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  #3581  
Old Posted May 24, 2020, 4:45 PM
Johnland Johnland is offline
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Originally Posted by pj3000 View Post
Just looked at google streetview... that 1880s house is really nice though... too bad it will meet the wrecking ball. And it looks like 3356 and 3358 are actually old buildings that were given those awful 1980s "modernization" treatments.

https://www.google.com/maps/@40.4389...7i16384!8i8192
Apparently built by the same builder, this South Side classic is almost identical. Someone ready to pounce put it under contract the day it hit the market. I'm sure the Oakland house's days are numbered and it's a shame.

https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/.../pid_36117245/
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  #3582  
Old Posted May 24, 2020, 6:13 PM
BobMcKelvin BobMcKelvin is offline
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Even with the NIMBY’s, wow has Oakland changed in the past decade! I graduated from Pitt in ‘09 and the Fifth and Forbes corridors seem to grow taller and more dense by the year. The “canyon” effect on Forbes is real.

Still some things I’d really like to see done in Oakland. I really liked the grade-separates interchange idea and the revamp of the Bates/Boulevard/Zulema area, but that seems to be going nowhere fast.

Likewise with Oakland Portal, such a promising idea but so far mostly a dud, and they actually demolished some cool-looking row houses for the one bland development so far in that corner of town.

Schenley Park green boulevard initiative, eliminating the counter-flow bus lane on Fifth, and making central Oakland more bike-friendly have all progressed painfully slow or not at all. Reprising the old Rock Alley path to the Eliza Furnace Trail also gets no attention outside of a niche group of advocates. The Bigelow Boulevard revamp is nice, but not the complete closure that many wanted (me included)

Still a ton of density being added, and that new building on Centre/Craig should really prime that area for a resurgence over the next decade. Yes there can always be more, but damn we have seen some huge changes in a relatively short time
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  #3583  
Old Posted May 25, 2020, 3:52 AM
skysoar skysoar is offline
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Pittsburgh, my old home city is still building progressively. Pittsburghs skyline is still one of the most impressive for a second tier city in this country .Nice to see the continual growth in Oakland and Downtown , especially in the old Civic Center and Centre avenue area. Nothing but fond memories of Pittsburgh from living in the old Hill District area.
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  #3584  
Old Posted May 26, 2020, 2:40 PM
eschaton eschaton is offline
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As mentioned before, the city planning commissions are now "unstuck." The June HRC has now been posted online. Nine items on the agenda - less than I would have thought after a two-month holiday. Regardless, mostly small bore residential projects, as usual.

Really, there is only one item of note: CCAC is renovating 915 Ridge Avenue. Much of the work is just replacement-in-kind or restoration to a more historic configuration, but they do plan to put in a new side entrance, make significant changes to the rear of the building, and install an HVAC unit (eliminating the unsightly window units used on the structure).
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  #3585  
Old Posted May 26, 2020, 9:55 PM
Bricktrimble Bricktrimble is offline
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I can never understand the tremendous power Oakland NIMBYs seem to have. I mean, like 80%+ of the population are transient students who are certainly not involved in these community organizations. Most of those who aren't are rich folks in Schenley Farms or own condo units in North Oakland pretty far away from this area. Is it maybe because turnout in Bruce Kraus's district is so low due to how many students never show up to vote for local races, which makes him beholden to these idiots?
You need to go to some of the OPDC meetings. They are filled with concerned residents who seem to have a loud voice - often from different viewpoints. The OPDC certainly lifts the concerns of those residents to a higher level. I think they would all like to see single-family homes that are not allowed to be rented to students. Good luck with that...
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  #3586  
Old Posted May 27, 2020, 1:54 PM
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pj3000 pj3000 is offline
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Originally Posted by Johnland View Post
Apparently built by the same builder, this South Side classic is almost identical. Someone ready to pounce put it under contract the day it hit the market. I'm sure the Oakland house's days are numbered and it's a shame.

https://www.coldwellbankerhomes.com/.../pid_36117245/
Damn, that’s a beautiful house. I’d love to learn the history of it.
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  #3587  
Old Posted May 27, 2020, 2:13 PM
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It’s too bad that this project can’t seem to get the required traction. Big, multi-use/multi-tenant type projects like this are obviously tough to plan and execute. And I imagine they are made that much tougher in Pittsburgh, particularly downtown... where, well, maybe there’s just not the true demand for a full renovation of a huge, old building into apartments, hotel, corporate rentals, Target dept store, bowling alley, restaurants, etc.

Unfortunately, Miami-based Fontainebleau (who has the capital to actually do this) backed out... citing the Covid-19 pandemic/economic situation, but I’d wager that they saw a money pit in the making and said, “wow, you guys really fubar’d this thing badly” and used the pandemic as a back door escape.


Of mice and men: Kaufmann’s deal falls apart as residents cope with rodents, other maintenance issues

https://www.post-gazette.com/busines...s/202005270059
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  #3588  
Old Posted May 27, 2020, 10:19 PM
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photoLith photoLith is offline
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Are they building the deck now that will go over 579 downtown between downtown and the hill? Just drove by and there’s a big crane and loads of construction equipment at the spot where the deck park is supposed to go.

Edit, just asked some of the workers and they are most definitely building the deck park now. Never thought I’d see that happen in my lifetime.
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  #3589  
Old Posted May 28, 2020, 3:58 PM
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Austinlee Austinlee is offline
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Originally Posted by photoLith View Post
Are they building the deck now that will go over 579 downtown between downtown and the hill? Just drove by and there’s a big crane and loads of construction equipment at the spot where the deck park is supposed to go.

Edit, just asked some of the workers and they are most definitely building the deck park now. Never thought I’d see that happen in my lifetime.
Yes there are. It's been under construction for several months already. It looks like the concrete supports are done.
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  #3590  
Old Posted May 29, 2020, 2:15 AM
eschaton eschaton is offline
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The first of the "virtual planning commission" presentations is online for next week. They're doing things a bit differently now than in the past, with every project in a separate PDF (though the overall agenda is here). It doesn't look like there is substantively more detail.

Anyway, four new items for next week:

1. A new mixed-use building at 1707 Fifth Avenue. Looks like yet another Indovina design. Building is six stories, with ground floor retail, minimal integral parking (looks to be seven spaces) and apartment units above. I count 41 units in the building based upon the rendering. Unfortunately, there's no real narrative page for the project. This is yet another interesting apartment project which would be totally impossible without the new Uptown Public Realm zoning, as the required off-street parking for this building would be considerable.

2. Demolition of 823 Penn Avenue downtown - the old Pizza Parma building. This has been in the works for awhile - I saw it months ago on the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's website. It's a small non-historic building, so I can't really complain. The Cultural Trust plans to have a "temporary" art parklet.

3. Plans for the new South Side Marina clubhouse. I honestly think the design is godawful - totally inappropriate for the South Side. We aren't coastal New England or the upper Midwest, so the fake wood-clad design just isn't appropriate here. And the faux lighthouse is tacky as hell. On the other hand, the area is currently just surface parking, so I suppose it is an upgrade of sorts.

4. The Steelers want to modify Heinz Field a bit - or at least the storefront of the steeler swag store on site.

Remember guys that next week the Planning Commission will be live-streamed for the first time ever on YouTube. I dunno if I will be able to be on myself, but maybe someone will get some time and be able to report back.
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  #3591  
Old Posted May 31, 2020, 2:59 AM
BenM BenM is offline
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Sometimes it's nice to be a swing state in a presidential election?

Port Authority surprised about presidential tweet about $100 million grant for Bus Rapid Transit system

Sounds like there is some confusion because it didn't go through traditional approval/notification channels.
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  #3592  
Old Posted Jun 1, 2020, 6:34 AM
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Don’t know how many of you guys saw downtown this weekend but I went until about 6pm today and nearly every commercial establishment Has been smashed up and looted: especially along LibertY Avenue and around Market Square. I’ll post videos and photos tomorrow. Stuff was even smashed up on the Northside along E Ohio St, Carson Street on the Southside and Butler St in Lville.

There was looting and smashing going on near Market Square from 11pm until I left around 530 today and people spray painting and smashing windows and looting next to the courthouse and city hall today too.
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  #3593  
Old Posted Jun 1, 2020, 12:30 PM
BrianTH BrianTH is offline
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I like how 1707 5th blends with the historic building next door:



The hijacking of well-warranted peaceful protests by a small number of people who just want to smash and loot is rather infuriating. Hopefully that aspect dies out soon.

The East End BRT getting funded would be great. Hopefully it is firmed up today.

Last edited by BrianTH; Jun 1, 2020 at 2:29 PM.
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  #3594  
Old Posted Jun 2, 2020, 2:51 AM
eschaton eschaton is offline
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I like how 1707 5th blends with the historic building next door:



The hijacking of well-warranted peaceful protests by a small number of people who just want to smash and loot is rather infuriating. Hopefully that aspect dies out soon.

The East End BRT getting funded would be great. Hopefully it is firmed up today.
Apparently the building is 51 units, according to the PBT. I guess I missed a floor when counting up the units - probably because two of the floors have identical plans. Also the number of spaces is ten, which is still way less than what regular zoning would require (51 plus some for commercial as well).

This is apparently the same developer who is doing those eight-unit mini-apartment buildings we discussed awhile back.
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  #3595  
Old Posted Jun 2, 2020, 2:52 PM
Bricktrimble Bricktrimble is offline
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Apparently the building is 51 units, according to the PBT. I guess I missed a floor when counting up the units - probably because two of the floors have identical plans. Also the number of spaces is ten, which is still way less than what regular zoning would require (51 plus some for commercial as well).

This is apparently the same developer who is doing those eight-unit mini-apartment buildings we discussed awhile back.
Does the garage door fronting on Fifth Ave bother anyone else? I do like how the architect took surrounding buildings into account - hooray for contextual design!
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  #3596  
Old Posted Jun 2, 2020, 2:58 PM
eschaton eschaton is offline
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Does the garage door fronting on Fifth Ave bother anyone else? I do like how the architect took surrounding buildings into account - hooray for contextual design!
It's unfortunate, but Our Way in the rear appears to be nearly one story taller, meaning flipping the parking to the rear would require a big reconfiguration of the building which might not be worth it for such a small garage. Also, its on a surface lot which already has a curb cut, meaning it's not like an additional cut will be added.

Also, it's a ten-car garage in a 51-unit building, which means that the vast majority of the time people won't be entering and exiting. Really these sort of curb cuts are more of an issue on quiet residential streets than anything.
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  #3597  
Old Posted Jun 2, 2020, 3:57 PM
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pj3000 pj3000 is offline
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Does the garage door fronting on Fifth Ave bother anyone else?
Given the location in a highly urban and non-residential area, and in close proximity to downtown, it doesn't bother me.

I get what you're saying, and it certainly draws my eye in this rendering. Ideally, it wouldn't be out front. But I don't think it's going to negatively affect the street-level/pedestrian experience at all. I mean, these roll-up garage doors along the sidewalks are ubiquitous in very ped-friendly major cities everywhere.
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  #3598  
Old Posted Jun 3, 2020, 11:56 AM
bossride bossride is offline
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From publicsource.org, here is a list of boards and their members making critical decisions for Southwestern PA.
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  #3599  
Old Posted Jun 3, 2020, 12:46 PM
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^ interesting to see the same familiar family names over and over again. That’s pretty common in any city. And lots of potential for conflicts of interest given the frequent overlap of members on multiple boards/authorities.

But again, it’s common. This is the “political set”... constantly finding a way to get “more involved”. Meetings, events, panel discussions, awards ceremonies, fundraisers, etc... they do it literally every night if the week, kissing each other’s asses and jacking each other off so they can get yet another appointment or favor.

Ideally, any elected public official or any of their administration would not be permitted to serve on any board or authority which handles public funds. And private individuals should not be permitted to serve on boards which are involved in decisions which directly relate to their businesses... uh, Planning Commission, anyone?
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  #3600  
Old Posted Jun 3, 2020, 8:09 PM
eschaton eschaton is offline
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I noticed today the city now has up a virtual ZBA site as well.


For June 11th, there isn't much of note on the agenda. Note there are separate PDFs for each of the projects available however. These documents are of varying detail, but include some site plans and renderings (for example, this infill house in Squirrel Hill), meaning (provided similar documents continue to be posted) we will get some more insight into these small-scale projects than we have had in the past.

June 18th can be found here. Even less of interest, with the biggest project outdoor seating for 412 Brewery.

Finally, there's June 25th. There is a retread of the apartment conversion of 115 Bigham St (which we have discussed before - a 36-unit project). Besides that, there are just two sign permits.
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