Welcome to City-Data.com Forum!
U.S. CitiesCity-Data Forum Index
Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Pennsylvania > Pittsburgh
 [Register]
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
View detailed profile (Advanced) or search
site with Google Custom Search

Search Forums  (Advanced)
Reply Start New Thread
 
Old 05-26-2018, 07:01 PM
 
94 posts, read 77,711 times
Reputation: 152

Advertisements

I am having trouble posing the link. It can be found on the PG website. This is a real disappointment. The Davis Companies were to build 185 new condos in two towers over the next few years. Even more, they were chosen over two other finalists. I figured that this project was more or less a "Go.". Why were they chosen? Apparently, the Davis Companies changed their tune when it got down to finalizing the deal. They wanted to initially build only a measly 30 condos in a lower rise building to see what the market would be. In other words, they got cold feet. This should have been hashed.out erNow there will be more delays. On a positive note, the city is going to concentrate on upgrading the unsightly parking garage. Unfortunately, we still have to look at the Goodyear Shop and surface parking lots hogging valuable real estate. It's a shame. This part of Downtown could have used a boost not only at ground level, but also vertically.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message

 
Old 05-27-2018, 09:02 AM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,761,808 times
Reputation: 17378
Thank goodness they saved the loading dock though. Seems the city is about impossible to deal with. If you look at the Civic Arena area and then this giant parking lot, I just think it is about impossible to get anything nice done. It isn't going to be nice and the Civic Arena isn't either. It is what it is, but there is something wrong when it comes to developing in the city limits.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 10:05 AM
 
94 posts, read 77,711 times
Reputation: 152
They have been talking about developing this area for 12 years and counting. There was an earlier proposal called Riverparc that was ready to get off of the ground until the city pulled the plug. The contractor, Concord Eastridge sued. It was tied up in court. The project died. This prominent northern face of the Downtown continues to look like crap.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 12:44 PM
gg
 
Location: Pittsburgh
26,137 posts, read 25,761,808 times
Reputation: 17378
Is there anyone here dealing with commercial real estate that can shed light on what is broken in our city that all these contractors end up pulling out? How long on the strip? How long on the Civic Arena? Is it protesting or the potential protests that stall growth like the Whole Foods in East Liberty that was going to increase jobs in that area that pay over $12 or so an hour to start instead of the crap wage some retailers pay?

What is it? Is that dumb URA involved in some way? I tried dealing with them ONCE and I was going to renovate a horrible home in Highland Park years ago. They were horrific to deal with and I just told them to forget it. Shame because I do higher end work and usually overkill, but I love fine craftsmanship and have respect for older homes. The city's loss not working with me not to mention the taxpayers. That home now would be worth $300 or even $400K. Not a bad chunk of change on the taxing bodies in our city, but I digress. Our city sure seems to hate progression. What I find most ironic is it is the "progressives" so they call themselves that hate progression the most. Odd.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 01:01 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
6,327 posts, read 9,094,598 times
Reputation: 4048
This is disappointing and ridiculous they can't find anyone to develop that area of Downtown, a prime area I think to make a more residential section of the CBD right in the Cultural District and relatively closer to the North Shore and Strip District too.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 01:27 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Morningside)
14,360 posts, read 16,861,447 times
Reputation: 12390
Quote:
Originally Posted by New Waver View Post
I am having trouble posing the link. It can be found on the PG website. This is a real disappointment. The Davis Companies were to build 185 new condos in two towers over the next few years. Even more, they were chosen over two other finalists. I figured that this project was more or less a "Go.". Why were they chosen? Apparently, the Davis Companies changed their tune when it got down to finalizing the deal. They wanted to initially build only a measly 30 condos in a lower rise building to see what the market would be. In other words, they got cold feet. This should have been hashed.out erNow there will be more delays. On a positive note, the city is going to concentrate on upgrading the unsightly parking garage. Unfortunately, we still have to look at the Goodyear Shop and surface parking lots hogging valuable real estate. It's a shame. This part of Downtown could have used a boost not only at ground level, but also vertically.
I'm not 100% sure it's the fault of The Davis Companies, rather than The Cultural Trust. The debate seemed to basically boil down to the # of condos. But why condos, which have - historically - not sold well in Pittsburgh? The site could have had apartments, Class A office space, another hotel, or any mix of those uses.

Quote:
Originally Posted by New Waver View Post
They have been talking about developing this area for 12 years and counting. There was an earlier proposal called Riverparc that was ready to get off of the ground until the city pulled the plug. The contractor, Concord Eastridge sued. It was tied up in court. The project died. This prominent northern face of the Downtown continues to look like crap.
The City didn't pull the plug. The Cultural Trust did.

When it comes down to it, The Cultural Trust is land-banking valuable real estate downtown, using it for parking - which helps for people attending nearby Cultural Trust venues. Furthermore, since they are a nonprofit, they don't need to pay any taxes on these lots.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 01:42 PM
 
94 posts, read 77,711 times
Reputation: 152
Quote:
Originally Posted by bradjl2009 View Post
This is disappointing and ridiculous they can't find anyone to develop that area of Downtown, a prime area I think to make a more residential section of the CBD right in the Cultural District and relatively closer to the North Shore and Strip District too.
N
This area has been described as Pittsburgh's oceanfront property, yet nothing ever happens other than piecemeal and infill. Nothing n wrong with that. It just seems like hat 'WOW' are either scaled down or scrapped completely. There is a poster on another development forum who travels extensively and loves Pittsburgh. He is an engineer and has a lot of credibility. He has commented on various occasions that "Pittsburgh cannot have great things.". His point being that al lot of the newer buildings are just kind of meh. I have been following economic development in Pittsburgh since the early 1980s. I have wondered since then why Downtown was not extended towards the Strip. I soon learned that Buncher owned the property and had been sitting on it since thev1960s. That was in the early 1980s. Fast forward some 35 years later. Buncher is finally developing the land. Of course, it is a measly low rise that cannot not even be seen over the Produce Terminal while driving on Smallman. This city has some great attributes. It could be much greater with a holder and more progressive approach to development.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 02:06 PM
 
Location: Pittsburgh, PA (Morningside)
14,360 posts, read 16,861,447 times
Reputation: 12390
Quote:
Originally Posted by New Waver View Post
N
This area has been described as Pittsburgh's oceanfront property, yet nothing ever happens other than piecemeal and infill. Nothing n wrong with that. It just seems like hat 'WOW' are either scaled down or scrapped completely. There is a poster on another development forum who travels extensively and loves Pittsburgh. He is an engineer and has a lot of credibility. He has commented on various occasions that "Pittsburgh cannot have great things.". His point being that al lot of the newer buildings are just kind of meh. I have been following economic development in Pittsburgh since the early 1980s. I have wondered since then why Downtown was not extended towards the Strip. I soon learned that Buncher owned the property and had been sitting on it since thev1960s. That was in the early 1980s. Fast forward some 35 years later. Buncher is finally developing the land. Of course, it is a measly low rise that cannot not even be seen over the Produce Terminal while driving on Smallman. This city has some great attributes. It could be much greater with a holder and more progressive approach to development.
Some of this isn't unique to Pittsburgh. In general it's been discovered in every city that it's a really, really bad idea to give a single property owner control over multiple city blocks of undeveloped/underdeveloped prime real estate. The interest of the city, after all, is to have the land developed to the highest/best use possible as quickly as possible. This may not be in the interest of the property owner if, for example, they're doing pretty well collecting parking revenue and don't pay taxes on the land. Even if it is in the self-interest of the developer to build an area out, given it's just one developer, the idiosyncrasies of leadership, financing issues, or any number of other issues can torpedo development for decades.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-27-2018, 05:13 PM
 
3,291 posts, read 2,737,290 times
Reputation: 3375
Maybe the Cultural Trust is just too optimistic and being too agressive with developers, why don't they strike a deal that is structured to allow development in phases based on the success of the initial development. I think they really do want to develop it rather than have parking lots, but they want it to be larger than maybe is warranted by current demand.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
 
Old 05-28-2018, 12:52 AM
 
Location: Kittanning
4,692 posts, read 8,982,428 times
Reputation: 3668
Hopefully the next developer will save the two historic commercial structures next to the parking garage. The good news is that they won't be demolished now.
Reply With Quote Quick reply to this message
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.

Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.


Reply
Please update this thread with any new information or opinions. This open thread is still read by thousands of people, so we encourage all additional points of view.

Quick Reply
Message:


Settings
X
Data:
Loading data...
Based on 2000-2020 data
Loading data...

123
Hide US histogram


Over $104,000 in prizes was already given out to active posters on our forum and additional giveaways are planned!

Go Back   City-Data Forum > U.S. Forums > Pennsylvania > Pittsburgh

All times are GMT -6.

© 2005-2024, Advameg, Inc. · Please obey Forum Rules · Terms of Use and Privacy Policy · Bug Bounty

City-Data.com - Contact Us - Archive 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37 - Top