PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown II

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by photoLith

^
What eyesore? That 1920s building? Thats not an eyesore, just in needs of a restoration.

Maybe I should have added "in its current condition" after the phrase, "eyesore," but as someone who drives by that intersection every time I'm in town, I'd love to see it get redeveloped into something more useful.

Only one, maybe two businesses remain as tenants, and while the brick work along the top isn't too bad, the flat red paneling and boxy windows leave a lot to be desired.

A few years ago, this corner was supposed to be transformed into condos, retail stores, a restaurant and a hotel. Needless to say, it never happened...but I'm holding out hope for a similar development in the future.

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by photoLith

Not really a pittsburgh development but a lot of this movie is shot at Carrie Furnace, Homestead, and Washington County.

• Video Link

I'm looking forward to this movie, and I'm sure I'll recognize a lot of the locations where it was shot.

Although...I feel like a few people might be surprised by the plot when they hear about a movie called "Out of the Furnace" filmed in Braddock and find out it has nothing to do with the book featured at the link below, a favorite of my in-laws' written in 1976.

http://www.amazon.com/Out-This-Furnace-I...8982&sr=8-1&keywords=out+of+this+furnace

[glowrock]

Looks pretty good, and that's one hell of a great cast! Christian Bale must REALLY like Pittsburgh! Hahaha

Aaron (Glowrock)

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by DKNewYork

Aren't wind turbines noisy?

To the FAQ!

http://windstax.com/about/questions/#12

12. How noisy are they?
WindStax are so quiet you will struggle to hear any noise standing next to one operating. Even at high speeds, the ambient wind noise far exceeds the sound from our wind power system. For comparison, standing curbside on a busy street is about 80 decibels. Normal speech is around 60 decibels; the quietest small gasoline generator idles at 49-60 decibels. WindStax operate near 38 decibels – about the sound of a quiet desk fan at low speed from one meter away.

In general these lower-speed, smaller-scale vertical wind turbines designed for urbanized areas are pretty quiet:

http://www.cleanfieldenergy.com/key_VAWT_benefits.php

Noise & Vibration: Although urban settings are inherently noisier than rural areas, an additional noise can affect a small minority of people. A popular concern with the use of large-scale wind turbines for power generation is noise. The majority of large HAWT noise is generated from the gearbox and the aerodynamic noise of the blades. With small-scale VAWT’s, however, a gearbox is not required, and VAWT blade speeds are much lower than small HAWTs, so noise is also much lower.

In a 2007 test by McMaster University, a small VAWT was tested for noise generation, which revealed that the overall noise level of the turbine remains below 50 decibel (dB) for all normal operating conditions (the turbine rarely operated at a wind speed beyond 15 m/s). When this range is converted to the dBA scale, based upon the average human hearing capability, the level drops to 20 dBA. This is because the majority of the turbine noise is produced in the infrasound range (frequencies below human perception), which is quieter than a whisper. Ultimately, the test determined that the noise level produced by the small VAWT is insignificant and poses no threat to the comfort of nearby persons or wildlife.

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by glowrock

Looks pretty good, and that's one hell of a great cast! Christian Bale must REALLY like Pittsburgh! Hahaha

Aaron (Glowrock)

I remember reading an article recently about how, during breaks from filming "The Dark Knight Rises," Christian Bale would drive out to Braddock to scout the area where he would be shooting his next film.

I've searched for a link to the actual article online, but I'm thinking I may have read it in a hard copy of a magazine.

[Austinlee]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Here are a few of the renderings:







Older image for comparison (I believe this was back during its office building phase):



I really, really like the new design. Very "Rust Belt Chic", and those balconies are great.

I wasn't expecting much from a concrete bunker building but if in fact they do a cor-ten steel type corner feature it is pretty cool.

[ShooFlyPie]

The removal of the Wholey's fish sign seems to be causing an uprising with the local nostalgic folk on news comment feeds................Not to happy.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by ShooFlyPie

The removal of the Wholey's fish sign seems to be causing an uprising with the local nostalgic folk on news comment feeds................Not to happy.

As explained in the article, it is basically just a string of lights put up in the shape of a crude fish. That's not really something you can preserve if you want to actually make changes to the building, which in turn is the only way it can be reused.

[photoLith]

Well I can't see it being too hard to make a permanent fish on the building.

[ShooFlyPie]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

As explained in the article, it is basically just a string of lights put up in the shape of a crude fish. That's not really something you can preserve if you want to actually make changes to the building, which in turn is the only way it can be reused.

The comment was more directed to the silliness of nostalgia of a string of LED lights wrapped in the shape of a fish on a large ugly concrete block building.

I understand the feelings people have for the past, but nostalgia of a LED sign is something I can't understand a news comment site drumming up 200 posts of complaints from locals over the progress of a key city neighborhood. The sign can't even be that old as they moved into that building in 1980. This isn't the same as demolishing a historic building or even neighborhood.

[ShooFlyPie]

Originally Posted by Wave

Looks like there is some activity at the Forward/Murray Poli's location in Squirrell Hill. 40 residential units....not sure if this will include the theater space or just the former Poli's. Seems like a small parcel for 40 accessible-friendly units.

<<Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

By Sam Spatter

A nonprofit developer plans to convert the former Poli's Restaurant in Squirrel Hill into 40 units of housing for residents with special needs.

Read more: http://triblive.com/news/adminpage/4647813-74/housing-restaurant-building#ixzz2dxsR3KJp
Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook

I was hoping for a more exciting development for this space. The same goes for Gullifity's. Not that I have anything wrong against the Friendship Circle or a new housing unit for special needs residents, but the development proposed before that fell through would have been awesome for this site. Maybe there is a chance with the theater.

[photoLith]

PNC from this morning at 4 am.


New dorm at Pitt. I dont understand why they made the building look like a 1920s building and then put that horrendous staircase in the middle of the building, breaking up its continuity and ruining its faux historic feel. Doesnt make much sense to me architecturally. Kinda lazy if you ask me. But its better than a parking lot and it will have ground floor retail it seems.


This development is finally underway in Larwencville on Butler St.


Also on Butler.


Then just for the heck of it, a shot of the sunrise this morning.

[AaronPGH]

Seems like there is plenty of concrete wall space on the outside of the new Wholey's building design to bring the fish back to?

[Evergrey]

It's a beloved Yinzer cultural touchstone. Yinzers go nuts about this sort of thing or the "Igloo"... or weep tears about how Three Rivers was so much more intimidating... or claim the city is going to hell due to the closure of tired old crap restaurants like Tambellini's and Gullifty's...

[GeneW]

On the Desmone website with the renderings for that Wholey's site, I noticed plans for the Reedsdale Street Apartments, anyone know anything about this project? Reedsdale is the street that runs across Allegheny past Heinz Field and the T station and ends at the Casino. Looks like a neat project on a derelict building but I'm not sure about housing across the street from Heinz Field.

[GeneW]

[QUOTE=Evergrey;6255517]It's a beloved Yinzer cultural touchstone. Yinzers go nuts about this sort of thing or the "Igloo"... or weep tears about how Three Rivers was so much more intimidating... or claim the city is going to hell due to the closure of tired old crap restaurants like Tambellini's and Gullifty's...


It's not really fair to put the Civic Arena in that list. I agree that misplaced nostalgia for places like Tambellinis can get annoying but lumping that in with sincere efforts for historic preservation is wrong.

[photoLith]

Eh the civic arena was an ugly piece of 60s garbage that totally destroyed hundreds of historic structures and destroyed the hill by cutting it off from downtown. Reconnecting the hill will do a lot more for possibilly preserving the few remaining historic structures left there then preserving that boob looking arena surrounded by parking lots.

[glowrock]

Originally Posted by Evergrey

It's a beloved Yinzer cultural touchstone. Yinzers go nuts about this sort of thing or the "Igloo"... or weep tears about how Three Rivers was so much more intimidating... or claim the city is going to hell due to the closure of tired old crap restaurants like Tambellini's and Gullifty's...

Pretty much, Evergrey. Don't get me wrong, I totally understand nostalgia, but what the hell is wrong with so many Yinzers who can't seem to wrap their minds around the fact that Pittsburgh's no longer living in the freaking 1980s! (or 70s, 60s, even 50s for that matter)

I swear, some of the comments I read on the P-G, Trib, etc., etc., make me sick to my stomach!

Aaron (Glowrock)

[glowrock]

Originally Posted by photoLith

Eh the civic arena was an ugly piece of 60s crap. Reconnecting the hill will do a lot more for possibilly preserving the few remaining historic structures left there then preserving that boob looking arena surrounded by parking lots.

+1

Aaron (Glowrock)

[Private Dick]

Now I'm no expert, but I have a feeling the Wholey's fish could probably be made again and put up on another building.