Plans to renovate downtown’s
G.C. Murphy building are starting with an environmental engineering assessment of the property. Canonsburg-based
Millcraft Industries is working with
Strada to finalize designs for the project’s 45,000 square feet of rental apartments and 60,000 square feet of retail. Construction will begin during the fourth quarter of 2007; the project is expected to take 12-15 months.
The $31 million development will feature 42 new apartments ranging in size from 700 to 1,300 square feet. “They’ll be selling the location,” says Ed Shriver with Strada. “They’ll be funky loft apartments bigger than your average loft, with very large windows.” The building’s first and second floors will house retail tenants, such as restaurants, a grocery store and a bookstore. “Having good floor plans for national tenants is critical to our plan,” says Brian Walker with Millcraft.
The Murphy building's basement will be converted into a parking facility.The project will involve rebuilding roofs, creating a garden courtyard and unifying a complex of five buildings via a series of corridors and stairs. “It’ll be an urban oasis—you'll be able to look up at
PPG and
PNC,” says Shriver.
“Rents will be below most everything else new downtown.”
Writer: Jennifer Baron
Source: Ed Shriver; Brian Walker
Image courtesy of Strada