Master plan for Pittsburgh's Lower Hill District revealed

Redevelopment plans for the Lower Hill District will include eight residential buildings, a public lawn and a footpath linking the neighborhood to Downtown.

Bjarke Ingels Group, a Danish architectural firm hired to design apartments and public spaces at the former Civic Arena site, released its master plan Wednesday.

The Penguins own exclusive development rights to the 28-acre site. The $500 million project will be a mix of retail, office, residential and public space.

“The design creates a new open space identity but more importantly gives neighbors and visitors the sensations of nature in the heart of the city,” said Jamie Maslyn of West 8, a New York architectural firm that is partnering with the Danish firm.

The residential buildings will be terraced. Each will have a courtyard and balconies. Developers hope to break ground on the first building by the end of next year.

The development will have 1,200 housing units with parking beneath the buildings.

Triangular plazas will have public basketball courts and a water feature.

“The master plan for the Lower Hill District is created by supplementing the existing street grid with a new network of parks and paths shaped to optimize the sloping hillside,” said Bjarke Ingels, a founding partner of the Danish firm.

“The paths are turned and twisted to always find a gentle sloping path leading pedestrians and bicyclists comfortably up and down the hillside.”

The Danish firm held three public meetings this year to gather input on the project. Infrastructure work to prepare the site for development began last spring.

U.S. Steel this month scrapped plans to move its headquarters into a new five-story building on the site.

Tony Raap is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-320-7827 or traap@tribweb.com.