PNC Financial Services Group's $400 million skyscraper in Downtown is nearly 80 percent complete and on track to be finished in the fall, the company said Friday.
Mayor Bill Peduto said he welcomes “the addition of their new tower to our celebrated skyline,” along with the financial giant's continued investment in Pittsburgh.
PNC's Downtown presence includes the 30-story One PNC Plaza, 34-story Two PNC Plaza, 23-story Three PNC Plaza and five-story PNC Firstside Center on First Avenue.
Construction of the skyscraper, dubbed The Tower at PNC Plaza, began in spring 2012. A PNC-run website dedicated to the project says The Tower is 78 percent complete, with work to enclose the building about 90 percent done and interior construction about 60 percent finished. The latter work is expected to be completed in the spring.
PNC officials have said the energy-efficient, environmentally friendly building will use 50 percent less energy than a traditional office building and reduce water consumption by 77 percent.
Peduto said the building would “serve as a testament to the continued innovation and rebirth of Pittsburgh.”
PNC is holding a media event Tuesday in Green Tree, where it has a 1,200-square-foot replica tower that it used to test technology and design elements of the skyscraper before rolling them out on a larger scale in Downtown. The “mock-up” was built in 2013.
The 33-story skyscraper is the tallest built in Downtown since the 31-story Fifth Avenue Place opened in 1988.
Fifth Avenue Place's construction marked the end of a Golden Triangle building boom. Six towers between 27 and 54 stories went up in Downtown during the 1980s.
PNC's building could usher in a new wave. Downtown-based Oxford Development is planning a 29-story tower dubbed 350 Fifth. Oxford took part in the 1980s boom, completing the 45-story One Oxford Centre in 1983.
Tom Fontaine is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-320-7847 or tfontaine@tribweb.com.
