PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown II

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by Private Dick

I think that is secondary. Make it a museum like Eastern Penitentiary in Philly? Some rehab would likely have to be done on it regardless of what the use of the land is going to be... significantly greater rehab obviously if were actually to be used as housing, offices, etc., which would probably prove cost-prohibitive and not feasible.

I've toured Eastern State during the day for educational purposes and been through the "haunted house" version at night for entertainment purposes. It certainly is a nice tourism draw for Philadelphia.

[Steel City Scotty]

Originally Posted by mikebarbaro

Took this photo from my apartment window on Stanwix Street for you guys. You can see a bunch of the structural steel being placed on the new upper floors of Towne Place...

Thanks for sharing, Mike.

I'm not too far from you, over in Fifth Avenue Place.

Here's a look at the construction from another angle.

[BrianTH]

A "food hall" is coming to One Oxford Centre:

http://www.post-gazette.com/life/food/20...n-for-Oxford-Market/stories/201701260152

They are basically just really upscale food courts, but that isn't a bad thing--it is a well-established and popular trend at this point:

http://www.eater.com/2015/3/5/8105295/23...lls-eataly-market-hall-ponce-city-market

[Private Dick]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

A "food hall" is coming to One Oxford Centre:

Geez, gotta love how the PG writer/editor still feels the need to reassuringly break it down for the Pittsburgher.

"It is expected to include restaurants featuring international fare, including Mexican and Italian offerings..."


Because you know, you don't want to throw Pittsburghers too much of a curveball now and give them reason to dismiss or be intimidated. Make sure you mention the familiar "international fare"... Mexican and Italian.

[photoLith]

International fare like the exotic quesadilla and the foreign paste called hummus. They might even have a thing called sushi, not exactly sure what it is. I just hope they have spaghetti with tasteless red sauce and gyros (gyros pronounced wrong of course).

It's good news though that downtown is getting a legit choice like this, much better than the other 80s styled mall type fast food places available in the Highmark Building. Hopefully it will be open after business hours as well.

Hopefully it will be something like Phoenicia Specialty Foods that's been in downtown Houston since 2011 or so.

[summersm343]

Glad to see tower cranes up in our neighbor to the west. What project is that for?

[photoLith]

^
It's not a new building, they're adding a few stories to an existing building at Market Square, like a rooftop terrace and what not.

[AFW523]

Didn't take long:

Officials envision new life for riverfront site of SCI Pittsburgh

Unfortunately I don't have faith in anyone mentioned in this article to tie their shoes by themselves, so I'm not holding out hope, but it's an opportunity to sort of extend the riverfront concept in the same manner the Hazelwood plot is.

[eschaton]

In continued bad news for the outlying counties (but potentially good news for Pittsburgh) the state is looking into reorganizing the state university system. It is specifically mentioned in the article that enrollment is way down at IUP and CalU, although it is increasing at Slippery Rock. IUP enrollment is down by around 15% over the last six years, and CalU down nearly 20%. Together the schools comprised over 4,000 of the 15,000 decline in enrollment statewide.

The article doesn't cite any specifics, but it sounds like at the very least an axe is going to be taken to many of the programs. Reading between the lines, it may be that one or more of the colleges will be wound down entirely. If something happens to either IUP or CalU, I would expect the result will be more college students filtering from the outlying counties into Pittsburgh - particularly if some of the programs are transferred to Pitt, but probably even if that isn't the case.

[highlander206]

Originally Posted by eschaton

In continued bad news for the outlying counties (but potentially good news for Pittsburgh) the state is looking into reorganizing the state university system. It is specifically mentioned in the article that enrollment is way down at IUP and CalU, although it is increasing at Slippery Rock. IUP enrollment is down by around 15% over the last six years, and CalU down nearly 20%. Together the schools comprised over 4,000 of the 15,000 decline in enrollment statewide.

The article doesn't cite any specifics, but it sounds like at the very least an axe is going to be taken to many of the programs. Reading between the lines, it may be that one or more of the colleges will be wound down entirely. If something happens to either IUP or CalU, I would expect the result will be more college students filtering from the outlying counties into Pittsburgh - particularly if some of the programs are transferred to Pitt, but probably even if that isn't the case.

If I was going to bet on a local school closing, it would probably be Clarion. It is pretty small and is quite far from any city. IUP still has a lot going for it IMO and Cal U still has 9,000 students with quite a few buildings which are not even 10 years ago.

[highlander206]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Crime and imprisonment rates going down is about the best possible reason for jobs to be lost. I'm sympathetic when it comes to the individuals, of course, but from a greater social perspective this is good news. [Edit: although I guess there are services provided at Pittsburgh SCI that may be difficult to duplicate elsewhere.]

The historic building and wall are awesome. I mean, it is basically a castle. You would be foolish to tear down a castle. And as I recall the wall has a walkway on top, so that right there is another recreational opportunity and possible tourist attraction.

Given all that, I would have a preference for there being some sort of public-oriented uses incorporated in any plan (at least retail, but maybe also something like a museum, event space, park, or so on) to help leverage the public-attraction potential of the wall and historic buildings.

I agree the location at present could be better, but I am also a long term believer in that side of the Ohio River becoming a major re-development zone. So I would suggest the question is how to get there from here without losing the historic buildings. If a developer wants to do something right now consistent with that vision, great. But I'd be happy to take it slow as long as we could keep the building/wall from falling down.

I agree with your points. It is bad to see so many jobs lost, but on the other hand it's nice to see the state realizing mass incarceration for drug users doesn't work and crime rates are falling. I am never out to where that prison is so I never get to see it, but it looks like a historical treasure in the photos I have seen. There have to be some great rehab projects possible for a building as beautiful as that.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by highlander206

If I was going to bet on a local school closing, it would probably be Clarion. It is pretty small and is quite far from any city. IUP still has a lot going for it IMO and Cal U still has 9,000 students with quite a few buildings which are not even 10 years ago.

Mansfield is even smaller than Clarion. Of course, Mansfield is the only state university in the northern tier area, while Clarion isn't terribly far from Slippery Rock, or even Edinboro or IUP.

The clear choice though is Cheney University. The programs could probably be divided between nearby West Chester and Lincoln. Sadly, Pennsylvania simply doesn't have the student body these days to justify keeping two public HBCUs open.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by highlander206

There have to be some great rehab projects possible for a building as beautiful as that.

Local preservationists should get to work nominating it a historic landmark stat, as it will block razing the building to make way for another faceless (potentially cracker-plant-related) light industrial project.

[dfiler]

Lots of hoopla about the "Riverfront 47" development in Aspinwall/Sharpsburg...

Access road critics, Aspinwall park board disagree on donation effort
http://triblive.com/local/foxchapel/11803462-74/park-aspinwall-riverfront

As I understand it, the adjacent park was planning on a land swap allowing a riverfront trail through the development in exchange for that development gaining an access road through the park. However that means a bulk of traffic routed through Aspinwall even though only 12% of the development is in Aspinwall.

There's an interesting discussion about this on the BikePgh forum:
http://www.bikepgh.org/message-board/topic/local-news-stories-and-lte-2017/page/2/#post-337673

[dfiler]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Local preservationists should get to work nominating it a historic landmark stat, as it will block razing the building to make way for another faceless (potentially fracking-related) light industrial project.

This building could be reasonably cheap to partially preserve. The structure is quite different than most buildings with the long front wall not relying on perpendicular interior walls for support. It is unconnected on the outside and unconnected on the inside due to the atrium fronting the balconied cell-block.

While I'm not an engineer, that suggests that the front wall is structurally sufficient to be freestanding without additional bracing. The cell blocks could be removed, leaving just the front wall and towers. A modern building could be placed behind the preserved riverfront wall. The roof line would change but I think it would be a reasonable compromise considering it's current condition.

I ride past this thing on my bike a few times a year and always stop to ponder the architecture. It really is an amazing building.

[Private Dick]

The secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, Dennis Davin, said the site presents a well-placed redevelopment opportunity, particularly with the plan by Shell Chemical to build a petrochemical complex in Beaver County.

“Waterfront property is in high demand in the Pittsburgh region, and it’s really in high demand around the ethane cracker plant,” Mr. Davin said.


The prison site and the planned cracker plant should have absolutely nothing to do with one another, other than the fact that they're on the Ohio River. What a strange thing to say. I would hope it's not some sort of hint about a proposed reuse of the facility.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by eschaton

The article doesn't cite any specifics, but it sounds like at the very least an axe is going to be taken to many of the programs. Reading between the lines, it may be that one or more of the colleges will be wound down entirely. If something happens to either IUP or CalU, I would expect the result will be more college students filtering from the outlying counties into Pittsburgh - particularly if some of the programs are transferred to Pitt, but probably even if that isn't the case.

Random aside, and I may have told this story before, but I once met an Art History professor at IUP, who every year took her students on a field trip to the Carnegie in Pittsburgh, and every year a shocking percentage of her students were making their first trip to Pittsburgh.

On the one hand, I am a bit sympathetic to young adults who might be intimidated by going from small towns and rural areas straight to Pittsburgh for college. But on the other hand, maybe a few more of them would benefit from being thrown into the deep end a little sooner.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Random aside, and I may have told this story before, but I once met an Art History professor at IUP, who every year took her students on a field trip to the Carnegie in Pittsburgh, and every year a shocking percentage of her students were making their first trip to Pittsburgh.

A few years back, one of my former coworkers was helping a cousin of his who was thinking of going to Pittsburgh Culinary Institute (which of course has since closed). That side of his family was from somewhere in Central PA, and she seemed to be literally terrified the entire time she walked around downtown Pittsburgh.

Of course, I'm not one to talk. I grew up in a suburban area in Connecticut. Where I went to school in Western Massachusetts, the buses were pretty good, and free (not just for students, but for everyone). But I had never been on a public bus before (though I had taken the train/subway into NYC), and was intimidated enough about doing something new that it took me an entire year to figure out how the transit system worked.

[TBone7281]

Originally Posted by Private Dick

The secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development, Dennis Davin, said the site presents a well-placed redevelopment opportunity, particularly with the plan by Shell Chemical to build a petrochemical complex in Beaver County.

“Waterfront property is in high demand in the Pittsburgh region, and it’s really in high demand around the ethane cracker plant,” Mr. Davin said.


The prison site and the planned cracker plant should have absolutely nothing to do with one another, other than the fact that they're on the Ohio River. What a strange thing to say. I would hope it's not some sort of hint about a proposed reuse of the facility.

I'm just guessing here, but if they set up some kind of subsidiary facility at this location I can think of some possible benefits. Accessible water from the river. (Not sure what kind of regulations are in place to use river water.) Transportation of large items via barge, if necessary. Again, I don't know what kind of additional, offsite facilities the cracker plant might need... I sort of assumed that with such a large, expensive facility being built up in Beaver, they'd have everything needed right there.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by eschaton

Local preservationists should get to work nominating it a historic landmark stat, as it will block razing the building to make way for another faceless (potentially cracker-plant-related) light industrial project.

Co-sign!