Market Square shapes city's 'third renaissance'
Putting a shine on the Golden Triangle's core will help Pittsburgh's resurgent Downtown capitalize on billions of dollars in new construction and a growing population, developers and city officials said Tuesday.
A $5 million plan to overhaul Market Square is a key part of Pittsburgh's "third renaissance," which has attracted more than $4 billion in Downtown investment since 2006, Mayor Luke Ravenstahl told hundreds of corporate and foundation officials who filled a ballroom at Doubletree Hotel & Suites, Downtown.
"I believe that we are in the process of a third renaissance," Ravenstahl said during the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's annual meeting. "I'm proud to say it, and I think if we continue this positive momentum, we'll be able to claim this decade as Pittsburgh's third renaissance."
As proof, Ravenstahl cited increases in single-family home construction and the value of large-scale construction from 2006-08. He said large projects increased 116 percent, from $429 million in 2006 to $928.5 million in 2008, based on new building permits. Developers added 1,400 residential units to Downtown in the past two years, in part, because of a 10-year property-tax abatement program, the mayor said.
To signal its pledge to clean up Downtown, the city plans to break ground in August on nearly a year of renovations to Market Square. Once completed, the square will be pedestrian-friendly; automobiles no longer will be permitted to travel through the square, only around the perimeter.
The Port Authority removed bus routes from the square last year, and police have curtailed illegal drug activity and aggressive panhandling there.
Twenty-seven parking spaces will remain, but sidewalk space will be doubled to allow bars and eateries to provide more outdoor seating, said Michael Edwards, president of Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.
"The more places you have to sit in Market Square, the more people will come," said Lara Bruhn, co-owner of Prantl's Bakery, which in September joined with Mancini's Bread Co. to move into the former Jenny Lee Bakery on Market Street.
"Anything that improves the square and the image of Downtown as a place where you do something other than work is a good thing for Pittsburgh," Bruhn said.
David Feehan, CEO of the International Downtown Association, said the economic downturn and pressure to reduce commute times could persuade more people to move to the city's core.
During the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership's meeting, Feehan compared the Downtown economic progress to that of Cincinnati, Baltimore and Buffalo.
Feehan said Pittsburgh lags far behind Baltimore in the number of Downtown residents, but it has a larger, daily Downtown work force than all three cities with about 140,000 workers.
In a key indicator of Downtown health, the office-vacancy rate has dropped to 12 percent — lower than Cincinnati's 18 percent and 13 percent in Baltimore and Buffalo, he said.
David Bishoff, president of Columbus-based E.V. Bishoff Co., praised the investment in Market Square because it could inspire people to live Downtown.
"It says to me that the city is putting its stamp of approval on the Downtown area," Bishoff said. "I'm thrilled the city is doing this."
Half of the 60 units in The Carlyle, developed by Bishoff, have sold for $200,000 to $500,000 each.
Renovations at The Carlyle will be completed in April, Bishoff said, and the company is examining putting 100 to 150 apartments in The Commonwealth Building on Fourth Avenue and another nearby Bishoff-owned building.
Of the $5 million cost to renovate the square, Ravenstahl said $4.5 million is pledged.
The pledge money includes a $2 million request Ravenstahl made to Gov. Ed Rendell for state redevelopment money. The Heinz Endowments and Richard King Mellon Foundation each pledged $1 million, and Colcom Foundation promised $500,000.
Edwards, of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, acknowledged that a makeover of Market Square in the early 1990s failed to spur business in the retail-heavy Fifth and Forbes avenues corridor.
This time will be different, he predicted.
"The renovation of Market Square is set to stimulate private investment," Edwards said. "If you look at the investment going on around it, in my mind, it almost can't fail."
Additional Information:
On the Web
Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership Web site
