-way traffic, and for new traffic patterns for Penn Avenue, Penn Circle and the Port Authority's Penn Mall Loop station.

It's one of a fistful of so-called "transit-oriented developments" in the Port Authority's plans. These developments, which would create commercial and/or residential spaces near Port Authority parking lots or light-rail stations, are aimed at increasing tax revenue for their respective communities and increasing Port Authority ridership.

The authority had 8,400 fewer riders in 2007, said spokesman David Whipkey. That represents a 3.5 percent decline in total ridership, which is less than the 5 percent decline the authority was expecting, Whipkey said. The Port Authority ended 2007 with an $80 million deficit, Whipkey said.

"We would certainly support any kind of development along any of our transit lines, whether bus or rail, that would improve ridership and add another place for our riders to go in the immediate vicinity of a stop or station," said Chris Hess, assistant general manager of corporate and legal services at the Port Authority.

In the preliminary stages are plans in the South Hills, Moon Township and Robinson.

GOING west
Developer Tony Ross of Ross Development Co. is working with the Port Authority to develop retail space near its park-and-ride lot near Pittsburgh International Airport, Hess said.

The developer would lease the Port Authority's land, located at University Boulevard and Port Authority Drive. Dennis Davin, director of economic development for Allegheny County, said construction at the site could include big box stores or a hotel.

Davin's office is working with the Port Authority to help with development activity.

Davin said the park-and-ride lot would then be moved to nearby land, but initial plans for the project have not yet been submitted. He would not reveal the developer or give specifics, but said plans are being drawn up and the project may be under construction "later this year or early next."

Additionally, Davin said the Port Authority is in early planning to create a park-and-ride facility with possible retail and commercial development near Robinson Town Centre.

HEADING FOR THE South Hills
Developing the areas around T stations in Mount Lebanon and Dormont is under discussion as well.

The communities are working together in exploring the creation of Transit Revitalization Investment Districts, or TRIDs, to help fund commercial developments near the communities' three T stations: Dormont Junction, Mount Lebanon and Potomac.

Creating a TRID allows a region to put a portion of tax revenue toward a transit improvement, such as improvements to a transit station or building infrastructure around a station, Hess said.

Keith McGill, Mount Lebanon's municipal planner, said both communities received $75,000 in TRID grants from the state that they will match with $25,000 in funds to study what types of developments would be best for those locations and what kinds of infrastructure improvements might be needed to make them possible.

There are two options for the Mount Lebanon station, McGill said. Both include a 56-unit townhouse development at the corner of Shady Drive East and Alfred Street as well as a 98-unit extended-stay hotel on Washington Road.

The higher-density plan would add a platform above the existing T station to add more residential units, retail and office space.

Dormont's acting borough manager, Daniel Mator, said the preliminary discussions have included mostly enhancements for the Potomac station.

"Potomac Avenue is beautiful, but you can't see it from the train," Mator said. "The thrust of the plan is to open up the intersection so T riders can see Potomac Avenue, to attract people to get off the train and visit some of the shops."

An upscale condominium development is one of the possibilities near the Dormont Junction station, including an underground parking garage in an area where parking is scarce, Mator said.

Retail ELEMENT
The Port Authority has been working with Strip District-based developer JRA Development for the past few years on plans for a $30 million development at the Castle Shannon T station.

The Port Authority has been working with Strip District-based developer JRA Development for the past few years on plans for a $30 million development at the Castle Shannon T station.

The project won't move forward until it has $10 million in public funding to build a decked structure over the 500-space park and ride lot adjacent to the station, Davin said. The decking would let the developer build the residential and retail component above the parking lot, making it level with Castle Shannon Boulevard.

Lynn Colosi, whose Lawrenceville-based company, Clear View Strategies, has been working with JRA Development on the project, said they still need about $6 million.

"We would like to have all the public pieces in place sometime before summertime of this year," Colosi said.

It would then take 18 to 24 months to build the 114 residential units and 60,000 square feet of retail space planned for the project, Colosi said.

The transit development planned at the South Hills Village light rail stop is also "moving along at a good clip," Hess said.

Indianapolis-based developer Lauth Property Group is planning an office building at the site of the Port Authority's 600-space park-and-ride lot.

Hess said the developer would lease that land from the Port Authority to build a three-story medical office building, resulting in about $131,000 in rent annually.

Lauth's local office manager, Kevin Wade, said he hoped to have the lease signed in the next couple of weeks, but that a start date for the project hasn't been determined yet.

"It's just a great site, with service by rail, in an area that's really underserved in terms of available office space," Wade said.

elawley@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3824 klyons@bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3827

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08043/856736-53.stm

Plan to erect LED sign bypasses city panels, gets approval anyway

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A 1,200-square-foot electronic billboard will decorate the rising Grant Street Transportation Center as part of a deal between Pittsburgh officials and Lamar Advertising to trade old, paper signs for new, illuminated ones.

Because of its size and cost, the sign would normally need zoning board and planning commission approval, but it is proceeding with neither. Pat Ford, executive director of the Urban Redevelopment Authority, said yesterday that he backed an administrator's decision to authorize the sign without any other approvals, because the deal will reduce the number of billboards in the Strip District, Downtown and Lawrenceville.

He said city code "is silent" on deals that can reduce "nonconformities" like old billboards that don't meet new standards.

"My interpretation is, where the code is silent, I'm going to try to improve the greater good of the area," he said.

"Just to have another big advertising billboard, which is apparently the intent of this, I don't see the need for that," said state Sen. Jim Ferlo, D-Highland Park. He called it "a waste of creative space."

The Pittsburgh Parking Authority is building the center, which will include a Greyhound Lines station and 1,050 parking spaces, is due to open in June.

The building will sit where the central business district, the Strip District and the Cultural District meet.

In December, the authority asked the city zoning office for permission to put a 20-foot-by-60-foot LED advertising sign on the garage side facing Grant Street. The bottom of the sign would sit 32 feet above street level. Zoning administrator Susan Tymoczko approved it a week later.

City code normally would demand a zoning board review of a sign that, Mr. Ford confirms, is far larger than anything that had previously been on that site. The cost of installing the sign will be several times the $50,000 limit that triggers planning commission review of Downtown construction.

Mr. Ford said he and Ms. Tymoczko instead relied on a deal he had forged with Lamar during former Mayor Tom Murphy's administration, when he was zoning administrator. Then, the city agreed to let Lamar build six LED billboards in return for taking down 36 traditional signs that he called "visual blight."

Parking authority Executive Director David Onorato said his agency will pay nothing for the sign, will charge Lamar rent, "and it enhances my building big-time."

John DeSantis, executive director of the Duquesne Light Home & Garden Show, which will occupy the convention center next month, noted that city officials have long sought to turn Grant Street into a regal thoroughfare.

"If the culmination of this grand boulevard is this lighted, digital billboard, what did you go and spend all of that money for?" he asked.

Rich Lord can be reached at rlord@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1542.

[cdc]

Market analysis could guide plan for Downtown retail
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08043/856723-100.stm

For years, politicians and others have dreamed about landing big name retailers like Nordstrom, Tiffany & Co. and Neiman Marcus to help revitalize the Downtown retail corridor.

Now the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership plans to take a step back and ask some basic questions: Just what types of stores will the market support? Who shops Downtown? Where do they shop?

...




This seems like a good idea, especially if it will break our city
government leaders off from the bad habit of trying to promote
outdated 1950's style downtown department store shopping in 2008.
Time has moved on and those days are gone, baby, gone.


Downtown retail needs to be focused on people who spend alot of time
downtown: office workers. Downtown should be all about office
workers. We should not be subsidizing efforts to directly compete
with suburban shopping (e.g. look at what happened with Lazarus...
and even the suburban malls are having trouble. Consider the state of
the Century III and the overbuilt Pittsburgh Mills mall).

[PA Pride]

What is up with all the plans over the years to bring in retail to downtown? It's so backwards, IMO. Retail will happen naturally once enough people live in a certain area. There still is not enough people downtown for large scale projects. wait till about 10,000 people live downtown before subsidizing big projects, so it at least has a chance of surviving.

[tooluther]

10,000 people is not nearly enough to support any retail downtown. Unlike the cities with beltways (creating very large trade areas) Pittsburgh are still resistant to cross two bridges.

SO, it is only with major leveraging that Simon has been able to begin to build Ross Park as a location for "one off" stores in the market (such as Nordstroms).

However, many retail operations looking at Pittsburgh still want to be downtown because it is the one location in the metro region that you can get to from everywhere else in the metro.

So, the idea is to look at the hard numbers, identify the true trade area, take into account that downtown has one of the largest daytime "surges" in the country, analyse all the old reports, identify existing retail corridors, and look at opportunities to strengthen them.

There is actually a lot of successful retail downtown. The problem is it is everywhere and (with the exception of 5th Avenue which benefited from the Lazurus TIF to update the street scape) a lot of it looks un-unified. So the study will identify the what and the where.

Keep in mind that the there where HUGE numbers of retailers committed to 5th/Forbes when that blew up (they are now currently located at Bessemer Court in Station Square, Southside Works, and the Waterfront). It is highly plausible that Downtown can regain some footing as a shopping/entertainment destination.

On another note, I'm out in San Diego right now, and they have a fantastic dinning district called "the Gas Light District"...the design concepts out here speak very well to the Paris to Pittsburgh ideas as well as continuing work on Market Square.

[Johnland]

I see in the Post Gazette that another round of litigation is pending concerning the casino parking garage. This time, the objection is coming from the Riverlife Task Force and they're saying the sheer size of garage will marr the views from Mt Wash, Downtown and the bridges.

It does suck that after over a century of river pollution, Pittsburgh's legacy would be that filth-spewing factories would be replaced by view-destroying concrete parking garages. Visual pollution. No progress.

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08044/856897-53.stm

Program to push affordable city living

Wednesday, February 13, 2008
By Bill Toland, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After more than five years of planning, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership is launching a $3.5 million loan program that it hopes will spur the creation of new, affordable apartments on the vacant upper floors of Downtown midrises.

The partnership formally announced its "Vacant Upper Floors" project at its annual meeting yesterday at the Doubletree Hotel & Suites, Uptown.

Partnership head Mike Edwards said the loan program was big enough to fund 10 projects, creating about 80 new housing units. The loans, to be between $350,000 and $500,000, will provide "gap financing" for building owners.

It's a departure from the partnership's usual activities -- marketing, advocacy and coordination. As of this year, the partnership will play an active role in financing construction -- getting its hands dirty, so to speak. Or "straight, hard-on economic development," as Mr. Edwards put it yesterday.

But given the hundreds of housing units already under construction Downtown and the hundreds more in the planning stages, is this really the partnership's role, especially considering the loans will be market-rate?

Couldn't the building owners interested in converting upper floors to residential units just go to a bank and get the same loan?

"We don't think it would happen without the money," Mr. Edwards said. Many of the buildings have been owned by the same family for years, and they are accustomed to operating an office on the second floor, and retail on the street level.

"They don't have the expertise to go to the bank and lay something out for them," he said. The Downtown rental occupancy rate seems to bear out that line of thinking -- despite the addition of hundreds of units over the last few years, Downtown rentals are running at roughly 95 percent capacity.

That means Downtown is, or certainly appears to be, underserved by housing. And yet there are hundred of buildings under eight stories -- 265 of them, to be exact -- with vacant upper floors that could be converted to rentals. Mr. Edwards expects that some of these building owners are simply unaware of the potential for housing, or unsure of how to go about it.

That's why the partnership has been walking some of the building owners through preliminary schematics to see which of them have the best potential for conversion. (A building that already has an elevator and a sprinkler system has more potential than one that doesn't, for example.)

The partnership hopes to identify the best of the best soon, and issue half of its available loans by the end of 2008. Units should be priced around $1.25 per square foot; an 800-square-foot pad might rent for $1,000 monthly.

The project money -- which will be used to leverage larger loans from banks that might otherwise view the conversions as "marginal projects" -- came from the Heinz Endowments, the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the McCune Foundation.

The availability of "gap" financing becomes especially important as the lending atmosphere becomes less free-wheeling and more risk-aware. In 2006 or 2007, a developer might have been able to secure a loan with less than 20 percent down. Today, some lenders want 30 percent or more.

Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, keynote speaker at yesterday's annual meeting, said it was important to keep Downtown healthy -- and part of that prescription is more housing options.

"We can't let Downtown fall apart. If the core starts to crumble, it's just going to roll out to the county," he said.

Bill Toland can be reached at btoland@post-gazette.com or 412-263-2625.

[PA Pride]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08044/856897-53.stm

Program to push affordable city living

Wednesday, February 13, 2008
By Bill Toland, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After more than five years of planning, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership is launching a $3.5 million loan program that it hopes will spur the creation of new, affordable apartments on the vacant upper floors of Downtown midrises.

The partnership formally announced its "Vacant Upper Floors" project at its annual meeting yesterday at the Doubletree Hotel & Suites, Uptown.

Partnership head Mike Edwards said the loan program was big enough to fund 10 projects, creating about 80 new housing units. The loans, to be between $350,000 and $500,000, will provide "gap financing" for building owners.

It's a departure from the partnership's usual activities -- marketing, advocacy and coordination. As of this year, the partnership will play an active role in financing construction -- getting its hands dirty, so to speak. Or "straight, hard-on economic development," as Mr. Edwards put it yesterday.

But given the hundreds of housing units already under construction Downtown and the hundreds more in the planning stages, is this really the partnership's role, especially considering the loans will be market-rate?

Couldn't the building owners interested in converting upper floors to residential units just go to a bank and get the same loan?

"We don't think it would happen without the money," Mr. Edwards said. Many of the buildings have been owned by the same family for years, and they are accustomed to operating an office on the second floor, and retail on the street level.

"They don't have the expertise to go to the bank and lay something out for them," he said. The Downtown rental occupancy rate seems to bear out that line of thinking -- despite the addition of hundreds of units over the last few years, Downtown rentals are running at roughly 95 percent capacity.

That means Downtown is, or certainly appears to be, underserved by housing. And yet there are hundred of buildings under eight stories -- 265 of them, to be exact -- with vacant upper floors that could be converted to rentals. Mr. Edwards expects that some of these building owners are simply unaware of the potential for housing, or unsure of how to go about it.

That's why the partnership has been walking some of the building owners through preliminary schematics to see which of them have the best potential for conversion. (A building that already has an elevator and a sprinkler system has more potential than one that doesn't, for example.)

The partnership hopes to identify the best of the best soon, and issue half of its available loans by the end of 2008. Units should be priced around $1.25 per square foot; an 800-square-foot pad might rent for $1,000 monthly.

The project money -- which will be used to leverage larger loans from banks that might otherwise view the conversions as "marginal projects" -- came from the Heinz Endowments, the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the McCune Foundation.

The availability of "gap" financing becomes especially important as the lending atmosphere becomes less free-wheeling and more risk-aware. In 2006 or 2007, a developer might have been able to secure a loan with less than 20 percent down. Today, some lenders want 30 percent or more.

Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato, keynote speaker at yesterday's annual meeting, said it was important to keep Downtown healthy -- and part of that prescription is more housing options.

"We can't let Downtown fall apart. If the core starts to crumble, it's just going to roll out to the county," he said.

Bill Toland can be reached at btoland@post-gazette.com or 412-263-2625.


I've glad to read those couple of sentences. I think downtown will continue to eat up reasonably priced rentals and for sale condos because downtown is still underserved.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/business/s_552270.html

Hearty demand ups Downtown rental rates

By Ron DaParma and Sam Spatter
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, February 14, 2008


The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's decision to lease up to one-fifth of the space in U.S. Steel Tower is helping to tighten the region's office market and increase rental rates, real estate experts said Wednesday.
UPMC's commitment to lease as much as 515,000 square feet in the city's tallest building, combined with leasing activity by a number of other companies, helped cut Downtown's vacancy rate to 18.2 percent and the region's rate to 16.6 percent, according to year-end 2007 figures from Grubb & Ellis Co.

The Downtown vacancy rate was 20.2 percent and the region's 18.1 percent as of Sept. 30.

"Everybody involved in the office market in Southwestern Pennsylvania in 2007 was very busy," said Jason Stewart, Grubb & Ellis vice president, at the company's annual market forecast briefing at the Duquesne Club, Downtown.

He said about 1.7 million square feet of office space was filled in 2007, making the region the nation's 12th best market for space leased.

Pittsburgh ranked ahead of Los Angeles, San Francisco, Phoenix and Seattle, Stewart said.

In addition to UPMC, another major factor helping the market was the Bank of New York Mellon's decision to take about 350,000 square feet of space in Downtown buildings off the market to accommodate expected growth.

UPMC's new lease Downtown didn't ease the space crunch in the Oakland office market, where the vacancy rate is only 8.6 percent, said Stewart. The medical center will continue to use the Oakland space after relocating workers to U.S. Steel Tower, he said. UPMC said it will begin the move in late March.

With occupancy at the nearly 2.4 million-square-foot U.S. Steel Tower improved from about 80 percent to 94 percent, rental rates there have increased as much as $4 to $5 per square foot, Stewart said.

"That's not only of interest to the tenants who are in U.S. Steel Tower or those who would go there, but it is good news for the landlords who compete against U.S. Steel Tower. Now with its (annual) rents running between $23 and $29 per square foot, this allows competitors to raise their rates."

Nonetheless, market challenges remain, including how to fill about 560,000 square feet of vacant space at the Union Trust Building on Grant Street, which was purchased by a group of California investors.

In addition, the law firm Reed Smith is scheduled to vacate 180,000 square feet at its headquarters on Sixth Avenue when it relocates next year to Three PNC Plaza, which is under construction at Fifth Avenue. The law firm Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis is planning to leave the 280,000 square feet at the Henry W. Oliver building on Smithfield Street when it moves to the 39-story One Oliver Plaza on Sixth Avenue in 2010.

[Evergrey]

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_552301.html

Long-awaited Downtown grocery nears completion

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/photos/2008-02-13/0214pnotdone-a.jpg
There's still much to do before Downtown shoppers can get their groceries at the new food market.
James Knox/Tribune-Review

By Jodi Weigand
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, February 14, 2008


With a little luck from St. Patrick, a much-anticipated Downtown grocery store might open its doors March 17 after months of delays.

Construction and design issues twice postponed the opening of Rosebud Fine Food Market and Deli on the ground floor of the Encore on 7th apartment building at the foot of the Seventh Street Bridge.

"We want to do it right," said owner Robin Fernandez. "There's so much interest in it, we don't want to mess it up."

Rosebud would be the first Downtown grocery store in 14 years. The last, Market on the Square, closed in 1994.


Fernandez wanted to open Rosebud in October, then in December, before unanticipated problems caused delays.


The store's layout was altered to include two handicapped-accessible restrooms, said Hollie Plevyak, spokeswoman for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. Stores that sell prepared take-out food are required to have separate facilities, she said.


Fernandez said he chose to take his time redesigning the layout of the 3,000-square-foot space after consulting with an expert in the grocery industry.


Despite the delays, Fernandez said crews have finished putting up drywall and will begin painting in a few days. Refrigerators, meat cutters and shelving will be installed next week.


"It's definitely going to open," Plevyak said.


Rosebud will stock organic and natural foods, fresh produce and deli meats, as well as everyday household items.


Local suppliers will be used when possible, Fernandez said. The store will stock cleaning supplies from the Butler County-based James Austin Company and Italian foods from the Pennsylvania Macaroni Company in the Strip District.

Rosebud was the name of the nightclub and live music venue Fernandez owned in the Strip District before it closed in 2004.

Fernandez said he doesn't anticipate much competition from vendors in the Strip and Whole Foods Market in East Liberty.


"We feel that we will have our own little niche," he said. "There's nowhere else Downtown to buy a fresh tomato."


A Whole Foods official focused on the expected benefits for Pittsburghers, rather than how Rosebud might affect its store's bottom line.


"We don't view it geographically as competition," said Sarah Kenney, a Whole Foods spokeswoman. "Not to be laissez-faire about it, because that's not to say we won't be studying and watching."

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08045/857299-28.stm

Pennsylvania escapes the foreclosure crisis

"Pittsburgh housing market has remained relatively stable because of the preference for more conservative mortgage products among local residents. Homeowners here had 4,040 foreclosure filings in 2007, which was a 29.5 percent improvement over 2006, in which there were 5,737 foreclosures"

[UrbaniDesDev]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08043/856736-53.stm

Plan to erect LED sign bypasses city panels, gets approval anyway

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
By Rich Lord, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

A 1,200-square-foot electronic billboard will decorate the rising Grant Street Transportation Center as part of a deal between Pittsburgh officials and Lamar Advertising to trade old, paper signs for new, illuminated ones.



I personally would like to see a little more "Times Square" effect Downtown. I would not have chosen this location, facing Grant Street, a more conservative government corridor. I would like to see Liberty Avenue have a lot more ligted signage. Liberty Avenue corridor, with it's odd angles where the 2 grids come together would really support a more vibrant display. Im not suggesting covering every building along Liberty head to toe with flashing signs but there are specific locations that would support amore exciting effect. I would love to see a ticker running along the perimeter of the building above the Wood Street Station. A story or 2 above the street level like at Times Square.

There was a movie, "Innocent Blood" which showed Liberty Avenue lined with neon signs. Tho, in the movie, they were mostly strip joints and such, The avenue looked spectacular. I could see them as advertisements and community events instead of sleaze. Like Times square, it accents the Theater District. just a thought

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/WoodStreetTConversioncopy.jpg

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e235/UrbaniDesDev/LibertyAvenueConversion3.jpg

[Evergrey]

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08046/857690-53.stm

Downtown parking deal keeps condo prices down

Friday, February 15, 2008
By Mark Belko, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The city's Urban Redevelopment Authority is getting into the parking business to help a Washington County developer keep down the cost of its Downtown condominiums.

URA board members yesterday approved the acquisition of 43 parking spaces at the Oliver garage at a cost of $1.72 million from a subsidiary of Millcraft Industries as part of the redevelopment of the former Lazarus-Macy's store at Fifth Avenue and Wood Street.

Millcraft, in turn, will pay $103,200 a year to lease back the spaces, which are under the building and which will be used exclusively by residents who buy the 65 condos for sale as part of the Piatt Place redevelopment. The condos are priced from $320,000 to more than $1 million.

As part of a complicated transaction, the developer originally had agreed to buy the spaces from the city Parking Authority, but later found that adding the cost of the spots to the price of the condos could make the units too expensive, said Don Kortlandt, URA general counsel.

Under the new arrangement, Millcraft will be able to offer the spaces at roughly the same monthly lease rate the Parking Authority offers spots to the general public. Condo residents or any association representing them would have the right to buy the spaces from the URA at cost.

"There is no question that this is an assistance to the redevelopment of the building," Mr. Kortlandt said.

But he added the URA will be getting a "significant" 6 percent return on its investment, which is equal to the current prime rate. As such, "we're providing assistance but we're not subsidizing them," he said.

Brian Walker, Millcraft chief financial officer, said the URA deal is "another step in the right direction of finalizing" the Lazarus redevelopment.

Also yesterday, the URA board approved a $125,000 settlement with Awni Shuman to relocate a Super Dollar store from East Liberty to Homewood. Mr. Shuman owned and operated the store at the site of the East Mall high-rise for low-income residents. The high-rise had been demolished to make way for a new mixed income housing development, but Mr. Shuman's one-story building stood in the way and his lease ran until 2018.

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

[themaguffin]

The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is moving forward with plans for elevated toll lanes above the Parkway East and plans to make an announcement on the project in the next two weeks.

Turnpike Commission CEO Joe Brimmeier said the organization is putting out a request for information from private investors for the project, which would likely start near Churchill or Penn Hills and come toward Downtown, bypassing the Squirrel Hill Tunnel. The commission is discussing the project with private investors including Macquarie Bank, an Australian conglomerate that has leased other U.S. highways and recently purchased Duquesne Light Co.; Cintra, a Spanish company that controls highways in other states; and Goldman Sachs, the New York investment bank.

Brimmeier said the commission will hold a press conference in the next two weeks but would not elaborate further.

Constructing elevated toll lanes above the Parkway East, also known as Interstate 376, is just one of several possible solutions under consideration for providing better access to Downtown from the eastern suburbs, said state House Transportation Committee Chairman Joe Markosek, a Monroeville Democrat.


This is the most assinine and unnecessary (in fact works against what is necessary) idea.

The highway is simply too outdated for even 1960's traffic. It needed to be widened decades ago and they still would rather spend god knows how much to put concrete above this outdated mess rather than improve it.

Additionally this will only make the exchanges even more ridiculous.

[Grego43]

This is the most assinine and unnecessary (in fact works against what is necessary) idea.

The highway is simply too outdated for even 1960's traffic. It needed to be widened decades ago and they still would rather spend god knows how much to put concrete above this outdated mess rather than improve it.

Additionally this will only make the exchanges even more ridiculous.


As someone who has driven the Tampa Crosstown and marveled at its ugliness, I'd confidently say I don't see this ever happening on the Parkway...the NIMBYs won't allow firstly. Additionally, as themaguffin stated, the Parkway East is outdated (add to that the PW West, the Crosstown, portions of I79, the Turnpike, and RT28).

I would think the best option might be upgrade the Parkway, complete the Mon-Fay as a tunnel bypass. (Like it or not, the Mon Valley region will continue to wither without modern transport options for industry). :runaway:


For those who can't imagine how butt ugly the elevated lanes are in Tampa...just imagine these beauts passing through the East:

http://www.floridaits.com/Newsletters/2003/01-2003_Newsletter/Graphics/3-lane-smaller.jpg

http://starbulletin.com/2006/10/01/editorial/art1c.jpg

http://www.flatrans.com/files/images/thcea-1.gif
images courtesy of FLADOT

[tooluther]

Wouldn't it be nice if Pittsburgh was actually PROGRESSIVE on transportation option in the east and pumped all that money into mass transit such as commuter rail and an expanded LRT network coming off the East Busway.

Obviously highway idiocracy is not confined to Pittsburgh but to the whole country but come on...elevated highways on the Parkway East? Ridiculous :yuck:

[Grego43]

Wouldn't it be nice if Pittsburgh was actually PROGRESSIVE on transportation option in the east and pumped all that money into mass transit such as commuter rail and an expanded LRT network coming off the East Busway.



That's just plain old crazy talk, tooluther. ;)

[UrbaniDesDev]

The Turnpike Commission is evil and must be destroyed

[themaguffin]

yes the LRT should be expanded - dramatically, but that doesn't change the fact that existing highways are outdated to a point where they are dangerous.

Widening the roads is necessary and having proper ramps lengths and interchanges that make sense are necessary.

I realize many people have a fairy tale view of highways - that they should not exist at all and everyone will ride trains etc etc, but having functional highways are necessary.

[fkohws]

This is the most assinine and unnecessary (in fact works against what is necessary) idea.

The highway is simply too outdated for even 1960's traffic. It needed to be widened decades ago and they still would rather spend god knows how much to put concrete above this outdated mess rather than improve it.

Additionally this will only make the exchanges even more ridiculous.

What would happen when the elevated lanes near the tunnel? I can't think of any plausible solution that wouldn't create a huge traffic mess.

[Grego43]

From TollRoadNews:

From Wilkinsburg about 13km (8 miles) in to Pittsburgh the reversible express lanes are planned to follow the line of the Port Authority of Allegheny County's Busway East, a 2 lane dedicated busway built in an abandoned railroad right of way leading right in to Pittsburgh's downtown near the old railroad Penn Station.

http://www.tollroadsnews.com/node/189

[hyperion1110]

I've said before and I'll say it again...the only trouble with 376 is morons from the burbs east bum-fudge don't know what the words "Maintain Speed Through Tunnel" mean.

Pittsburgh's highways can't get bigger...there is no room. We need more creative solutions than that.

[JackStraw]

What is up with all the plans over the years to bring in retail to downtown? It's so backwards, IMO. Retail will happen naturally once enough people live in a certain area. There still is not enough people downtown for large scale projects. wait till about 10,000 people live downtown before subsidizing big projects, so it at least has a chance of surviving.

Nonsense. I lived in Denver. Downtown was similar to what happend in Pittsburgh. They put in a 16th street mall through the downtown (designed by I.M. Pei) which featured retail, and all the works. The downtown took off, and now downtown is a full fledge place to be. We need to figure out a way to put the moron suburbinites back into the city.

[JackStraw]

I've said before and I'll say it again...the only trouble with 376 is morons from the burbs east bum-fudge don't know what the words "Maintain Speed Through Tunnel" mean.

Pittsburgh's highways can't get bigger...there is no room. We need more creative solutions than that.

Don't worry. Once gas gets past 4 bucks a gallon. These morons will start trying to move in next to me where I can walk to my groceries, walk to my bars, walk to a library, cd stores, and so much more. There is no more room for bigger highways. I don't want my tax money being spent on these suburbinites driving home after working in the city.

It is funny. I was reading the retarded forum of city-data.com. They were all complaining about how Pittsburgh's infrastructure is so horrible compared to the sprawl belt's. Well Good. That is why I live in a walkable and old school city.

[Grego43]

They were all complaining about how Pittsburgh's infrastructure is so horrible compared to the sprawl belt's. Well Good. That is why I live in a walkable and old school city.

I'll play devil's advocate; Clearly everyone can't live in the center city. Do you believe Denver or the other cities in the "sprawl belt" would flourish without good infrastructure? Pittsburgh's is so sub-standard it is an inpediment to business and population growth. I'm not just speaking of expressways, but all transport.

[JackStraw]

I'll play devil's advocate; Clearly everyone can't live in the center city. Do you believe Denver or the other cities in the "sprawl belt" would flourish without good infrastructure? Pittsburgh's is so sub-standard it is an inpediment to business and population growth. I'm not just speaking of expressways, but all transport.

I realize that nobody can live in the center city. However, spending taxes widening roads like 286 out in Plum and Murrysville so more suburbinites can drive home to their new subdivision called "Misty Meadows" is what I am talking about.

I realize we need good transport. I was really into the Maglev when it was suppose to be getting started here, but unfortunetly our highly intelligent president wanted to put federal money towards something else. Denver for instance is spending money on expanding lightrail. Pittsburgh's highway system is bad because of topography and it is the oldest highway system in the world. We didn't get to go through a boom in the 90s where we put up 4 lane highways. We boomed in the time when roads for cars were the new thing.

Pretty much. I want to see our lightrail expanded. (It should have went to Oakland, instead of digging a expensive tunnel under a river for our sports stadiums). I would love to see the train they are trying to put from Downtown up to New Ken. (which will never happen. Old people actually oppose it). I don't want to see 286 widened so more people like my urban sprawl parents can drive to their new and up and coming housing plans called "Misty Meadows".

[Johnland]

I realize that nobody can live in the center city. However, spending taxes widening roads like 286 out in Plum and Murrysville so more suburbinites can drive home to their new subdivision called "Misty Meadows" is what I am talking about.

I realize we need good transport. I was really into the Maglev when it was suppose to be getting started here, but unfortunetly our highly intelligent president wanted to put federal money towards something else. Denver for instance is spending money on expanding lightrail. Pittsburgh's highway system is bad because of topography and it is the oldest highway system in the world. We didn't get to go through a boom in the 90s where we put up 4 lane highways. We boomed in the time when roads for cars were the new thing.

Pretty much. I want to see our lightrail expanded. (It should have went to Oakland, instead of digging a expensive tunnel under a river for our sports stadiums). I would love to see the train they are trying to put from Downtown up to New Ken. (which will never happen. Old people actually oppose it). I don't want to see 286 widened so more people like my urban sprawl parents can drive to their new and up and coming housing plans called "Misty Meadows".

I actually grew up in Plum and know Rte. 286 only too well. While I agree it it totally inadequate, I also see it as one of the most worthless, miserable, pathetically ugly examples of shitty Pittsburgh suburban roadways. It is lined with a crappy mish mash of low end, low density retail and service operations jammed in a narrow valley that has been gouged out of the hillsides. The strip mine - like, barren, naked cut out hill sides still remain decades and decades after they were first bull dozed out of the natural landscape. There is not one socially redeeming aspect to the entire Rte 286 corridor. No landscaping, to attempt whatsoever at lifting it to a decent level of quality. A sewage treatment plant and a natural gas plant still occupy frontage along the way. So visually deplorable is that stretch, that an empty parcel of land still sits there near Pine valley Rd after what, 30 years! Rte 286 is so ugly, so decrepit and so disfunctional, I wouldn't waist a dime on it either.

[Evergrey]

I agree completely with JackStraw's caustic remarks. Hey exurbanites... maybe you should've thought about your soul-crushing, life-imperiling, resource-exhausting, time-wasting commute before you moved out to your isolated automobile-dependent plot of "American dystopian dream" in Murrysville in the first place.

Pittsburgh has freeways all over the freakin' metro (we rank 5th amongst major metros for limited access highway miles per capita behind Atlanta)... and they slice through many city neighborhoods... how backwards it is that we wiped out complete urban districts like the North Side so we could provide more convenient automobile commuting for those who fled to the wild wastelands of Wexford. And now you want to obliterate our Hazelwood with your Mon-Fayette boondoggle. And you want to "save" the Mon Valley by destroying it... blasting your highway through the center of Braddock, Rankin and other Mon Valley communities. Many of our waterfronts... instead of being the prime real estate they should be... instead of enhancing and defining our urban identity... instead of being a center of urban lifestyle... are dedicated to monstrous elevated freeways.

Yesterday, I was walking around the North Side in the area just to the west of the 16th St. Bridge and the Heinz Lofts... which also happens to be underneath I-579 and walled off to the north by the I-279 / PA-28 clusterf*ck. Nothing... virtually nothing survived... and no semblance of a city has regenerated in the decades since in that suprisingly large waterfront urban district across the river from the Strip District and Downtown. Gravel-strewn parking lots, a few abandoned buildings, windowless low-slung corrugated plastic warehouses. There are a handful of gorgeous rowhouses (no longer in a row) that survive on an alleyway next to the cacophony of the superhighway. Due to the architecture and materials, I estimate these are some of the oldest residential structures left in Pittsburgh... dating to the 1830s-40s... yet they are sad and forgotten and are forever subjected to the withering assault of the superhighway. There used to be an entire neighborhood of these handsome brick rowhouses... what an asset that would be today if the neighborhood wasn't annhilated by superhighways. A dense urban historic waterfront neighborhood a short walk across a bridge to Downtown and the Strip District.

No more highways. You've long ago beat us down and torn us apart with your suburbanite auto-sewers. The automobile transportation mono-culture is in its twilight. Pittsburgh can do little on its own... but hopefully the state and federal governments will help our city and region pursue a sensible transportation future.

[JackStraw]

I agree completely with JackStraw's caustic remarks. Hey exurbanites... maybe you should've thought about your soul-crushing, life-imperiling, resource-exhausting, time-wasting commute before you moved out to your isolated automobile-dependent plot of "American dystopian dream" in Murrysville in the first place.



LOL. I get very aggravated when I drive out to my parents near Murrysville. I sometimes go off on my anti-exurbs rants. I was driving through Monroeville. They have a new Ryan Homes development called "Whistling Pines". I want to be the guy who comes up with these cheesy names for subdivisions.

I get so fed up when I see neighborhoods cut apart by highways. I also get pissed when I go out for a hike and the trail has to cross yet another highway. PA went crazy with it's highways.

Also, for the record. I am not anti-suburbs all together. Towns like Oakmont, and Mt. Lebenon are some of my favorites. I could see myself living in areas like this if I was older and had kids.