Pittsburgh to gain 2 entertainment projects worth more than $800M

Pittsburgh residents will soon have expanded entertainment options with both a $740 million mixed-use development and a Live Nation music venue in the works.

The Steel City’s planning commission approved a housing, entertainment and retail project — complete with a giant Ferris wheel — on the city’s North Side on Nov. 12, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Helmed by Canonsburg, Pennsylvania-based real estate firm Piatt Cos., the Esplanade will redevelop nearly 15 acres of post-industrial land on the banks of the Ohio River, according to the firm’s website.

Altogether, the development is projected to cost $740 million, according to Molly Onafur, director of public affairs for Piatt Cos. The cost is based on an analysis by the Pennsylvania Economy League of Greater Pittsburgh, an affiliate of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development.

The project will encompass more than 1.7 million square feet and more than 8 acres of public and open space. A marquee part of the development is the 164-foot-tall Ferris wheel that will overlook the development, alongside the Current, a three-story, 64,256-square-foot space that will include a food emporium, four-seasons garden and restaurants, according to the Post-Gazette.

Also planned for the development are a 225-room hotel with ballroom and meeting space; 300 apartments; 105 condominium units; space for food and retail; and a river safety facility for local, state and national agencies.

Construction will occur in two phases. Piatt plans to start construction on the first phase in 2025, according to the information page.

Piatt officials said that once the firm receives approvals from the city, site work will take 10 to 12 months, after which construction can begin, according to the Post-Gazette. Piatt will also have two years after it closes on land it will buy from the Urban Development Authority of Pittsburgh, an economic enterprise focused on developing the city, to start the first buildings. Close is expected by March 31.

New music venue

In addition to the Esplanade development, work on a 98,000-square-foot Live Nation concert hall began in October, according to local news outlet WTRF-7. The project will be located one block away from another downtown venue — PPG Paints Arena, home of the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins — and will cost $64 million, according to WESA, Pittsburgh’s NPR affiliate.

The venue is expected to hold up to 4,500 people, according to WTRF. A separate plan to build a parking garage is also underway, but there’s no definite timetable for its construction.

Once complete, the concert hall will be a place for events that would otherwise bypass the city on their way to entertainment meccas like New York City, Chicago or Philadelphia, per the outlet.