CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT DEVELOPMENTS

• August Wilson Center for African American Culture
  
  The $35 million August Wilson Center for African American Culture (AWCAAC) will house a 486-seat theater, education center and exhibition galleries.  Perched at the intersection of Liberty Avenue and Tenth Street, the triangular building will act as an impressive gateway into Downtown from the Strip District.  The 65,000-square foot green building will be within prime proximity of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, and will also feature a café, gift shop and multi-purpose space for community programs and events. The design by Allison G. Williams is inspired by Swahili trading ships that transported African culture to other lands around the world.  The AWCAAC is expected to serve as a regional and national tourist attraction. The new cultural center is expected to open in the spring of 2009.
  
  Visit www.augustwilsoncenter.org for more information.
  
• PNC Three
  
  PNC Financial Services Group expects completion date for their 780,000 square foot, 23-story high-rise on Fifth Avenue is September 2009. The property will include 326,000 square feet of office space, a 185-room, 11-story, upscale hotel, a 10-story, 28-unit luxury condominium, restaurant, retail and 330 parking spaces. Gensler Architects of San Francisco is designing the building in collaboration with Astorino of Pittsburgh. Project developer is Oxford Development Company. Reed Smith, a top-25 international law firm, will occupy about 50 percent of the planned office tower with PNC occupying the remainder of the space. Hotel operator is Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.
  
  Click here to view the press kit for PNC Three.
  
  

• Grant Street Transportation Center
  
  Downtown-based architectural firm Astorino provided plans for the Grant Street Transportation Center, a six-story building at Eleventh Street and Liberty Avenue where the Greyhound bus station used to stand.  The 43-year-old building located near the David L. Lawrence Convention Center was demolished and replaced with two new buildings, tripling the original size.  Construction for the $25 million project began in 2005 and is on target for completion the fall of 2008.
  
  
• The Carlyle
  
  The Carlyle is the newest residential development project by the E.V. Bishoff Company.  Located at the corner of 4th Avenue and Wood Street in the Union Bank Building, The Carlyle features 61 condominium units.  Buyers can choose from eight unique floor plans with a price range of approximately $200,000 to $500,000.  This historic building offers the distinguished look of classic architecture, and the convenience and lifestyle of modern living.
  
  Learn more at www.CarlyleCondo.com.

• Piatt Place

Piatt Place is a majestic redesign of the former Lazarus department store, located at 301 Fifth Avenue. Plans for the building include a floor-to-ceiling natural-light atrium, street-level retail boutiques, a grocery market and various dining establishments. The second through fourth floors feature Class A+ office space that can be configured to accommodate virtually any type of professional business requirements. Private access to the upper levels reveals luxury rooftop condos with outdoor terraces and central lawn and garden, and exterior balconies that provide panoramic vistas of the city.  Prices range from $320,000 - $1.2 million. Occupancy is projected for February 2009.

 

For more information visit www.PiattPlace.com.

• Market Square Place

Millcraft Industries has taken on the renovation of the historic G.C. Murphy building located on Market Square in Downtown Pittsburgh.  Millcraft plans to keep the exteriors and the floors of the seven contiguous buildings intact, while developing 60,000 square feet of stores, 50 loft-style apartments, and 42 basement parking spaces.  The apartments, ranging in size from 700 to 2,000 square feet, will have rents ranging from $750 to $1,400.  Occupancy is slated for June 2009.   

Go to www.marketsquareplace.com/ for more information.

 

• The Granite Building

Developer, Holly Brubach, is converting The Granite Building, an historical landmark, originally constructed for use as a bank in 1889, into residential condominiums. Located opposite the Wood Street Galleries and The Duquesne Club, the Granite Building offers close proximity to Downtown theaters, restaurants, and nightlife.  Each floor is roughly 3,000 sq. ft. and contains just one unit. 

 

Visit www.thegranitebuilding.com/ for more information.

• Keystone Picture Frame
  
  Arriba Construction's renovations to put 12 apartments in the Keystone Picture Frame Building on 951 Liberty Avenue in Downtown began in May 2007.  Apartments will be priced starting at about $200,000. Construction is projected to be finished in October 2008.
  
  
• The Century Building
  
  Trek Development Group will construct 60 upper-floor apartments, including single-room studios and one-and two-bedroom lofts in the 100-year-old building on Seventh Street. Rents will range from $550 to $1,150 a month, depending on income level, in a Downtown market where studio rents currently are $868 to $909 a month and two bedrooms go for $1,035 to $2,002 a month. Trek plans to target young professionals, artists and middle-income renters. It plans to offer 12 single-room studios, 12 two-bedroom units and 36 one-bedroom units. Apartments expected to be ready for occupancy in early 2009.
  
  
• 5 Lofts
  
  Located on the Benedum Block of Penn Avenue in Downtown's Cultural District, 806 Penn features five urban condominium lofts in a historic "silver" building. Each 2 bedroom/2.5 bath unit occupies an entire floor with elevator entry, floor-to-ceiling windows on Penn Avenue and exposed brick on some floors. The condominium will also feature a rooftop deck.
  
  Visit www.5lofts.com for more information.
  
  
• 941 Penn Avenue
  
  941 Penn Avenue is one of the latest residential developments in an adapted and expanded historic warehouse building.  The architecture of 941 Penn Avenue retains the original vast high ceilings, large windows and open spaces while preserving the coziness of a limited 17 residences with only 2 units per floor. 
  
  For more information, visit www.941PennAvenue.com.
  

• North Shore Commercial
  
  Already home to PNC Park and Heinz Field, the North Shore continues to develop and has now attracted corporate and retail projects. Del Monte Foods Co. joined Equitable Resources as part of the exciting new plans for the prime riverfront location. On June 10, 2004, Del Monte celebrated the ground-breaking for construction on a new 270,000-square-foot Pittsburgh headquarters that houses about 600 administrative employees. The first floor of the building accommodates restaurants and retailers.
  
  North Shore Connector Project
  
  The Port Authority's $381 million North Shore Connector Project is currently underway.  The project will extend the 25-mile light rail transit system 1.2 miles from the Gateway Center “T” Station underneath Stanwix Street and the Allegheny River to the North Shore. The project also involves building two “T” stations on the North Shore, moving and building a new Gateway Center “T” Station, and extending the “T” line from Steel Plaza to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center where a new “T” station will be built.  The North Shore Connector directly links the North Shore, Downtown, Station Square and South Hills employment, business, residential, entertainment and retail centers and enables future expansion of the T.  Construction is slated to be completed in 2009.