Grading North Shore fifteen years of development (Pittsburgh, Wilson: apartments, hotels)

[Gee Whiz]

It is hard to believe, but this April will mark fifteen years that PNC Park had it's ground breaking. That is half the time of the entire life of it's predecessor, Three Rivers Stadium. I would like to give the individual projects a grade. At the end I'll give my grade for the entire area of development and more comments.
This is based on architecture and design only.
PNC Park..A+
Heinz Field..D
Del Monte..B-
EQT..B-
Stage AE..C
Rivers Casino and parking garage..C
North Shore Connector..B
Hotels..B-
Landscaping along river fronts and buildings..A

If I were to grade strictly on what is built and the overall score by looking at the above grades would seem to be a 'B or a B-.' The grade has been brought up greatly by the gem on the river, PNC Park. I also think that the landscaping is nice, along with the monuments and the water steps and park like setting on the river.
However, some of the buildings are just blase. Heinz Field is cheap looking with aluminum siding and gray primer and exposed steel. Others look like they use that fake looking brick instead of more glass and steel. After fifteen years, one would think that there would be more housing on the site. I understand it is the plans, but it should have been one of the first things built on the site, not the last. It would help the the nearby restaurants with a built in critical mass on a cold Tuesday in February.
Overall, I give the North Shore a C grade. It only gets that because of PNC Park. It could get a higher grade in year twenty if housing is added and looks decent. Don't get me wrong. I am happy that it is no longer a sea of parking like it was for thirty years at Three Rivers Stadium. I just think it could be better in some aspects.

[I_Like_Spam]

What's your thoughts about the Alcoa Building, the new apartments at the base of Anderson St., and the Warhol museum (which looks a lot different in its current surroundings than when it was first opened)

[Gee Whiz]

Originally Posted by I_Like_Spam

What's your thoughts about the Alcoa Building, the new apartments at the base of Anderson St., and the Warhol museum (which looks a lot different in its current surroundings than when it was first opened)

Alcoa..A

Warhol..B

Lincoln at North Shore..B

I will say that Lincoln at North Shore looks lot better than it did in the mid 1990s after it opened. It looked more like a Motel 6 in those days. They darkened the paint on the exterior since then and added brickwork to the apartment buildings and parking garage. I remember that even Theresa Heinz Kerry was critical of it.
The Warhol is great. I just wish that nearby businesses like the old Rosa Villa, the George Wilson suppy place, and bars in the parking garage on General Robinson had a better look from the outside. As for Alcoa, it is a great building along the river. I wish the buildings between the stadiums would have emulated them.

[FreightTrainRunning]

They changed the name from Lincoln to Morgan a while back.

[Gee Whiz]

Originally Posted by GeneW

They changed the name from Lincoln to Morgan a while back.

I did not know that. I just knew that Lincoln Property out of Dallas developed it. It was a pretty big deal at the time because that was a dumpy area and Pittsburgh was finally getting some riverfront housing right across Downtown to boot. Anyway, in those pictures, the orange color was at one time more of a cream color. Plus there was no brick like you see in those pictures. They look much better now.

[I_Like_Spam]

Originally Posted by GeneW

They changed the name from Lincoln to Morgan a while back.

They should have named the apartment house after famous Pittsburgher H.C. Frick who lived on the site in the late 1860's.

[Copanut]

They should have kept the V.I.P. bar.

[gg]

I miss the ol' 222 bar!

[zman63]

Heinz Field- F
Casino-F
North Shore Connector- D-
PNC Park B+
New office buildings A-
Hotels C+

Maximizing the overall use of the prime north shore land D+

[I_Like_Spam]

Originally Posted by zman63

Maximizing the overall use of the prime north shore land D+

I don't know, I think that the developments on the lower North Side seem to be going better than the developments around the previous stadium project- the late 3 Rivers. Most of those developments were gone within 15 years or less of the opening of 3 Rivers.

When I was a teenager and 3 Rivers was new, Federal Street was bustling with bars, restaurants, hotels, used furniture stores and other commercial activity. It surrendered to parking lot development in pretty quick order.