Strip District - Cool Location for Corp Office Space (Pittsburgh: apartment, condominiums)

[Perryview22]

I was unaware until recently that some nice office buildings have been built - or are in the process of being built in the strip. The North Shore has always been my favored place to work, but the Strip is looking better all the time.

While the introverted, stodgy old businesses have, or are migrating to Cranberry and Canonsburg, the Strip and North Shore are looking like hip places to put down your corporate roots.

I will also add that the greedy Pittsburgh Parking Authority needs to make DT Pittsburgh more commuter friendly.

[szug-bot]

I agree...there are areas back behind Smallman (like 26th and Railroad) that have been totally improved, from the ground up to a new building.

But what is happening is that the Strip is becoming an industrial park. It is no more ped friendly now than it was 10 years ago*.

This is understandable - the building footprints from Pittsburgh's heydey were for large industrial/warehouse/manufacturing type buildings. It makes perfect economic sense for a developer to get in there and maximize the use of a site, and this includes catering to personal vehicle use. I was hoping some time ago for a colony of maybe 300 single family homes somewhere in the Strip, but that probably doesn't make sense on several levels.

There have been and still are row homes there, however.

So what we have now, and what we will be getting, are better than ever, yes, but it is basically a confined sprawl. The new buildings (Cork Factory, etc.) were brilliant re-uses, but lately the newer structures are just that international modern style that typical of many modern north american cities. One might predict that the condominiums there will mean an increase in vehicles probably about equal to the increase in population.

I love what is happening in the Strip. As a person who loves Pittsburgh, I was hoping its resurgence would have created pockets of dense home ownership, with walking trails connecting these enclaves of homes to each other. But that would probably mean an incredible investment for a demand that just is not there.

*Strangely, the City's action in making Liberty Avenue safer/ped friendly is to take away a travel lane in both directions. Is this actually going to happen? I am for alternatives to cars, sure, but this could be a terrible decision. All that traffic, rushing to points east, and towards the 16th street bridge and route 28, now confined to ONE outbound lane....and trailing a bus that will stop every two blocks?

I will also add that the greedy Pittsburgh Parking Authority needs to make DT Pittsburgh more commuter friendly.

Suggestions, Perryview? Before you answer, if you are talking about pay rate, keep in mind there are thousands of others who want a space, and yet MORE willing to pay for one. I'll go one further - the locals here might not want more of our downtown converted to surface parking, so take THAT off the table.

[RogersParkTransplant]

Originally Posted by szug-bot

I'll go one further - the locals here might not want more of our downtown converted to surface parking, so take THAT off the table.

I always wonder if/when more of the surface parking lots in/near downtown will be converted to multi-story parking structures. The one along Fort Duquesne Boulevard by the Goodyear tire place (on the corner of 8th street, I think) always irks me a little.

[Augie6]

After working the Strip for a couple years ( albeit 10 years ago) Always thought it was greatly underutilized part of the city.. Especially with the water front and size of the old buildings.. ( saying that with no knowledge if utilizing the water front or re purposing ( demo ) is possible)

On a much much smaller scale, similar to NYC meat packing district... While there is an influx of housing / hotels as of late.. Have to agree , along with majority of downtown - it's not pedestrian "living" friendly..

Majority of the businesses are closed prior to 5 oclock... Ironic as this sounds, a grocery is not present ( think there was something similar to whole foods at once) .. Also, almost no entertainment - bars, venues, ... there is some more options for restaurants

Yes, it IS close everything one would need, however PGH is a city of self contained neighborhoods - The potential is HUGE, hope it continues to grow on that potential !

Originally Posted by szug-bot

I agree...there are areas back behind Smallman (like 26th and Railroad) that have been totally improved, from the ground up to a new building.

But what is happening is that the Strip is becoming an industrial park. It is no more ped friendly now than it was 10 years ago*.

Th

Maybe I am interpreting Industrial Park , differently or unaware of something.. I feel that if anything it's going more pedestrian and corporate.. Agree 100% not there yet and the progress is slow , but not sure about it moving Industrial ..


NO DOUBT , parking is expensive !! Strip is about 30% less than a couple blocks over in downtown.. Yet, majority of the people paying are "well" paid corporate workers or the companies themselves.. I cannot see the parking going down anytime soon even with added parking options.. Even with the influx of companies providing work from home perks, the addition of downtown housing is also adding to the demand.

[svband76]

Originally Posted by Perryview22

I was unaware until recently that some nice office buildings have been built - or are in the process of being built in the strip. The North Shore has always been my favored place to work, but the Strip is looking better all the time.

While the introverted, stodgy old businesses have, or are migrating to Cranberry and Canonsburg, the Strip and North Shore are looking like hip places to put down your corporate roots.

I will also add that the greedy Pittsburgh Parking Authority needs to make DT Pittsburgh more commuter friendly.

Disagree. That behemoth hunk of concrete going up near the river is ugly. I think all the demo'ing is having the opposite effect. Ugly concrete block and glass buildings wiping clean any character the Strip has/had.

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by zalewskimm

Disagree. That behemoth hunk of concrete going up near the river is ugly. I think all the demo'ing is having the opposite effect. Ugly concrete block and glass buildings wiping clean any character the Strip has/had.

Copy that, it's starting to look like a soulless suburban industrial park. SSIP Pretty soon it will look like the business strip along Rte 22 in Monroeville. Pull up the asphalt and expose the concrete block streets.

[eschaton]

As has been noted, the Strip is perfect for developers, because the old mills and warehouses already consolidated entire blocks. The issue, I see, is there's too much office space in the mix, but not enough residential. I say this because, unless you are coming from the Upper East End via a bus (or say riding a bike from Lawrenceville) if you work in the Strip chances are you'll have to drive. This means that as more and more office space is built out in the Strip, we'll see further congestion - both on surface routes in the neighborhood, and nearby roads like 28.

In contrast, if you build more apartment buildings in the Strip District, the appeal to anyone working downtown is pretty clear, as buses head that way all the time, and if the weather is nice and you're not pressed for time you can always walk. Therefore, in my mind, we should have more office development downtown, and more residential development in the Strip.

[szug-bot]

Originally Posted by zalewskimm

Disagree. That behemoth hunk of concrete going up near the river is ugly. I think all the demo'ing is having the opposite effect. Ugly concrete block and glass buildings wiping clean any character the Strip has/had.

But see, the Strip has character because it has, well, a sense of built-in nostalgia. Look, I love the Strip, but has it ever been beautiful? Has it ever been a lovely place where families go skipping along in formal wear (like you see now)? No, not as far as I know.

The churches there were historically for the lower working class immigrants. The butcher shops and warehouses were for an economy that was dirty, dusty, and not glamorous like modern hotels might be.

I believe we need to look at this objectively - the Strip is improving. It is thriving, and it is exciting to think what it will be like once the infill development has completed.

And, it will disappoint. I was hoping for a commuter railroad spur...or a light rail service...just SOMETHING to make it a Sim City-esque almost self-supporting entity, very green, with people jetting about on bikes or golf carts from work to home....it will be none of that, but AT LEAST it is no longer a graveyard for a once glorious industrial past.

I still swear I recall as a very small kid a place where they still slaughtered lambs - at least, they had the sign on the wall, something to do with gassing the animals. Maybe it was just left there for a long while.
It might have been the Terminal building.
I also remember controlled fires IN THE FLOOR - maybe their heating system at the time? This is late 1970s.
Copanut - does this sound familiar, or was I being breast-fed with LSD-spiked milk? Geez, ma!

[Copanut]

Originally Posted by szug-bot

I still swear I recall as a very small kid a place where they still slaughtered lambs - at least, they had the sign on the wall, something to do with gassing the animals. Maybe it was just left there for a long while.
It might have been the Terminal building.
I also remember controlled fires IN THE FLOOR - maybe their heating system at the time? This is late 1970s.
Copanut - does this sound familiar, or was I being breast-fed with LSD-spiked milk? Geez, ma!

Not sure about the Strip, but I recall my brother telling me he called on a sheep rendering plant on Herr's Island back in the day. His clothes stunk for a week.

[svband76]

Originally Posted by Copanut

Not sure about the Strip, but I recall my brother telling me he called on a sheep rendering plant on Herr's Island back in the day. His clothes stunk for a week.

I believe so. There was a place right next to Heinz plant, some kind of wool place that was there for decades until former Mayor Murphy eminent domained it out of existence because Heinz cried they would move their business out of Pittsburgh unless they could expand. Sound familiar? This was 20 years ago.