PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown II

[Gilamonster]

Construction on Millcraft's Gardens begins in less than 24 hours.

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/loca...on-hotel-office-complex-downtown-700052/

[photoLith]

Cool two cranes just a block apart soon.

[daviderik]

Originally Posted by Gilamonster

Construction on Millcraft's Gardens begins in less than 24 hours.

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/loca...on-hotel-office-complex-downtown-700052/

From the article:

"Millcraft also has signed a restaurant tenant, Burgatory."

YAY! Another one.

[BrianTH]

Construction crews are tearing up this vacant site along the East Busway:

http://goo.gl/maps/9tmco

Anyone know what is going on?

Edit: Answered my own question:

http://www.pabulletin.com/secure/data/vol43/43-22/1000.html

UPMC Luna Parking Garage, Lima Way & Gross Street, Bloomfield, Allegheny County. SE Technologies, LLC, 98 Vanadium Road, Bridgeville, PA 15017, on behalf of UPMC, US Steel Tower, Floor 60, 600 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, submitted a Notice of Intent to Remediate regarding site soil and groundwater contaminated with metals. Future use of the property will be developed as a parking garage serving the hospital.

[BrianTH]

Lots more information here, particularly pages 2-8:

http://www.upmc.com/locations/hospitals/...rPlan/City%20Council%2010%209%202012.pdf

It is tough to get excited about a parking structure (no Gardens jokes, please), but putting a structure down there likely beats the alternatives for providing more parking as the UPMC complex expands, and I actually kinda like the bridge into the structure from Baum:

[joenicholas9]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Lots more information here, particularly pages 2-8:

http://www.upmc.com/locations/hospitals/...rPlan/City%20Council%2010%209%202012.pdf

It is tough to get excited about a parking structure (no Gardens jokes, please), but putting a structure down there likely beats the alternatives for providing more parking as the UPMC complex expands, and I actually kinda like the bridge into the structure from Baum:

Between the overall hospital plan in that link and the new apartment building at Baum and Liberty, I think this corridor is going to have a much more "complete" feeling to it.

[Austinlee]

I actually have that large building expansion listed on page 1 of this thread under proposals for a $294 million dollar Center for Innovative Science although the designs differ, either way it should be a great modern building.

[qwho]

In other UPMC news, the pedestrian bridge between Children's Hospital and their Administrative Office Building is now open. It's been complete for a while, they were just waiting on a department of health visit and an inspection to open it up to patient/employee traffic.

[dfiler]

Wow, I used to live near the UPMC shadyside expansion and it has certainly come a long way in 10 years. It is great that the Ford building on Baum has been reused in a relatively preserved manner. Also, it is exciting to see the area returning to the density it once had. Pittsburgh seems to be embracing the mid-rise density it saw in its heyday.

The one qualm I have about recent development on the center/baum corridor is the Marriot hotel built on the corner of center/baum/aiken/liberty. The surface parking lot was put in front of the building. It has ruined any possibility of bringing back a thriving district that people enjoy being in. It now seems doomed, for the immediate future, to be a concrete wasteland that people pass through as quickly as possible when on their way to somewhere more appealing. Next time you're at that intersection, check out the feeling there. It is definitely a place that puts you on edge, a place that you want to leave as quickly as possible. It is subtle and mostly subconscious, but is quite obvious when actively evaluating the topic.

That neighborhood would be better if the Marriot had been built along the sidewalk and the surface parking placed behind it. What Pittsburgh doesn't need is surface parking lots in front of buildings that form dense and walkable business districts.

Edit:
Here is a street-view link:
http://goo.gl/maps/I6Ic0

The trees soften the effect somewhat. They may even give opposite conscious and subconscious impressions. At first we might be like "hey trees, that's nice". But in reality nobody wants to spend one second more there than they have too.

[Gilamonster]

Millcraft Gardens' groundbreaking was only ceremonial. Actual construction start date yet to be determined:

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/news/2013/08/21/millcraft-kicks-off-the-gardens.html

[Johnland]

Originally Posted by dfiler

Wow, I used to live near the UPMC shadyside expansion and it has certainly come a long way in 10 years. It is great that the Ford building on Baum has been reused in a relatively preserved manner. Also, it is exciting to see the area returning to the density it once had. Pittsburgh seems to be embracing the mid-rise density it saw in its heyday.

The one qualm I have about recent development on the center/baum corridor is the Marriot hotel built on the corner of center/baum/aiken/liberty. The surface parking lot was put in front of the building. It has ruined any possibility of bringing back a thriving district that people enjoy being in. It now seems doomed, for the immediate future, to be a concrete wasteland that people pass through as quickly as possible when on their way to somewhere more appealing. Next time you're at that intersection, check out the feeling there. It is definitely a place that puts you on edge, a place that you want to leave as quickly as possible. It is subtle and mostly subconscious, but is quite obvious when actively evaluating the topic.

That neighborhood would be better if the Marriot had been built along the sidewalk and the surface parking placed behind it. What Pittsburgh doesn't need is surface parking lots in front of buildings that form dense and walkable business districts.

Edit:
Here is a street-view link:
http://goo.gl/maps/I6Ic0

The trees soften the effect somewhat. They may even give opposite conscious and subconscious impressions. At first we might be like "hey trees, that's nice". But in reality nobody wants to spend one second more there than they have too.

Yes, such a stupid design there. Every other corner had existing examples of good urban design bringing buildings right up to sidewalks. The lamebrain parking lot looks very suburban corporate office campus more than East End Pittsburgh. Looks like it s/b in suburban Northern NJ. I actually think the arbitrary trees plopped in a mulch bed with a few boulders further detract from providing a good urban design.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by dfiler

That neighborhood would be better if the Marriot had been built along the sidewalk and the surface parking placed behind it. What Pittsburgh doesn't need is surface parking lots in front of buildings that form dense and walkable business districts.

You are absolutely right. That layout is a travesty and that will become all the more apparent when the rest of the area is built up.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Gilamonster

Millcraft Gardens' groundbreaking was only ceremonial. Actual construction start date yet to be determined

Bummer. But I do like the fact the retail is focused on restaurants (the more the merrier around Market Square).

[BrianTH]

By the way, the Courtyard-Shadyside opened in 2003, making that a Murphy Era project. The guy had a few good ideas, but in general he didn't really get good urban planning.

[doo dah]

It's a horrible intersection for pedestrians. I guess the new hotel (is it still Hyatt?) will have a shuttle bus to take people to Shadyside Hospital?

[Private Dick]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

By the way, the Courtyard-Shadyside opened in 2003, making that a Murphy Era project. The guy had a few good ideas, but in general he didn't really get good urban planning.

I think he understood good urban planning, but he didn't achieve good urban planning in some cases. If ever a city could hope for a mayor focused on urban planning and development, it was Murphy. However, I think he was a bit before his time in Pittsburgh during the mid-90s to the mid-00s -- when the city was taking whatever it could get without too much requirement. A lot of compromises... maybe caving... were made. I worked in the area when the hotel was being built, and I from what I remember, Marriott would not build unless the parking lot was situated in front with direct access to Centre and Liberty, and they would not alter the footprint of the hotel to run diagonally along Liberty/ Basically, they did what was best for Marriott and not what would be best for the environment.

[DKNewYork]

Originally Posted by Private Dick

However, I think he was a bit before his time in Pittsburgh during the mid-90s to the mid-00s -- when the city was taking whatever it could get without too much requirement.

Granted, those were different and difficult times, but I think the problem with Murphy is that he was of his time rather than ahead of it. I will always associate him with that wretched Fifth-Forbes plan that would have completely cleared six square blocks of downtown for a mall. It was not necessarily inspired to fight the plan---lots of people and organizations did. The mall concept was dated when it was proposed yet Murphy pushed and pushed. No vision whatsoever.

[BrianTH]

I also see Murphy as having been part of, and in fact a leader of, the people at the time who were still so desperate to get any investment in the City that they agreed to and promoted terrible projects.

So yeah, he was gung-ho about investing in the City. But more often than not, he was an enabler and active promoter of bad plans.

[Wave]

Originally Posted by dfiler

That neighborhood would be better if the Marriot had been built along the sidewalk and the surface parking placed behind it. What Pittsburgh doesn't need is surface parking lots in front of buildings that form dense and walkable business districts.

Thankfully, the Hyatt is slated to be built with the setbacks right up against the sidewalk as is the soon to be built Morrow Park Apartment project.

Those two projects will significantly improve the relatively dense urban feel of that intersection and somewhat mitigate the Marriott. I personally don't think the Marriott is THAT awful as its a somewhat dense, larger mid-rise and not too offensive otherwise, though that setback and front parking was very unfortunate, short-sighted and ill advised.

The entire intersection though will be pretty amazing considering there are already the two large pre-war apartment buildings anchoring the two corners at Centre & Aiken and the gorgeous church property on the east side of the park. The park itself has been partially renovated and has newer well maintained landscaping and looks better than I ever remember it looking.

There is really only one more significant site left surrounding the park (the surface lot east of the Hyatt site and northeast of the park) and otherwise we are left with five relatively dense, midrise properties (plus the church) creating a nice urban feel. Great progress for that section of the Baum/Centre corridor.

[Wave]

Has anyone been following the construction of the Rite Aid project at the corner of Centre & Craig in North Oakland.

It was pretty disappointing to me that such a prime parcel was being underutilized for a one story Rite Aid and surface parking. That location screams for a significant residential/retail project. It would've been quite an improvement usage-wise with at least two stories (preferably many more) of residential or office above. This location is right accross from the never-built Chlesea Apartment project which was a large several hundred unit apartment building that was killed during the downturn.

I recently drove by the Rite Aid site and steel is up and the general footprint of the project can be discerned from the steel skeleton that is up. Fortunately the setbacks are right along the corner and the parking is in the back and on the side, but it is still, in my opinion, not nearly the highest and best use for the site. It does seem like they have tried to create some height with some sort of taller section along the corner of Centre & Craig but the final product remains to be seen- I am not too optimistic.