PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown II

[Evergrey]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/bl...ittsburghs-low-office-vacancy-ranks.html

Pittsburgh's low office vacancy ranks best in new report

Another real estate report puts Pittsburgh at the top for the strength of its office market.

In its mid-year report for 2013, Toronto-based Avison Young reports that Pittsburgh’s office market was one of only two among the 20 American office markets it tracks to have a vacancy rate below 10 percent.

The office market of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area recorded an 8.2 vacancy rate at mid-year 2013, which Avison Young reports is the lowest of the company’s U.S. markets.

The overall average vacancy for the American office markets tracked by Avison Young was 14.7%, only slightly lower than last year for a 10.3 billion square foot office market nationwide. Avison Young markets reports that Class A rents averaged $48 per square foot for space in central business districts and $27 per square foot for suburban office space.

It’s easy to read the description of what characterizes standout office markets by Earl Webb, Avison Young’s President for U.S. Operations, and think of Pittsburgh: “Gateway markets and those with a concentration of energy, technology or healthcare industries have been at the forefront of performance."

Energy, technology and healthcare have all been key sectors of the office market for Pittsburgh.

...

http://www.avisonyoung.com/sites/default...YMid13CanadaUSOfficeMktAug12_13Final.pdf

[bmust71]

I love reading about our office vacancy, it never gets old.

On a side note: I just purchased SimCity and the Golf and Koppers towers appear to have made the cover.

http://www.intkeys.com/images/simcity-cover.jpg

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by bmust71

I love reading about our office vacancy, it never gets old.

I love how it is now taken as a given that Pittsburgh is one of the hottest markets in the country.

On a side note: I just purchased SimCity and the Golf and Koppers towers appear to have made the cover.

Not sure I love the context, however.

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by Steel City Scotty

Thanks so much, EventHorizon! Those shots are exactly what I was looking for...and the Flickr page that second one was located on will be a great resource in the future.

Agreed. That Flickr page has some compelling images.

[bmust71]

Not sure I love the context, however.[/QUOTE]


Agree. At first I was like, this is awesome. Then I realized that it was on a polluted island.

[PITairport]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Not sure I love the context, however.

Originally Posted by bmust71

Agree. At first I was like, this is awesome. Then I realized that it was on a polluted island.

SimCity's "dirty" opinion of Pittsburgh came to light a few months ago in an article in The Atlantic (and discussed on pages 190-192 of this thread).

It's unfortunate that this opinion of theirs not only continues, but they now use two of Pittsburgh's icons to dominate the polluted portion of their cover when Pittsburgh could just as easily have been featured in the other sections of the cover.

[Austinlee]

Originally Posted by bmust71

I love reading about our office vacancy, it never gets old.

On a side note: I just purchased SimCity and the Golf and Koppers towers appear to have made the cover.

http://www.intkeys.com/images/simcity-cover.jpg

...And Shippingport; And the to-be-built Shell Ethane Cracker!!

Hey, you guys could argue about that conversation we all had earlier in the thread about Pittsburgh being the old polluted city example in the game but considering how half of that city on the cover is an actual ethane cracker plant, I don't think Pgh can't still be seen in that light.

[BrianTH]

The Poli's site in Squirrel Hill is going to Sheriff's sale:

http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/4518917-74/poli-county-hill#axzz2bkoeGjZj

It would be great to see this prominent site redeveloped.

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

The Poli's site in Squirrel Hill is going to Sheriff's sale:

http://triblive.com/news/allegheny/4518917-74/poli-county-hill#axzz2bkoeGjZj

It would be great to see this prominent site redeveloped.

Yes, I would love to see something nice developed at this location, which I drive by every time I visit the city. The movie theater on Forward Avenue still has 2008 movies such as "The Hurt Locker" and "The Wolfman" listed on the marquee.

I was excited about those plans for a hotel, restaurant, retail stores and condominiums a few years ago and was pretty bummed that it never happened.

Let's try this again...and hope for more success.

[Evergrey]

Perhaps this announcement will ease Pittsburgh's vacancy rate.

I had an ominous feeling when 3G Capital acquired Heinz... and my suspicions have been confirmed. This is not good for Pittsburgh.

Between Heinz and continued job cuts at Bayer Pittsburgh... which is rumored to lose its North American HQ status to New Jersey or Raleigh... some significant risk for the regional economy.

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/busi...jobs-including-350-in-pittsburgh-699153/

New Heinz owners cut 600 jobs -- including 350 in Pittsburgh

August 13, 2013 9:37 am


By Teresa F. Lindeman / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The new owners of the H.J. Heinz Co. are eliminating 600 office positions across the Pittsburgh company's operations in the U.S. and Canada -- including 350 jobs in Pittsburgh -- as a move toward a more efficient operation.

A company spokesman this morning confirmed reports that layoffs had begun in Pittsburgh this week, about two months after the close of the $28 billion sale of the historic food company to 3G Capital and Berkshire Hathaway.

The cuts here will take Heinz employment in the region down from close to 1,200 to about 800.

"As part of our transition to a private company, the senior leadership team has examined every piece of our business to better position Heinz for accelerated growth in a very competitive global market," said Michael Mullen, senior vice president of corporate and government affairs.

He said a comprehensive evaluation process was done resulting in a streamlined structure for the Heinz North America division.

"Unfortunately, this process resulted in a number of difficult but necessary organizational changes, including the elimination of 600 office positions across the U.S. and Canada, including 350 in Pittsburgh. We regret the impact this has on Heinz employees and their families."

He said employees were notified this morning.

Mr. Mullen called the moves "difficult" but said they will better position Heinz for growth. "Our new organizational structure will simplify, strengthen and leverage the company's global scale, while enabling faster decision making, increased accountability, and accelerated growth."

The layoffs do not come as a surprise, as 3G Capital made similar cuts after previous acquisitions of companies such as Burger King and Anheuser-Busch.

Heinz's new CEO, Bernardo Hees, the former CEO of Burger King, moved quickly after the June 7 closing of the sale to establish a new management team, with almost a dozen executives moving on to make way for his new picks.

Mr. Mullen noted that Heinz will continued to be headquartered in Pittsburgh, something that the new owners had agreed to in the contract purchasing the ketchup maker founded in Sharpsburg more than a century ago.

...

[photoLith]

Lol, we regret the impact this has on Heinz employees and their families. Uh yeah right, more like we are enthralled to cut these jobs so us corporate higher ups can have even more cash in our pockets.

[Private Dick]

Originally Posted by Evergrey

Perhaps this announcement will ease Pittsburgh's vacancy rate.

I had an ominous feeling when 3G Capital acquired Heinz... and my suspicions have been confirmed. This is not good for Pittsburgh.

Between Heinz and continued job cuts at Bayer Pittsburgh... which is rumored to lose its North American HQ status to New Jersey or Raleigh... some significant risk for the regional economy.

Yeah, sucks. I'm switching to Hunt's.

I had a bad feeling too... for all the positive spin they put on it, the result months after a company is sold is ALWAYS the same -- local jobs are cut.

[Wheelingman04]

I knew that would happen to Heinz. It makes me sad but when companies get bought out like that it is a very common occurrence. Hopefully other companies and businesses along with relocation's to the Pittsburgh area can make up for the losses. Unfortunately most new jobs don't pay living wages, especially service sector jobs or they won't allow full-time work or have benefits.

[ShooFlyPie]

Originally Posted by Steel City Scotty

Yes, I would love to see something nice developed at this location, which I drive by every time I visit the city. The movie theater on Forward Avenue still has 2008 movies such as "The Hurt Locker" and "The Wolfman" listed on the marquee.

I was excited about those plans for a hotel, restaurant, retail stores and condominiums a few years ago and was pretty bummed that it never happened.

Let's try this again...and hope for more success.

My old neighborhood bar next to the old Movie Theater as well just closed down. It now looks like a part of New Kensington in Squirrel Hill. Besides from Pizza Amier and that "Upper Room" there is nothing left there anymore. It is so depressing. But hopefully this gets the ball rolling into something soon. Also hopefully another real neighborhood bar can open to still have a place for Bruce Springsteen wanna bees and Grateful Dead covers in a walk-able distance........

[Evergrey]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/blog/the-next-move/2013/08/heinz-to-sublease-portion-of.html

Aug 13, 2013, 12:13pm EDT

Heinz to sublease portion of Smithfield Street offices

Look for what could be a major block of office space to become available at Heinz 57 Center, after Tuesday morning's big layoff announcement by H.J. Heinz Co.

My colleague Justin Coyne reported that Heinz is eliminating 600 jobs across its operations and 350 in Pittsburgh, with the Smithfield Street building that was converted from a department store into an office building more than 10 years ago expected to take the biggest hit.

Bill Rudolph, a principal of McKnight Realty Partners, which owns the 790,000-square-foot office property, confirmed that Heinz (NYSE: HNZ) notified his company that they expect to sublease a portion of the office that has served as it North American headquarters.

Rudolph expressed immediate concern for the employees losing their jobs.

“I feel really badly. These are people who worked in that building for many years,” said Rudolph. “I hope that it will be good long-term for the company.”

Heinz also confirmed in an email that it would sublease space at Heinz 57 Center.

Heinz "expects to maintain a presence at the 57 Center and sublease the rest of the space," a Heinz spokesman told the Pittsburgh Business Times. Heinz expected to move a majority of its staff to its offices in One PPG Place, the company's global headquarters.

But it’s a big question of how much space it will keep and how much will go on the market as sublease space.

Rudolph told me Heinz has more than 300,000 square feet in the building. He added that Heinz expects to hire CBRE to handle the sublease for a building that is otherwise fully leased. Heinz still has more than 10 years left on its lease.

...

[Evergrey]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2013/08/13/blocked-us-airways-american-merger.html

Aug 13, 2013, 12:15pm EDT Updated: Aug 13, 2013, 12:49pm EDT

Blocked US Airways-American merger could benefit Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh isn't center stage in Tuesday's bombshell announcement that the U.S. Department of Justice and six states -- including Pennsylvania -- are suing to block the US Airways-American Airlines merger.

But, the Pittsburgh region may be better off if the merger is blocked.

That's because ever since the merger was announced, there's been high anxiety locally about the fate of about 1,900 US Airways jobs in the Pittsburgh region. US Airways (NYSE: LCC) may be a shadow of what it once was at Pittsburgh International Airport, but it's a pretty long shadow.

There's concern that, in a combined US Airways-American Airlines, the work done at the US Airways maintenance facility at Pittsburgh International might move out of state. Of even more concern is the 200 or so jobs at the US Airways operations center, which opened to big fanfare five years ago in Moon Township.

The new American Airlines -- the US Airways name would go away -- would be based in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, where the American Airlines operations control center is located. While there are no concrete plans to close the facility, even US Airways CEO Douglas Parker is on the record saying the Moon Township operations control center would probably go sometime in the future.

"You don't need, nor do you want two OCCs" in a merger of two airlines, Parker said back in March in a video distributed to employees.

If there's no airline merger, then presumably it's business as usual for the foreseeable future.

Mention US Airways Group Inc. (NYSE: LCC) to many Pittsburghers, and you'll likely get a sigh. The airline used to have thousands of employees and more than 600 daily departures from Pittsburgh International when the airport was a hub for the carrier. The big airside terminal built in 1992 by the Allegheny County Airport Authority was in large part due to US Airways, as Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane pointed out Tuesday in a news release.

...

[Evergrey]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/bl...-comes-the-new-housing-construction.html

Aug 13, 2013, 11:18am EDT

Here comes the new housing construction

Housing starts are up dramatically so far in 2013, according to a new report by Ross Township-based Tall Timber Group.

Housing starts in the Pittsburgh metro region are up 91 percent in the first half of 2013, compared to the year before, according to the report.

I suspect this news may be greeted positively by local residential real estate agents, many of whom have been telling me for more than a year about the limited supply of homes to sell in select markets throughout the region. But the construction of apartment developments is far out-pacing the building of new single family homes.

Tall Timber put the total residential starts over the first six months of 2013 at 2,893, led by an ongoing uptick in apartments, which grew to 1,741, an increase of 192.1 percent.

The increase of permitting for single-family homes increased to 1,152, a 25.4 percent growth rate.

“New home construction seems to finally have kicked into gear to match the pent-up demand” said Jeff Burd, president of Tall Timber Group, in a prepared statement.

...

[Private Dick]

Originally Posted by CubicalRebel

My old neighborhood bar next to the old Movie Theater as well just closed down. It now looks like a part of New Kensington in Squirrel Hill. Besides from Pizza Amier and that "Upper Room" there is nothing left there anymore. It is so depressing. But hopefully this gets the ball rolling into something soon. Also hopefully another real neighborhood bar can open to still have a place for Bruce Springsteen wanna bees and Grateful Dead covers in a walk-able distance........

Is Forward Lanes still open?

Also, if there is anything that should close down it is Pizza Amier -- the place is filthy.

That block has been decaying for some time, but it really went downhill fast when Poli's closed. The whole intersection is really pretty depressing and embarrassing as an "entrance" to Squirrel Hill. Obviously the corner that we're talking about is blighted, but the Verizon building opposite is also dirty and its lot overgrown, the Poli parking lot is full of weeds, and the stretch of Forward up to Shady is pretty dingy as well.

[Jonboy1983]

Originally Posted by Evergrey

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2013/08/13/blocked-us-airways-american-merger.html

I'm sorry, but I disagree with that logic. IMO, locating the OCC at Pittsburgh was pointless. It should have gone to either Phoenix or Charlotte. If the merger goes through, the new American will handle over 60 daily flights and have a good foot-hold on the local market. There won't necessarily be a monopoly, but the combined airline's presence would be more significant than what they are currently.

Besides, JetBlue (granted they serve only Boston) and Southwest have a rather small presence at Pittsburgh, but I think they provide enough service to some of the main destinations to keep fares relatively down. Besides, Southwest has added a few new destinations from Pittsburgh within the last year: Denver, Nashville, and Houston Hobby. There is still some speculation that the new airline might launch service to London-Heathrow. Will US Airways add, well, anything new out of Pittsburgh? Will other airlines rush in to add more service besides what Southwest already added? I highly doubt it.

Pittsburgh is a strong market, and I see it only getting stronger. American could be in a good position to make the airport, well, interesting in the not too distant future. Again, I highly doubt US Airways will ever do anything substantial with the airport again.

That's just my 2cents...

[deja vu]

Originally Posted by Evergrey

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2013/08/13/blocked-us-airways-american-merger.html

"Mention US Airways Group Inc. (NYSE: LCC) to many Pittsburghers, and you'll likely get a sigh. The airline used to have thousands of employees and more than 600 daily departures from Pittsburgh International when the airport was a hub for the carrier. The big airside terminal built in 1992 by the Allegheny County Airport Authority was in large part due to US Airways, as Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane pointed out Tuesday in a news release."

More than 600 daily departures!?