Work delays at former Kaufmann's Building frustrating for future tenant

Gordon Sheffer said he planned on an April opening for his gourmet waffle shop at the former Kaufmann's Building in Downtown Pittsburgh, but a lack of power has stalled the build out of his space along Fifth Avenue.

Sheffer, owner of Waffles INCaffeinated, said the delay has been frustrating because he can't move ahead until he gets a permanent source of electrical power. He said a lack of response from the building owner has compounded his frustration.

“The whole thing for my space has come to a complete stop because I don't have permanent power,” he said Friday. “You have to have hot water to get a final pluming inspection, you can't hire, you can't pass the HVAC inspection without being able to demonstrate the equipment, and it just goes on.”

Philadelphia-based Core Realty, which purchased the building from Macy's for $15 million in 2015 and is retrofitting it for an upscale hotel, apartments, offices and shops, is waiting on Duquesne Light to power the building, said Michael Samschick, the president and CEO.

“We've been told that they hope to have our power on over the next two weeks,” he said, adding that it would take two or three weeks after that to test all the systems in the 13-story building at Fifth Avenue and Smithfield Street. “We've been waiting for quite a long time. By August we will be up and running.”

Duquesne Light spokeswoman Ashlee Yingling said the company recently installed six new underground transformers to the building.

“After receiving notice on Thursday that the necessary electrical work inside the building was complete, DLC plans to inspect the work next week and, if approved, begin the last stage in the process to connect power,” she said. “We continue to work directly with the customer to meet their deadline.”

Samschick said he was unaware of Sheffer's difficulty reaching Core's top management.

“I didn't know that. I'll get him anything he needs,” he said.

A Fifth Avenue lobby of the 1.2 million square foot building dubbed Kaufmanns Grand on Fifth Avenue is nearly finished. An entire wall measuring 60 by 23 feet features a high resolution screen displaying nature scenes. A similar screen displaying a rain forest is located near elevators.

Lobby walls are covered with onyx and the floor is an onyx composite.

“It's really about feng shui,” Samschick said. “It's stone, it's fire, it's water. It's all the elements.”

He said 311 luxury apartments complete with voice-activated controls for everything from heat and air conditioning to window shades and the morning coffee pot, are nearly finished.

Residents will have access to four floors of parking, an automated spa, movie media center, gym, virtual reality game room, dog grooming station, two atria and room service for breakfast and dinner.

The rooftop will feature a swimming pool and sports courts including tennis and basketball.

Matthew Shollar, a representative of Reception Hotels and Resorts, said work on a 160-room EVEN Hotel in the building should be complete in time for a soft opening in August. Reception paid $8 million to purchase the fifth and sixth floors and parts of the first floor.

“There have been some delays, but I'd say overall things are progressing across the building,” Shollar said. “Things are coming along in our area pretty well.”

Bob Bauder is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him 412-765-2312, bbauder@tribweb.com, or on Twitter @bobbauder.