PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown II - Page 591

Austinlee · #**11801** Posted **Mar 7, 2015, 8:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by pj3000

I've been back in Pittsburgh for the past week. Wow! So much construction going on in different areas of the city. Seeing all the projects in just the east end is really good to see. They all seem to be relatively small developments (aside from the new PNC... which is ok... not at all what I was envisioning... oh well), but are very encouraging infill-type projects, which hopefully signal even bigger and better things to come.

Of all the projects I see in Pittsburgh, this one in Oakland really has the scale and target (young professionals, who have generally not been in the Oakland resident mix in large numbers) to dramatically change the neighborhood more than any other project in any location.

I agree that this is one of the only developments that doesn't disappoint in ambition. It's a fantastic size and we have high hopes that it will look great.
Have you ever been to DC? It is on a Washington DC scale.

Austinlee · #**11802** Posted **Mar 7, 2015, 8:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by themaguffin

We have what is seemingly endless pages hyper focused one specific development. In this were a business meeting, the parties involved would be asked to take their conversation offline. How about a separate thread dedicated to the endless discussion of minutia of a building in East Liberty?

Edit: And I just noticed that this marks comment 1800 and a decade on the forum.

Congrats and thanks for all the good posts over the years.

BrianTH · #**11803** Posted **Mar 8, 2015, 12:02 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Austinlee

I agree that this is one of the only developments that doesn't disappoint in ambition. It's a fantastic size and we have high hopes that it will look great.
Have you ever been to DC? It is on a Washington DC scale.

That's what the Lower Hill site should look like (at a minimum).

themaguffin · #**11804** Posted **Mar 8, 2015, 1:33 AM**

Quote:

That's what the Lower Hill site should look like (at a minimum).

Agreed. Also this should have been the minimum for the North Shore.

Minivan Werner · #**11805** Posted **Mar 8, 2015, 1:48 AM**

I hope to see more like it in that corner of Oakland.

wpipkins2 · #**11806** Posted **Mar 8, 2015, 2:54 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by BrianTH

That's what the Lower Hill site should look like (at a minimum).

I agree. I hope we can manage to pull off at least one 30-40 story residential tower.

What ever happened to the Oakland Portal project? The mid rise towers on that cliff overlooking the river and downtown would have been awesome.

BrianTH · #**11807** Posted **Mar 8, 2015, 8:45 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by wpipkins2

What ever happened to the Oakland Portal project? The mid rise towers on that cliff overlooking the river and downtown would have been awesome.

Also that Zulema project by Oakland Gateway Ventures. Hopefully all that is just moving along slowly.

Edit: This might explain what happened with Oakland Portal. The Planning Commission's approval was appealed in court, and just in January it was finally endorsed by the Commonwealth Court. Assuming the PA Supreme Court doesn't pick it up, that should be it (I hope) and maybe they can get started soon:

http://caselaw.findlaw.com/pa-commonwealth-court/1689139.html

BrianTH · #**11808** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 2:52 PM**

More details on the new Squirrel Hill condo project:

http://www.post-gazette.com/local/city/2...e-of-housing-action/stories/201503070010

As well as updates on other possible "gateway" projects:

Quote:

ACTION-Housing’s plan for 35 apartments, an expansion of the Howard Levin Clubhouse and offices for Jewish Residential Services has been delayed a year because the number of developers seeking low-income tax credits in 2015 was limited by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. ACTION-Housing wasn’t among the few applicants this year. Linda Metropulos, director of housing and neighborhood development for the organization, said ACTION-Housing will apply for the credits next year. Its completion, likely in 2017 and paired with Landmark’s development, will transform the underachieving five-way intersection — Forward and Murray Avenues and Pocusset Street.

. . . Mr. Landman said he hopes The Q has even more neighbors than just those who will live in the ACTION-Housing development. Several properties are on the market on both sides of Forward in the block where the Squirrel Hill Theater closed in 2010.

AFW523 · #**11809** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 3:32 PM**

What an unmitigated disaster

(Credit to Darren Toth)

eschaton · #**11810** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 3:46 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by AFW523

What an unmitigated disaster

The North Side as a whole was where most of the unmitigated disasters in Pittsburgh happened. Except for what happened to the Lower Hill, nothing compares. I wouldn't even say that what East Liberty went through was that bad in comparison.

My my count there were at least five residential neighborhoods which were totally obliterated - the area where the North Shore now is (which was called "the Ward"), Old Allegheny, Schweitzer Loch, the East Street Valley, and a residential neighborhood which used to exist up by old jail in Marshall Shadeland.

In addition we lost over half of Manchester due to the construction of 65, which obliterated all residential buildings close to the river, along with the main commercial corridor of the neighborhood along Beaver Street (which was the East Carson Street of the North Side). 279 of course also wiped out a block-wide strip of Deutschtown.

This is even before considering just the simple blight which continues to destroy many parts of the North Side - which in some cases (like East Deutschtown) is directly attributable to the poor choices made with urban renewal in the mid 20th century.

Frankly, we are very lucky that Allegheny West and the Mexican War Streets survived to the present at all.

Evergrey · #**11811** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 5:25 PM**

Foreland Street in West Deutschtown is also a disaster.

BrianTH · #**11812** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 6:58 PM**

Marty's Market is looking to get a liquor license:

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/bl...ket-preparing-to-sell-wine-beer-and.html

eschaton · #**11813** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 7:01 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Evergrey

Foreland Street in West Deutschtown is also a disaster.

Of course, but I don't know what the antecedents of the parking craters there are. It's possible "urban renewal" played no role in it.

Certainly I don't think that Urban Renewal is what nearly obliterated California-Kirbride, and thinned out the housing stock in areas like Perry Hilltop, Charles Street Valley, and Spring Hill so much.

I think some of the most horrendous infill in Manchester (the random split levels along Pennsylvania Avenue) was due to urban renewal. Manchester used to have an accessory business district in that area (although much smaller than Beaver Avenue) which was torn down and replaced with the suburban dreck in the 1970s. Thankfully Manchester "got religion" after this experience, and everything since has been infill townhouses of steadily improving urbanity.

Evergrey · #**11814** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 7:40 PM**

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/ne...s-for-north-shore-site-resulting-in.html

Quote:

TIF expires for North Shore site, resulting in additional $723,684 in tax revenue

Mar 9, 2015, 3:24pm EDT

A Tax Increment Financing District that helped Pittsburgh maintain a large presence of industrial giant Alcoa in the city has expired and been fully paid off, according to the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh.

The TIF was originally established in 1995 for a riverfront site on the North Shore between the Andy Warhol and Rachel Carson bridges on which now sits Alcoa Corporate Center.

The URA reports the TIF expired at the end of 2014 and has been fully paid off. The city, Allegheny County and Pittsburgh Public Schools will now receive $723,684 in annual property tax revenues from the former TIF district.

...

Jonboy1983 · #**11815** Posted **Mar 9, 2015, 11:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by wpipkins2

I agree. I hope we can manage to pull off at least one 30-40 story residential tower.

What ever happened to the Oakland Portal project? The mid rise towers on that cliff overlooking the river and downtown would have been awesome.

I think the demand should call for such a building. The apartment market in Pittsburgh is far from the saturation point; they can't build them fast enough! The North Side, Downtown, and portions of the Lower Hill should be filling up with buildings like that IMHO. I wish the Cultural Trust's project didn't fall through; there were at least a few 30-plus-story buildings.

Did anyone catch in the news that Alcoa is buying Moon-based RTI Metals? I'm not sure how this would translate to Pittsburgh's office demand, as I'm sure this would involve most of those folks going to New York...

themaguffin · #**11816** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 12:51 AM**

Not much has been mentioned regarding the PG article and renewed interest in something related to the convention center hotel project. I would think a savvy developer making a large residential tower coupled with hotel space. The residential units should help justify a larger hotel

Austinlee · #**11817** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:53 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschaton

Of course, but I don't know what the antecedents of the parking craters there are. It's possible "urban renewal" played no role in it.

Certainly I don't think that Urban Renewal is what nearly obliterated California-Kirbride, and thinned out the housing stock in areas like Perry Hilltop, the East Street Valley, and Spring Hill so much.

I think some of the most horrendous infill in Manchester (the random split levels along Pennsylvania Avenue) was due to urban renewal. Manchester used to have an accessory business district in that area (although much smaller than Beaver Avenue) which was torn down and replaced with the suburban deck in the 1970s. Thankfully Manchester "got religion" after this experience, and everything since has been infill townhouses of steadily improving urbanity.

I love the Manchester split levels. They compliment the 1800s architecture so well. Manchester: Ornate brick townhouses, split levels and vacant lots.

BrianTH · #**11818** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:42 PM**

Hello Bistro in Downtown has added one of those fancy high-end juice bars, called Delicious Raw:

http://www.nextpittsburgh.com/city-desig...-bar-signals-the-citys-move-to-wellness/

I think that article is right that at least for branding purposes you could treat this as part of a health and wellness movement Downtown, which would fit in with the Eden Hotel project in the Macy's complex.

BrianTH · #**11819** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 1:57 PM**

More details about who is bidding to develop the convention-center-adjacent parcels:

http://www.post-gazette.com/business/dev...r-convention-center/stories/201503100102

No details on the proposals yet, but is an intriguing list based on what sorts of projects the various entities tend to do.

AaronPGH · #**11820** Posted **Mar 10, 2015, 3:16 PM**

Anyone else's heart sink the minute they landed on "Oxford & McKnight" in that article?