Dick's Clothing & Sporting Goods has outgrown its headquarters building because of its continuing expansion and will move into a new $16 million building on land owned by Allegheny County near Pittsburgh International Airport by early 2004. The new headquarters will have room for up to 750 employees, and because of Dick's expansion there are plans for a second new building nearby that could accommodate 625 employees. Dick's expansion will allow the county to open an 88-acre site for development, with the retailer as its first tenant. The new headquarters will be on about 24 acres off Industry Drive, which will be extended to land between Aten Road and Route 60 (Southern Expressway) owned by the county, but managed by the Airport Authority. Industry Drive previously ended at Dick's current headquarters building; it will eventually connect up with the McClaren Interchange off Route 60. Plans are to construct a 150,000-square-foot building between the extended Industry Drive and Route 60, and provide an additional site for the second building of about 125,000 square feet, said Earl Hord, director of economic development for Allegheny County. Although the Redevelopment Authority of Allegheny County, which is part of the county's Department of Economic Development, will build the new headquarters building, no decision has been reached on whether it or Dick's would construct the second building, he said. Dick's currently occupies a 67,000-square-foot building at the end of Industry Drive adjacent to RIDC Park West in Findlay Township. That building, also built by the county, opened in 1998. He said a number of developers "have approached the county for an opportunity to develop along the southern portion of Route 60, which is the entrance into Pittsburgh International Airport." He declined to identify them. Dick's will lease the new headquarters from the county under a long-term lease, although negotiations are continuing concerning terms of the lease, Hord said. Traditionally, these leases are for 20 years with renewal options, he added. Financing for the $16 million headquarters will be through a combination of state funds and economic development funds, but with the bulk of the funding coming from a commercial lender, he added. Dick's expects to move about 600 employees from it current headquarters into the new building by the Spring of 2004, said Ed Stack, Dick's chief operating officer. Stack said his company will continue to open between 12 and 15 stores annually. It currently has more than 100 stores, mostly in the eastern United States. Once Dick's relocates into its new headquarters, its current building may not remain empty for long. Several prospective tenants have expressed an interest in the space. One of them is the Community College of Allegheny County which is considering relocating its Neville (Island) Technical Center and its Airport West Center in the Robinson Township Municipal Building to the building. Involved would be both classrooms and workshops, such as those for the automotive, electric, plumbing and other trades courses now at the Neville site, said Jack Chielli, CCAC spokesman. He said Dick's time schedule to relocate would be close to the expiration date of CCAC's lease in Robinson.

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