PITTSBURGH | Development Rundown III

[Don't Be That Guy]

Originally Posted by eschaton

June 18th can be found here. Even less of interest, with the biggest project outdoor seating for 412 Brewery.

Not directly related to development, but as a beer consuming parent, there is a glaring lack of outdoor seating at most breweries in Pittsburgh compared to what you see in other cities. I suppose that comes from reusing industrial spaces that never had outdoor space, to begin with, but it's a bit of a deterrent form visiting as a family, especially when the weather is nice. Grist House comes the closest, but's it's become a dog park that serves beer. Almost every brewery in Minneapolis, Asheville, San Diego, etc. at least has a patio and it's a bit of a rarity here.

[pj3000]

I hate when people bring their kids to brewpubs. It's a bar that serves beer, not a day care center for parents to get drunk at.


Off the top of my head... Hitchhiker (both locations), Southern Tier, Hop Farm, Insurrection, Brew Gentleman, Cinderlands, Roundabout, Brewdog, Hofbrau, Draai Laag, Helicon, and Gristhouse (like you mentioned, basically a dog park)... all have outdoor seating I think.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by pj3000

I hate when people bring their kids to brewpubs. It's a bar that serves beer, not a day care center for parents to get drunk at.

IMHO if a brewery serves food it's A-OK to take your kids to, since it's effectively a restaurant that serves alcohol, not a bar at that point. Plus I'm at the point in my life where years can go by without me having more than two drinks in a night.

I've taken my kids to Hofbrauhaus, Strange Roots, and Mindful Brewing before. I don't think I've taken them to any others off the top of my head.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by eschaton

IMHO if a brewery serves food it's A-OK to take your kids to, since it's effectively a restaurant that serves alcohol, not a bar at that point. Plus I'm at the point in my life where years can go by without me having more than two drinks in a night.

I've taken my kids to Hofbrauhaus, Strange Roots, and Mindful Brewing before. I don't think I've taken them to any others off the top of my head.

Yeah, I agree with that. I guess I wasn't thinking about the breweries that are restaurants too when I made the comment.

It's just really annoying when you go to a (non-restaurant) brewery on a weekend to have a couple beers, and several of the tables are taken up by a groups of little kids with coloring books, games, etc. So there's no available tables/chairs and you have to stand and constantly move out of the way in the crowded room. Because meanwhile, their parents are standing around and taking up all the nearby tables getting tanked on 8% IPAs... and then they load the kids into the minivan or suv out front and drive away sloshed (with kids in the car, no less), usually leaving a big mess behind. It's not cool.

[photoLith]

I heard the Mexican war streets historic district finally got expanded but can’t find any news about it, anyone know anything? Edit, never mind, found it. Glad the NIMBYs didn’t block it this time. Hopefully this means any new junk that gets built in the district will have to also look historic and not be cladded in tin and other terrible materials.

Screen Shot 2020-06-04 at 8.42.37 PM by photolitherland, on Flickr

http://www.alleghenycitycentral.org/...tJnAEGPD78ljgo

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by photoLith

Hopefully this means any new junk that gets built in the district will have to also look historic and not be cladded in tin and other terrible materials.

We're not Savannah. Pittsburgh historic districts don't require new builds to be "period" at all. All it really does is stop further remuddling of existing structures.

[photoLith]

^
Oh well, at least most of the rest of the Mexican War Streets won't be destroyed eventually.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by photoLith

^
Oh well, at least most of the rest of the Mexican War Streets won't be destroyed eventually.

Any time a "gut rehab" is done of an existing structure the district does require making the buildings more historically accurate on the outside. I mean, you can replace "like for like" but you cannot actually add anything additionally remuddling a historic structure, so things like this won't happen any longer.

While not required by code, I generally find the infill housing on the North Side to be a lot less fugly than what goes in on the South Side or in Lawrenceville.

[photoLith]

^
Yeah when they did that to that 1860s house I couldn’t believe it. Hopefully now at some point it will get restored to its original look.

[pj3000]

I generally don't like when new construction attempts to be "historically accurate" for the neighborhood. Because it's not historically accurate. Something built in 2020 in an 1850s vernacular is fully historically inaccurate... and really goes totally against what historic preservation is supposed to be about. It's largely about authenticity to the time period... not mimicry. Trying to match the surrounding houses always seems to result in cheesy fakery.

I'm all in favor of historically-accurate renovation of existing structures though. Rather than the cheap crap that is so commonly done to make it "modern" -- like the Mexican War Streets example posted above... that house was in good shape... why would you cover up the brick with that cheap styrofoam cement board and remove the original windows for that??

And never in favor of demolishing those houses for a new construction that's not high quality; as in the 3-story example right across the street. The one with the fake wood siding and glass garage door.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by photoLith

^
Yeah when they did that to that 1860s house I couldn’t believe it. Hopefully now at some point it will get restored to its original look.

The original house is basically gone... restoring it to original is impossible. The original front of the house was removed in favor of those 3 big plates of glass.

The ridiculous thing is, someone spent a lot of money to make it look that shitty

[photoLith]

I’ve always thought these were pretty good as far as infill goes, except for the crappy siding in the alleys but oh well. As far as new construction goes, they look pretty good. These buildings are now in the historic district as well.

https://goo.gl/maps/8WtgN2xVfuB1zR546

[bossride]

Interesting read on NIMBYism and historic preservation.

[photoLith]

^
That’s a very stupid and dangerous article. Historic preservation is of utmost importance. Most cities have loads and loads of non historic 70s garbage and vacant lots that can be built upon for affordable housing. You don’t need to tear down historic architecture to build modern shit.

[eschaton]

Originally Posted by pj3000

The original house is basically gone... restoring it to original is impossible. The original front of the house was removed in favor of those 3 big plates of glass.

The ridiculous thing is, someone spent a lot of money to make it look that shitty

The awful thing is it was done by an architect. A coworker of my wife lives across the street, and asked her why they were doing it and she literally said "It's not in the historic district, so we can."

Originally Posted by bossride

Interesting read on NIMBYism and historic preservation.

It depends upon the area to be honest. Historic preservation can be misused to limit upzoning and new construction. But in the North Side (and basically everywhere else we have historic districts) the zoning is for single-family (usually attached) housing, meaning replacement units will be at close to the same density as what's already there.

There have been some isolated cases of attempting to use historic preservation as a tool for anti-density NIMBYISM. I'm thinking of that 1830s home in Lawrenceville which a developer wants to knock down to build six new townhouses. In terms of higher and better use there's no question the townhouses would be a step up from one large home on a generous yard. But we have very few homes of that age left in the city, which makes it a tough call.

In an ideal world we'd really have some sort of objective way of determining "higher and better use." Knocking down a church to make way for a drive-thru Starbucks seems bad, but knocking down a church to make way for a new apartment building seems forgivable.

[bossride]

Thought provoking theses on preservation and racism that are generating a lot of comments across the web.

[JDescutner]

The Troiani family is seeking demolition approval for those 19th century buildings at Market St. and Blvd of the Allies to construct a new tower.

https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsbur..._news_headline

By Tim Schooley, Pittsburgh Business Times, 6/10/20

[BrutalistUtopia]

Originally Posted by JDescutner

The Troiani family is seeking demolition approval for those 19th century buildings at Market St. and Blvd of the Allies to construct a new tower.

https://www.bizjournals.com/pittsbur..._news_headline

By Tim Schooley, Pittsburgh Business Times, 6/10/20

From the Troiani website:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49993235246/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49992714513/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49993235226/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49993486597/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49992714423/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/188909...8/49992714478/

https://troiani.com/troiani-group-of...st-side-tower/

For Immediate Release – June 10, 2020 – As part of an ongoing large-scale and unique development initiative, the Troiani Group plans a high-density, mixed-use, and green development at the locations of 212 and 214 Boulevard of the Allies to restore and revitalize Downtown Pittsburgh’s First Side. The project, 25 years in the making, is a multi-generational effort of the Troiani family to establish a community-centric, ecologically mindful, and economically stimulating building structure. The proposed structure will create a zone of opportunity for the City of Pittsburgh that complements and enlivens the First Side district and attracts world-class office tenancy and residency to the Golden Triangle in a vibrant and thriving live-work environment.

Michael Troiani, president of Troiani Group, the family-owned retail, residential, office, and parking property company, is looking forward to launching a regenerative urban design project that gathers and integrates community input. The result will be a catalytic building that fosters a positive, mixed-use, and community-oriented space at the heart of the Golden Triangle.

“Especially as the recent pandemic has required us to keep our distance, we are building opportunities to bring people together in healthy and vibrant spaces in the future. We’re committed to doing our part to upgrade these special places within our city, gather and incorporate community input, and integrate new quality and positive-use spaces into the city’s existing framework for everyone in Pittsburgh to utilize, enjoy, and connect,” Troiani said.

The building design characteristics will include elements that reflect and blend with the look, feel, and scale of surrounding Downtown buildings, including a mixed palette of original and new brick and stone masonry, historical plaques, and integrated reuse of existing building materials. Urban green space will be a key feature of the structure, which will be developed and integrated through a public process in collaboration with the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.

Building diversified activities include:

200,000 square feet of Modern Trophy Class A Office Space connected to the city with elevated views to Point State Park, Market Square, and the Monongahela River
151 residential units, with a high-curtained, wind-protected, sun-facing exterior pool, and interior and recessed private balconies
Illuminated street-level retail at the intersection of Market and First, embodying the spirit of prior use with a restaurant and gathering place featuring a rooftop deck and local music
Street-level open space at the Boulevard of the Allies on both sides of Market Street, with the intention to engage the Downtown and surrounding communities with activities and programming including yoga classes, art exhibitions, and more
Community-engaging open space bridging the pedestrian route from PNC Park and Heinz Field to the Cultural District, Market Square, First Avenue, and the Three Rivers Heritage Trail
Over the decades, the Troiani family has prided itself on enhancing lives through responsible community development. In reshaping and transforming properties, and in reimagining how the accumulation of smaller sites can develop into more meaningful presences, the family has focused on creating community spaces that that significantly improve life function.

“Our family shares the City of Pittsburgh’s commitment to creating a sustainable future. We are committed to responsible development that balances Pittsburgh’s past and present assets and brings them into our shared future,” Troiani said. “We are honored to participate in shaping Pittsburgh’s skyline and enlivening our Golden Triangle.”

Incorporation of historic facades and commitment brick/masonry may have been the result of the discussions between the Troianis and the Pittsburgh Historic and Landmark Foundation (https://www.post-gazette.com/busines...s/201907260042). Confusing to see the change in materials in the different renderings though.

Glad to see the use of the parking lot further up First Ave. into residential, especially since a lot of criticisms of the original demolition proposal of the historic block were that they would be sat on for parking.

[eschaton]

My wife works for Rothschild Doyno (though she hasn't been on this project in particular) so I knew this was in the works.

If it gets built, I think it might be worth sacrificing the Market Street buildings. But that's a big if. They openly note in the article that without an anchor tenant for the commercial section of the tower it will probably not be built. So the Troiani family are basically offering a speculative project as a reason to be allowed to demolish historic buildings. It could be an empty lot for a decade plus if they never get the tenant. It's possible this is all a bad-faith effort to look like they're serious about a big project in order to get the planning commission to okay knocking the buildings down - potentially allowing a more modest project or even expansion of their parking in the future.

[eschaton]

So, a new Planning Commission presentation is up for next week. As with last week, there are now individual PDFs for each of the projects. Effectively, there's only two new items on the agenda:

1. New zoning regulations establishing no parking minimums for new-construction attached homes. This means - hopefully - an end to front-facing ground-floor garages and curb cuts outside of alleys (at least as a default). Oddly it seems that this is not going to be linked to R1 zoning, but to attached houses as a built form. I feel like this will have its biggest impact when it comes to non-market-rate infill in areas like the Hill District, where many townhomes are designed for low-income families who lack cars anyway, and off-street parking is often useless.

2. The proposed demolition by the Troiani family - which is attached to a glossy presentation of the speculative new building. I've already given my two cents - if they can secure the funding, and the building is a done deal, I think sacrificing the historic buildings may be worth it. But I'm 100% opposed to "speculative demolition."

Also, a virtual ZBA is up for July 2nd. There are lots of projects this week (three, by my count) which are appeals of the City Council's demolition moratorium in the expanded Mexican War Streets area. Northside Properties (really, Mistick Construction) wants to partially demolish several homes (basically just their rear ells - in some cases even less). Not much else of interest to be honest.