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bmust71

May 29, 2018 5:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj3000 (Post 8202950)

Really? The fact that the Cultural Trust is now 0-2 over the course of a decade-plus indicates to me that we shouldn't be confident at all about seeing something developed there in the very short term. It's abundantly clear that the CT has no pressing interest in developing this parcel. It's not like they were dealing with a couple brothers that have a van and some tools.

The next potential developer they woo is going to have the exact same concerns about the Pittsburgh market... and specifically the downtown Pittsburgh market. If the CT demands something specific be built on their property, then they are going to have to offer insurance to the developer if the numbers fail to add up. That's the way it works.

Yes I do. While development on this parcel has been slow, the CT has worked on developing their other parcels (encore on 7th, 8th and Penn). The CT doesn't need to sell developers on downtown Pgh, we already have over 1billion in development UC or in the pipeline for greater downtown. Additionally, you only would need 200 apartments to get to 20+ fooors with the parking garage. And we have multiple projects with 300+ units under construction in downtown and the fringe (glasshouse, NRP strip, kauffmans). The CT already announced earlier this year that they would be submitting RFP's for the old Duff's trading school located on the same block. With prime economic conditions and a tight market I feel optimistic

The optimism, however, hinges on apartment development. Condos is a completely different market where construction requires pre-sold and no spec. I feel like the CT isn't set on condos for this site, considering the wide range of proposals they received after the initial RFP.

BrianTH

May 30, 2018 12:30 PM

Some out to bid news on a couple major projects:

Quote:

UPMC is taking proposals from PJ Dick/Rycon, Mascaro/Barton Malow, Turner Construction and Massaro/AECOM Tishman on it $280 million expansion of Hillman Cancer/Shadyside Hospital.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority has short-listed teams for A/E services and program management on its $1.1 billion Terminal Modernization Program. Finalists for A/E services are AECOM, Corgan/Michael Baker, Gensler/HDR and luis vidal + architects/CannonDesign. The program management finalists are AECOM, Jacobs and Parsons Transportation.

https://buildingpittsburgh.com/

daviderik

May 30, 2018 1:13 PM

Walnut Capital expected to get go-ahead to build nine-story building at Bakery Square

https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsbur...source=twitter

Great News!

BrianTH

May 30, 2018 1:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daviderik (Post 8204162)

Walnut Capital expected to get go-ahead to build nine-story building at Bakery Square

Great News!

Absolutely. There is really zero reason for a strict height limit in that location. The neighbors are a baseball diamond (17%), and Walnut Capital itself (83%).

BobLoblaw

May 30, 2018 2:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrianTH (Post 8204185)

Absolutely. There is really zero reason for a strict height limit in that location. The neighbors are a baseball diamond (17%), and Walnut Capital itself (83%).

The article itself notes, though, that the height was reduced from 149 ft. to 129 ft. while keeping the same number of floors. So there was actually a height reduction in response to the prior rejection.

BrianTH

May 30, 2018 2:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BobLoblaw (Post 8204207)

Ah, so that's how they are getting around it.

Which is fine with me too. Ultimately my main concern is allowing developers to densify use per unit of land. I also like taller buildings for aesthetic reasons, but the density of use is a vital public policy goal.

daviderik

May 30, 2018 2:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschaton (Post 8160619)

Here's the Business Times Article...

Quote:

The Pittsburgh Zoning Board of Adjustment has rejected Walnut Capital Partners request for a variance to add three stories and nearly 130,000 square feet to a second office building at its Bakery Square 2.0 master plan.

After the development company originally presented its plan to the ZBA in mid-February, the ZBA announced that it had rejected Walnut Capital’s variance requests at its regularly scheduled Thursday morning meeting.

In response to the variance rejection, Bill Sittig, a lawyer who represents Walnut Capital, withdrew a new variance request for height to build a new 10-story, 1,000-car garage at 6447 Dahlem Street on property in Larimer close to Bakery Square.

Sittig declined further comment.

Walnut Capital had sought to build a second office building at its Bakery Square 2.0 site that would total 130 feet in height and 330,000 square feet, a scale Walnut Capital principal Todd Reidbord indicated was in response to office demand.

The company has already been approved for the master plan of the Bakery Square 2.0 site to develop a building of six stories and about 200,000 square feet for a site that fronts on Penn Avenue next to the first building there.

Walnut Capital also has sought zoning variances for floor area ratio as well as for a height above the zoning limit of 85 feet for the new office building.

In February, Reidbord discussed the new larger building in the context of a larger strategy to connect it to a new garage, said to be 800 spaces then, as well as to a proposed transit station in Larimer.

Sources have indicated that Walnut Capital has been in advanced negotiations to lease upwards of 200,000 square feet at its new building at Bakery Square 2.0 to Philips Respironics, which has been scouting for a new location in which to consolidate what’s expected to be a regional office headquarters.

The Philips deal is potentially dead now. With the variance defeated, the final office building will have just enough space for just Philips, but if Walnut Capital had agreements with some other potential tenants the new building might not serve their needs.

Maybe this will work out for the best though, and move along one of Walnut Capital's other office projects to a quicker completion date.

hmm.. According to this. They came down one foot. And the variance is 85 ft. Either way, I agree. It's a win.

BobLoblaw

May 30, 2018 5:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daviderik (Post 8204252)

hmm.. According to this. They came down one foot. And the variance is 85 ft. Either way, I agree. It's a win.

Today's article says: "Walnut Capital presented a proposal that’s reduced the overall height from 149 feet to 129 while keeping the same floor count, also terracing the top floors back further from the original building edge."

FWIW. As you say, it's a win.

highlander206

May 31, 2018 2:02 AM

For what I am sure will not be a surprise to anyone who goes past it, the Kaufmann's Grand is facing some delays with getting towards its completion. The biggest issues are a still rather dirty looking exterior and electrical work for the building. Waffles INCaffeinated was hoping to to open in April but they likely will not be open until August now. I am disappointed with how slow this project is progressing so far. I know they had the fire awhile back, but come on...

http://www.wtae.com/article/former-k...plans/20957611

daviderik

May 31, 2018 11:05 AM

A lot of these developers are like contractors they have so many delays and never come close to their promised opening date. I did see a clip on KDKA of the video wall in the lobby. I have to say it's pretty damn awesome.

eschaton

May 31, 2018 1:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daviderik (Post 8204162)

Walnut Capital expected to get go-ahead to build nine-story building at Bakery Square

https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsbur...source=twitter

Great News!

Full text:

Quote:

Walnut Capital Partners is expected to reach an agreement with the Pittsburgh Zoning Board of Adjustment and the administration of Mayor Bill Peduto to allow the development firm to build a nine-story building at Bakery Square 2.0, according to a planning official.

The company presented a newly revised design for a nine-story building to the Pittsburgh Planning Commission after Walnut Capital’s previous nine-story project was rejected by the ZBA in April over variances for a height of 149 feet and for floor-area ratio.

Walnut Capital has since appealed the ZBA decision to the Allegheny Court of Common Pleas.

In introducing the firm’s revised project before the planning commission, Corey Layman, zoning administrator for the city, noted Walnut Capital has been in negotiations with the city and the ZBA and that he expected a final consent order later this week to allow a nine story building.

Walnut Capital presented a proposal that’s reduced the overall height from 149 feet to 129 while keeping the same floor count, also terracing the top floors back further from the original building edge.

Walnut Capital proposes to build a nine-story project of more than 328,000 square feet for a building roughly estimated to cost $30 million, according to agenda materials. Walnut Capital also proposes to build a new $20 million parking garage of more than seven stories with spaces for 794 cars to serve Bakery Square on a site on the Larimer side of the development on Dehlam Place.

The garage is expected to help serve in conjunction with a new multi-modal station under consideration for a neighboring site.

Walnut Capital Partner principal Todd Reidbord described the garage and new building as final pieces to the puzzle of the overall Bakery Square development.

The parking garage is expected to provide spaces to be used by employees of the new office building. Cindy Jampole, a principal of Trans Associates, who performed a transportation study for the development, told the commission that city code required 520 parking spaces for the new garage.

Reidbord said the two projects are “fully consistent with the master plan approved” for Bakery Square in 2012 and 2013.

Walnut Capital is expected to land Philips Respironics for a new regional headquarters in the new office building of upwards of 200,000 square feet, according to various sources.

Not much more than was already discussed in terms of details.

Note that the new garage is solely going to be on the parcel taken up by the long skinny parking lot here. I had wondered if perhaps they bought out one or both of the two property owners off of Dahlem Place, but it appears not.

eschaton

May 31, 2018 1:34 PM

Oh FFS, really?

Quote:

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto said the city soon needs to decide to demolish its 538-space 9th and Penn parking garage and could offer to sell the property to the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust in the wake of a development deal between the Trust, the Pittsburgh Parking Authority and Boston-based The Davis Cos. falling apart late last week.

Last July, the Pittsburgh Parking Authority chose Davis in a competitive RFP process originally expected to include 185 condos along with retail space that also came to include plans for a luxury hotel.

Peduto said the project, which was estimated to cost in the range of $180 million to build, fell apart when the hotel opted to not go forward, leaving the city and its parking authority with a big decision on a well-used public garage that is in major need of physical repairs.

“We have basically a runway of six months before we have to make the decision on the garage,” he said. “We’ll probably have to tear it down during in the next six months. The Cultural Trust can buy the garage, if they choose.”

The original plan called for the Pittsburgh Parking Authority and the Trust to hash out a plan with a private developer to replace the public garage in the context of a new development that could be built on the garage site and extend onto neighboring property owned by the Trust as well.

The plan reached with Davis, which called for replacing a 583-space garage with a larger project of more than 900 spaces, originally called for a four-phase development for much of a city block bordered by Penn Avenue, Fort Duquesne Boulevard, 8th Street and 9th Street.

Peduto said the requirement by the Trust to build the project in one phase resulted in Davis seeking public subsidies for the project, which he emphasized was never part of his administration’s expectations.

“We were very clear in this process that public subsidy was to be minimized or not (used) at all,” Peduto said. “Downtown is a very hot market and shouldn’t require subsidy to create market-rate housing or market-rate office.”

It remains to be determined if the Pittsburgh Parking Authority will offer to sell the parking garage property to other possible bidders through a public process and if the sale and potential redevelopment of the garage property will require maintaining a parking component as it did in the deal with Davis.

Peduto said he expects to discuss the property with the Trust in the near future, emphasizing an ongoing requirement that no public subsidies be involved in a new development plan.

“We’ll be reaching out to the Cultural Trust to make sure that they understand what options are available to them to make this public property part of their private development,” he said.

The deteriorating condition of the garage will require a decision by the end of the year, Peduto emphasized.

"At this point, we don't have a lot of time with the garage," he said. "The garage needs a lot of repairs just to stay operational."

So, this article reminds us that The Davis Companies was selected as the developer not by the Cultural Trust, but by the Pittsburgh Parking Authority. The Cultural Trust, even though it had more of the overall property, basically came along for the ride. They then began adding all kinds of strictures to the deal which were not originally part of the agreement - such as requiring the whole development be built out in one phase - which torpedoed the deal.

Now, since the city/Parking Authority is left with a garage which will need to be demolished in six months, they're looking at the possibility of selling to the Cultural Trust - potentially not even having the sale go out for public-bid to private developers? WTF?!?!

Atlanta3000

May 31, 2018 3:51 PM

What ‘The ATL’ Means for Regional Transit and Metro Atlanta

https://atlantaregional.org/news/tra...metro-atlanta/

Video Link

photoLith

May 31, 2018 4:07 PM

^
Whoa the Atlanta light rail system is building an extension all the way up here to Pittsburgh? Sweet.

pj3000

May 31, 2018 4:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschaton (Post 8205427)

Oh FFS, really?

So, this article reminds us that The Davis Companies was selected as the developer not by the Cultural Trust, but by the Pittsburgh Parking Authority. The Cultural Trust, even though it had more of the overall property, basically came along for the ride. They then began adding all kinds of strictures to the deal which were not originally part of the agreement - such as requiring the whole development be built out in one phase - which torpedoed the deal.

Now, since the city/Parking Authority is left with a garage which will need to be demolished in six months, they're looking at the possibility of selling to the Cultural Trust - potentially not even having the sale go out for public-bid to private developers? WTF?!?!

Yeah, this is ridiculous and should become a textbook case of how NOT to do development. The Davis Cos are not amateurs by a long shot, but the CT certainly is coming off as just that once again... screwing up the deal for everyone with a completely unrealistic position. Haven't we been here before?

Unless the CT puts in some significant amount of their money to buy the garage parcel and seed the development or back off completely, I can't imagine we're going to see anything on this parcel for a while.

eschaton

May 31, 2018 4:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj3000 (Post 8205668)

What I'm most worried about is this might have been the Cultural Trust's intent all along. Get the city to demo the parking garage for you, buy the vacant land through a no-bid process, slap on a surface parking lot, and continue the land-banking indefinitely.

pj3000

May 31, 2018 5:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschaton (Post 8205707)

There's no doubt in my mind that this was the CT intent.

mikebarbaro

May 31, 2018 8:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by highlander206 (Post 8205119)

Here are a couple images from my walk past today (click the thumbnails to enlarge).

It seems like there is an opening event for the apartments on June 20th I guess...

https://s22.postimg.cc/vxr1ju1rh/IMG_0854.jpg

https://s22.postimg.cc/waifpzwvx/IMG_7329.jpg

BrianTH

May 31, 2018 9:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj3000 (Post 8205740)

There's no doubt in my mind that this was the CT intent.

And I have zero trust in this Administration thwarting them if so.

highlander206

Jun 1, 2018 2:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikebarbaro (Post 8206088)

I did see those June 20th signs and the lobby with the big video wall looks pretty cool, but I don't know, I guess I thought by now there'd be more signs of the exterior looking presentable with the broken windows finally gone, and the retail area looking ready to have spaces opened.

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