Development News

Throughout April a transparent box truck will visit each of Pittsburgh’s 90 neighborhoods to conduct mini “talk shows,” an effort to gather the ideas and opinions of city residents on public art and urban design.

The project is called TALKPGH, a mobile public art project through the Department of City Planning. Local artist Jon Rubin—of The Waffle Shop and Conflict Kitchen—is facilitating these conversations, along with his film crew and City staff.

Information gathered through this process will aid in the development of ARTPGH and DESIGNPGH, components of PLANPGH, the City’s first ever comprehensive plan for growth over the next 25 years.

Morton Brown, the City's Public Art Manager, says the point of TALKPGH is to reach residents that wouldn't usually attend planning meetings, by creating an event that is novel and engaging.

The talk shows—conducted in the truck bed—will be recorded and will air as a web series this summer on the TALKPGH website. A compilation of the talk shows will also be presented in a public format, though details are yet to be determined.

Project leaders hope the experience will encourage residents to become more involved with the PLANPGH process, and to attend its upcoming community meetings.

TALKPGH is looking for community liaisons, interviewees, and suggested film locations for each of the city’s 90 neighborhoods. Residents can sign up at the project’s website, or by calling 408-800-3176.

Additionally, there will be six “open house” meetings for ARTPGH and  DESIGNPGH. For planning purposes, the city has been divided into six study areas. Upcoming meetings will be held in each of the six study areas, and include Monday, April 22nd (drop in anytime from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.), The Kaufman Center, 1825 Centre Avenue; and Tuesday, April 23rd (drop in anytime from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m.), Schenley Ice Rink, 10341 Overlook Drive. 

For a full list of community meetings, visit the PLANPGH website.

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Morton Brown

Although Tameka Reed comes from a long line of seamstresses, she learned to sew in her middle school home economics class. So when she learned that many area schools had dropped sewing from their curriculum, she decided to open a business that would help the craft continue to thrive.

Reed’s recently opened Urban Stitches shop is a sewing lounge that she hopes will inspire crafters of all ages to pick up needle and thread for the first time, as well as provide a supportive, social environment for more advanced sewers.

At her Monroeville facility Reed offers weekly classes for adults and youth, in addition to open studio hours for independent work. Her Introduction to Sewing class allows newcomers to use sewing machines for the first time, and complete a series of small projects.

"Learning the basics is a good thing to get you out of catastrophies," Reed says, "and I've had several wardrobe disasters over the years that sewing came in handy for."

Additional workshops include dressmaking, children’s wear, alterations, and contemporary quilting, as well as men’s fashion. Classes range from $35 to $150 for single-day and multiple-day workshops.

Reed says her fashion sewing classes are geared for working women wanting to make or amend career clothing that is hip and contemporary.

Reed hopes Urban Stitches can introduce sewing to new audiences—especially within Pittsburgh’s vibrant maker community—as a creative, useful skill. "Things are finally starting to trend back toward things made by hand, and crafting, and things that you can make and put your own personal little stamp on," she says.

In addition to Urban Stitches, Reed teaches sewing at Westinghouse High School in Homewood through the YWCA's After School Program.

Urban Stitches is located at 3948 Monroeville Blvd, Suite 1 in the Presidential Village Plaza, Monroeville.


Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Tameka Reed

The Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) celebrated the opening of the new K. Leroy Irvis Science Center on Monday at its Allegheny Campus on the Northside. The five-story, LEED certified building features state-of-the art science equipment, e-learning capabilities, and supports biotechnology, microbiology, and astronomy, among several other programs.

The 65,000-square-foot science center contains eight classrooms, numerous study areas and 16 laboratories. A rooftop observatory, capable of electronically projecting images into classrooms, is scheduled to be completed soon.

"You can do so many things with all of those variations in technology," says Campus President Donna L. Imhoff. "There's so many different ways to teach now."

The building is named for the late State Representative K. Leroy Irvis, a champion of community colleges in the Commonwealth.  His co-sponsorship of the Pennsylvania Community College Act of 1964 created the state's community college system, and led to the founding of CCAC three years later. “If not for him, community colleges wouldn't exist at all,” Imhoff says.

The science center, located at 808 Ridge Avenue, was designed by Hayes Large Architects and has earned a LEED Silver Energy rating.

Other programs that will be served by the new facility include biology, anatomy and physiology, chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, geology, and physical science.
 

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Donna Imhoff

One of the Pittsburgh region's leading construction companies has a new headquarters that's now among the "greenest" in the world.

Sota Construction Services Inc. achieved LEED Platinum Certification recently for its own office building, in Bellevue, earning the most LEED points ever awarded to a project in Pennsylvania, and the fifth-highest score in the entire LEED system worldwide.

The office building includes passive and high efficiency active radiant slab heating and cooling; natural ventilation; use of natural materials including straw bale and cob wall construction, reused and recycled materials; day lighting; rainwater harvesting; and low water use fixtures.

Ernie Sota, President of Sota Construction Services, says that while many new LEED structures are criticized for high energy consumption, this building is actually performing better than energy models had projected. "We focused on energy here very much from the original design," he says.

In addition to having an efficient thermal envelope, rooftop solar panels are producing up to 70 percent of the building's energy needs.

Sota says the building's use of cob wall construction—an ancient building method that is a mixture of sand, clay, and straw—demonstrates the viability of it and other "self-assembled" materials in Southwestern Pennsylvania. "Those natural building materials," he says, "[are] possibly a pathway to a kind of unlimited green future for all of us.”

Design and construction was done by a large local and international team, including evolveEA, Studio d’Arc , ARUP International, Building Science Corporation, Iams Consulting, Tudi Mechanical, Greenweavers, and Construction Junction.

The Green Building Alliance will offer tours of the building during its Earth Day at Ernie’s event on Thursday, April 18^th, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. For more information and to register, visit the GBA’s website here.
 

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Ernie Sota

In just a few short years Amy Garbark has turned a screen-printing hobby into a thriving storefront business.

Garbella, Garbark's hand-screen-printed apparel, accessories and home goods line, began as an Etsy store in 2006 but now boasts distribution in over 50 stores across the country, and locally in boutiques like Lawrenceville's WildCard. In May Garbark is moving production to a storefront in Lower Lawrenceville, a building she has recently bought with her husband, Stephen Cummings.

 "I've always been a maker," Garbark says, "In 2008 I set up a little studio in my basement, and started from there."

Garbark's first foray into screen-printing began with an I Bike Pittsburgh t-shirt, made just for herself and friends, at Artists Image Resource (AIR). But the shirt became popular with other cyclists in the city, and remains a top seller. Other designs include P is For Pierogi baby onesies and bibs, a line of women's and men's clothing, clocks made from reused bicycle parts, as well as kitchen items and tote bags.

With exposure at The Handmade Arcade and I Made It! Market craft shows Garbella continued to grow, and in 2008 it became her fulltime job. As the business grew and production slowly took over her living space, Garbella clearly needed a home of its own. In preparation for her first wholesale industry tradeshow last August, Garbark moved production to a small storefront in Morningside.

But when the space in Lawrenceville became available—a small, 1,000-square-foot, one-story commercial structure amidst residences—it offered Garbark an opportunity to create a custom production facility suited to Garbella’s specific needs. Garbark is working with JCI Development to raise the flat roof, create storage space, and install skylights that will add an abundance of natural lighting.

Garbark and Cummings have lived in Lawrenceville for several years. "I am excited to bring my business back here and be able to easily walk or ride my bike to work," Garbark says.
 

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Amy Garbark

Eat + Drink is Pop City's weekly roundup of Pittsburgh's food scene.


- Tender Bar + Kitchen will celebrate a grand opening next Friday, April 5^th. The restaurant features a “Gatsby-era atmosphere,” regional American cuisine, and a craft cocktail list.

Renovations to the restaurant’s historic building—the former Arsenal Bank—unearthed artifacts such as bank checks from the 1890’s, a pair of handmade stone dice, and a vault alarm system, whose 1930’s electronics will be on display in the restaurant.

Tender is the second concept from Verde Mexican Kitchen & Cantina proprietor Jeff Catalina.  The menu includes regional dishes such as lobster rolls, meatloaf, and shrimp and grits. Tender is located at 4300 Butler Street, Lawrenceville. 412-402-9522.

- Notion has reopened in East Liberty. Chef-owner David Racicot closed the original Oakmont eatery in late 2011 with plans to bring the restaurant to a more central location in Pittsburgh. The smaller, 28-seat space is located at 128 S. Highland Avenue, near the neighborhood's many popular dining destinations, including BRGR, Abay Ethiopian Cuisine, Paris 66, and more.

- Piper's Pub owner Drew Topping is opening a new United Kingdom-style fish-and-chip shop called The Pub Chip Shop. The menu will include pasties, a stuffed British pastry, and other U.K. take-out fare.  It will be located in the adjacent Victorian storefront to Piper's Pub, at 1830 E. Carson Street. 

- Redbeard's  on 6^th Sports Bar and Grill is opening soon in Downtown Pittsburgh, at 144 6th Street. It is a second location of the original Redbeard’s, which has served Mount Washington for more than 20 years.

Redbeard’s replaces the former Palazzo Ristorante, and is adjacent to Six Penn Kitchen. The Roberto Clemente Bridge is just one block away, which connects pedestrians to PNC Park on Pirates game days.
 

Writer: Andrew Moore

Anthony Dolan’s new development projects aim to fill in the gaps of East Liberty's ongoing redevelopment.

Dolan's company, Alphabet City Co., plans to build a 20,000-square-foot retail and office structure at the corner of Penn Avenue and Penn Circle East, across from Target. Plans also call for a 5,000-square-foot rooftop restaurant featuring outdoor seating.

Once a lead tenant is identified, construction is expected to be complete within 15 months. Oxford Realty Services is handling leasing and marketing for the project. Three existing buildings, including the current location of Yen's Gourmet Chinese Restaurant, would be razed.

Dolan says it's important for the building to be an amenity to the neighborhood and to complement the existing structures.

"Whatever happens here is going to set the tone for the rest of that block as new development moves into the core," he says.

The site is surrounded by several high-profile developments in East Liberty. Dolan praises the early development work of Mosites and that company's plans for new residential units at the Eastside III, as well as Walnut Capital's restoration of the residential Highland Building.

"But we do need a balance of office space and residential units in the core," Dolan says, "to make sure that we have enough daytime population to feed the businesses that are currently there and ones that want to locate there in the future."

David Morgan, of Morgan Associates, is the project architect. Dolan says Morgan has a strong history with the neighborhood and was an original board member of East Liberty Development, Inc.

Alphabet City Co.'s second project in East Liberty is renovating existing warehouse structures near the future Ace Hotel. At 5915 and 5921 Baum Boulevard, the refaced buildings will be converted for retail and restaurant uses. Dolan's goal is to have these structures available by the end of this year, around the opening of the Ace Hotel.

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Anthony Dolan

City of Asylum/Pittsburgh has found a new home for its planned literary center Alphabet City. The non-profit announced Monday it would open the center—which will contain a bookstore, café and performance space—in the Northside’s prominent Garden Theater block on North Avenue.

COA/P co-founder Henry Reese says the new location will allow for heightened activity and greater accessibility to a broader community.

“By building Alphabet City in the heart of Allegheny City Central’s redevelopment commercial district, rather than in the residential interior, we are able to grow beyond our original plans,” he said in a statement.

Allegheny City Central is the new, rebranded name of the Central Northside neighborhood.

The center was originally planned for a triple lot in the Mexican War Streets, but that location—which required zoning board approval—was challenged by two neighbors. The proposal was rejected by an Allegheny County judge last November.

Alphabet City will be located in three redeveloped storefronts of the former Masonic Temple. Reese says the historic structure’s façade will not be altered, but the interior will reflect COA/P’s informal, salon-style events with a “living-room-feel.” It will have a 150-person capacity.

The project architects are Loysen + Kreuthmeier, who designed the nearby Allegheny branch of the Carnegie Library. The design will incorporate artwork made from more than 1,000 hand-written alphabets in 62 writing systems, collected from Northsiders and residents from around the world.

Since 2004, COA/P has provided sanctuary to literary writers exiled and under threat of persecution. Its mission also includes transforming blighted properties and energizing public spaces through public art with text-based components.

Reese says the new location meets COA/P’s goal to be an important change agent in the community.

“Helping make sure that the Garden Theater complex becomes redeveloped is really important to our community, and being a part of that is really gratifying to us,” he says.

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Henry Reese

The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership (PDP) released its annual report yesterday during its membership meeting highlighting achievements of the past year and its goals for 2013.

Guest speakers—including County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Mayor Luke Ravenstahl—acknowledged the progress Downtown has made in recent years, and emphasized the need to attract young and new residents to the region.

Market Square was heralded for its continued role in drawing visitors and residents to Downtown. Along with the seasonal Market Square Farmers Market, numerous concerts, and services in partnership with the Carnegie Library, 85 additional events occurred in the square during 2012.

“It’s truly become a town square for Pittsburgh,” said Thomas Harrington, board chairman of the PDP.

The report acknowledges the completion of the North Shore Connector, a milestone for improving connections between the North Shore and Downtown. According to the report, the PDP led efforts to develop a model for sponsorship solicitation that led to the expansion of the free fare zone to the new North Shore stations.

Also in 2012, a 332 percent increase was seen in volunteer assistance for various projects Downtown; the Peoples Gas Holiday Market was introduced to Market Square; seven Sidewalk Activation projects were approved, representing $341,441 in total new investment, as well as six Façade Improvement Projects, totaling $400,484 in new investment.

In 2013 the Paris to Pittsburgh program will be expanded with a new $350,000 grant from the Colcom Foundation, and a renovated Mellon Square will reopen to the public.  In May, the PDP’s second annual State of Downtown Pittsburgh report will be released.

This weekend, the PDP will kick-off its new public art initiative with the nine free performances throughout the weekend by the Zany Umbrella Circus, as well as workshops and a mini-museum in Market Square.  

Also this weekend, Sisters of the Lattice—who bill themselves as "willfully conjoined techno-mystics"—are inviting audiences to a screening of their new film and to meditate in one of 10 individual saunas on Liberty Avenue.

“This is all about making Downtown Pittsburgh a unique and interesting place for people to come and visit, or stumble upon ...” said Jeremy Waldrup, PDP president and CEO.

Writer: Andrew Moore

Pittsburgh's only operational dairy is now the center of redevelopment in Carrick.

Community leaders launched the new Dairy District effort—a planning and design initiative—on Monday at Colteryahn Dairy, where they hope the corridor can be transformed into a destination with quality retail, dining and office space. The dairy, founded in 1893, is located at 1801 Brownsville Road.

The dairy is partnering in this effort with Economic Development South (EDS), a non-profit community development corporation that works across municipal lines and whose focus is on corridor-based development. EDS serves the Boroughs of Brentwood, Whitehall and Baldwin and the City of Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Carrick and Overbrook.

EDS Executive Director Greg Jones envisions ice cream shops, restaurants and other complimentary businesses opening in historic storefronts surrounding the dairy.

"We're trying to create more of a regional destination along a stretch of Brownsville Road that hasn't had investment in quite a number of years," Jones says.

The effort is funded in part by a $50,000 grant from the Pittsburgh Neighborhood Renaissance Fund (NRF). NRF is a program that provides community groups with resources to create a development vision plan, and was created by Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the Design Center. Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak has given additional funds to the Carrick Community Council for the project.

Desmone & Associates Architects has been hired to design streetscape improvements and to develop a vision for revitalizing existing storefronts through a community planning process.

According to Rudiak, depending on the outcome of the design process, Colteryahn Dairy is prepared to invest private funds in future improvements to the streetscape. She says a highlight of the process would be to reopen the former Colteryahn Dairy storefront to sell ice cream and other products.

"It doesn’t have to be complicated," Rudiak says. "Sometimes all you need is a new coat of paint and a new sidewalk, and something can look brand new. But we are looking for something different, something creative."

In 1998, Colteryahn Dairy invested in a $5 million upgrade to their plant in Carrick. Though there were once numerous dairies throughout Pittsburgh, Colteryahn's is the last operational facility within city limits.

The Dairy District Project is a joint initiative of Economic Development South (EDS), the Carrick Community Council and the Colteryahn Dairy management team. It is one of several studies and ongoing redevelopment projects currently targeting the several-miles-long Brownsville Road corridor.

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Councilwoman Natalia Rudiak; Greg Jones

Thanks to a new series of Sprout Fund projects, life in Pittsburgh will get more connected.

Connect Your City (CYC) is a series of 14 unique projects aimed at building connections between Pittsburgh’s many neighborhoods and across generations, cultures, and communities. CYC grew out of a recent Social innovation eXchange (SiX) event, a partnership between Pop City, the Sprout Fund, and the Pittsburgh Foundation, among others. 

Projects include the Friend-Field Postcard from Felipe Casteblanco and James Southard which will be the largest group portrait taken in Pittsburgh of residents of Garfield, Friendship, and Bloomfield. The postcard will then be mailed across neighborhoods. And Song for Pittsburgh, from Jennifer Myers, will place six singers in six different neighborhoods performing the same song at the exact same time. The one-day performance will take place on April 21^st.

An RFP was announced at the event last November. Of 30 applicants, 14 projects were recently awarded $1,000 grants.

Next Wednesday, March 20^th, grantees will present 90 second pitches of their projects at a happy hour event at the Shadow Lounge, 5972 Baum Blvd in East Liberty, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The happy hour will be one of the final events to be held at the Shadow Lounge’s current space, which will close in the coming weeks.


Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Sandra Hartkopf

Conflict Kitchen has a new home in Oakland's Schenley Plaza. The take-out restaurant, which only serves cuisine from countries that the United States is in conflict with, will begin serving an expanded menu from its new kiosk location on April 1st.

Co-director Jon Rubin says earlier plans to move downtown fell through because of changes in the Golden Triange's rental market. But he sees a strong future in the Oakland location, with its proximity to universities, libraries, and the plaza's own seasonal cultural offerings.

While they've lost interior space that a downtown location could have offered, Rubin believes they've made up for it in high-quality public space.

"It's really Pittsburgh's only public plaza," he says, in terms of a large, relaxed, multi-use space.

The eatery is planning weekend dinners and other special events to be held at the plaza. Conflict Kitchen joins other take-out kiosk businesses and The Porch at Schenley.

At the original East Liberty location, Conflict Kitchen had served Cuban, Venezuelan, and Afghani cuisine, among others, but offerings were limited to one or two items under each incarnation. At the new location the menu has been expanded to 10 to 12 items.

Conflict Kitchen will serve its Iranian menu through June, in recognition of that nation's summer elections. Items include the ground beef kebab Kabab-e Kubideh; Kookoo Sabzi, an egg frittata served on nan; and Khoresht-e Fesenjan, pomegranate and walnut chicken on stead rice.

Plans for future concepts include North and South Korean, as well an Israel-Palestine version of the project.

Hours will be 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day.
 

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Jon Rubin

A new bike sharing program is in the works for Pittsburgh, a service that will enhance the city's ever-growing bicycle culture.

The 500-bike system planned for Pittsburgh is expected to debut in summer 2014. The service will give users unlimited "free" 30 to 60 minute rides through annual or 24-hour memberships. Bikes, which are available 24/7, can be returned to any of the 50 solar-powered stations in the system.

Bike Pittsburgh's Scott Bricker says the service will be a game changer for cycling in the city, and will help to mainstream bikes as a mode of transportation. "It'll be much easier to integrate bicycling into daily life for regular people," he says.

A preliminary map of potential bike-share stations shows locations throughout Downtown and Oakland, as well as in the East End, North Side, and South Side.

Bike sharing systems typically involve making bicycles available throughout a city, with corrals located at strategic transportation centers. They allow users to ride without owning a bike, and are ideal for visitors as well as residents making quick one-way trips.

The Pittsburgh Bike Share Partnership (PBSP), a newly formed non-profit, announced plans for the system on Monday during an event at Bakery Square. At that facility a smaller-scale bike-share program is available to commuters between Carnegie Mellon University and Google.

A $1.6 million grant from the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement program will help fund the $4 million bike share project.

Bike share programs already exist in over 200 cities worldwide, including Paris, with 20,000 bicycles, and the Hangzhou Public Bicycle program in China, which at 66,500 bicycles is the largest in the world. And several American cities, including Denver, Minneapolis, D.C., Boston, and Miami Beach have also launched bike shares.

PBSP is an alliance of the City of Pittsburgh, Bike Pittsburgh, and Walnut Capital.

Two upcoming public information sessions will allow residents to learn more about the proposed system: 6 p.m., Tuesday, April 2nd at CMU, McKenna-Peter-Wright Rooms; and 12 p.m., Wednesday, April 3, 2013, at Point Park University’s Lawrence Hall Ballroom, 201 Wood Street.


Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Scott Bricker

The Pittsburgh Public Market is moving to a new location in the Strip District and will double in size to nearly 25,000 square feet.

The market's new home, at 2401 Penn Avenue—directly across the street from Mullaney's Harp and Fiddle—is at the fringe of the Strip District's busy retail core. Cindy Cassell, of Neighbors in the Strip, believes the market will help draw pedestrian traffic into new areas, as well as build connections with Lower Lawrenceville.

Other nearby businesses have begun to enliven the street, including restaurants like Bar Marco and Savoy.

The building will be air-conditioned, and will feature new infrastructure for food preparation. Cassell says a commercial kitchen is also in the works, and expects it to be operational within a year of opening.

Although the building is currently a nondescript cement structure, Cassell says NITS, which operates the market, is planning to add new doors and windows among other facade improvements. Aesthetic changes, including murals, are also under consideration.

The market will leave its current location in the Pennsylvania Fruit Auction & Sales terminal this summer. Disruptions to the historic building are planned as part of The Buncher Co.'s riverfront development.

Writer: Andrew Moore
Source: Cindy Cassell

Eat + Drink is Pop City's roundup of Pittsburgh's food scene.

Matteo's has opened recently on Lawrenceville's Butler Street, serving Italian cuisine with an emphasis on seafood and steak.

Matteo's is the project of husband and wife duo Matt and Andrea Cavanaugh. Chef Matt Cavanaugh has worked for the past 15 years in the region's dining scene, including Redbull Inn in Robinson Township, and Sarafino's in Crafton. This is the Cavanaughs' first restaurant.

The restaurant’s interior was renovated for Matteo's and seats up to 38 in the dining room. A full-service bar seats an additional 12.

Cavanaugh says assistance from the Urban Redevelopment Authority—including writing a business plan and securing loans—was instrumental in the restaurant's opening.

Matteo's is located next to Pageboy Salon & Boutique at 3615 Butler Street. 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. 412-586-7722.

- A new Cuban restaurant is opening soon, also in Lawrenceville.

The owners of Salud Cuban-American Restaurant and Lounge hope to be open by the beginning of next week. Chef and co-owner Radames Magro says the cuisine will feature traditional Cuban entrees, with sides like plantains and yuca, homemade empanadas and papas rellenas, as well as fusion items with classic American fare.

Magro, who was born in Cuba, previously catered events in the area. Magro and co-owner Terry Hircik have been planning Salud for the past decade, he says.

A local muralist will soon depict scenes from Cuba in the restaurant's dining room. Magro says live music and salsa dancing are planned for the lounge space, where the bar will specialize in mojitos, Daiquiris, and other Cuban drinks.

Salud is located in the former Salac's bar, at 4517 Butler Street. 412-605-0233.

- If you've ever wondered how to make great-tasting raw, vegan, and gluten-free meals, a new event at Marty's Market aims to teach you how.

"Raw food artists" Joni James and Daniel Lewis are teaching weekly classes at the organic food market, titled "Raw Possibilities." Attendees will get instruction on making simple yet creative meals from raw vegan ingredients.

Classes are held each Sunday, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., and Monday, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.  For more information, and to register, visit Marty's Market's website.
 
Writer: Andrew Moore