{"id":7327,"date":"2016-12-16T06:03:36","date_gmt":"2016-12-16T11:03:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/?page_id=7327"},"modified":"2016-12-16T11:34:52","modified_gmt":"2016-12-16T16:34:52","slug":"produce-terminal-redevelopment-brings-changes-to-pittsburghs-strip-district","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/projects\/produce-terminal-redevelopment-brings-changes-to-pittsburghs-strip-district\/","title":{"rendered":"Produce Terminal redevelopment brings changes to Pittsburgh&#8217;s Strip District"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><em>Posted December 15, 2016<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p>By MADISON BROWN<\/p>\n<p>PITTSBURGH &#8212; A couple walks down the street together holding cups of coffee, snowflakes flutter to the ground, and a young woman crosses the street, her energetic golden retriever leading the way. A cluster of people huddles in the cramped entry way of Pamela\u2019s P&amp;G Diner, anxiously awaiting a table and some of the famous hotcakes.<\/p>\n<p>The visitors have come to the Pittsburgh Strip District, an eclectic combination of shops, restaurants, clothing and food stands, international cuisine, family-owned small businesses and more located along the Allegheny River just east of the city\u2019s downtown.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 584px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-7327-1\" width=\"584\" height=\"329\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/mp4\" src=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Strip-DistrictSM.mp4?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Strip-DistrictSM.mp4\">http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/Strip-DistrictSM.mp4<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Gabriel Goldman, a resident of Polish Hill, a neighborhood bordering the Strip District, said the Strip is \u201cone of the only places to go to for a really dense, multicultural shopping experience.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s one of the primary tourist attractions in the city,\u201d Mark Belko, a <em>Pittsburgh Post-Gazette<\/em> real estate reporter, said.<\/p>\n<p>People come to the Strip District for a variety of reasons and they have been coming for more than a century. With this long history, many changes have occurred in the Strip over the years.<\/p>\n<p>Plans to redevelop the long-standing produce terminal are the latest changes the Strip District is facing. The Pennsylvania Railroad used to service the produce terminal. The 1,533 feet-long building opened in 1929 as a marketplace for vendors to sell fresh produce. Now, very few vendors sell anything in the produce terminal, but Chicago developer Dan McCaffery, CEO of McCaffery Interests, wants to change that.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7323\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7323\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-7323\" src=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/PamelasDiner-450x300.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-7323\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">People file into Pamela\u2019s P&amp;G Diner to put their names in for a table. On a busy day at Pamela\u2019s, guests may wait for more than one hour before a table becomes available (Photo by Madison Brown).<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\u201cThe Produce Terminal redevelopment plans propose a mix of residential, retail and office with supportive parking on the riverside,\u201d said Pam Austin, project manager for McCaffery Interests for the redevelopment of the produce terminal.<\/p>\n<p>The proposal also includes plans to make the produce terminal and the area around it more accessible for people.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe want to put in sidewalks and streets and pedestrian access so, hopefully, the terminal will be better used than it ever has been,\u201d said Tim McNulty, spokesperson for Pittsburgh mayor William Peduto.<\/p>\n<p>Austin said that the plan is to create three pedestrian passages at 17<sup>th<\/sup>, 18<sup>th<\/sup> and 20<sup>th<\/sup> streets \u201cto restore connectivity.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7322\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7322\" class=\"wp-image-7322 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal-300x200.jpg\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ProduceTerminal-450x300.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-7322\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Produce Terminal opened in 1929 for people to sell fruits and vegetables wholesale. Now, the historic building will face redevelopment with retail businesses, offices and apartment buildings (Photo by Madison Brown).<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The redevelopment is estimated to cost $66 million. The project is a public-private partnership with proposed funds coming from private equity and debt, grants, historic tax credits, and other sources, but total funding has not yet been determined.<\/p>\n<p>The drastic change to the historic community raises questions of how it will affect the Strip District\u2019s character.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think it\u2019s really important to do no harm to the heart of the Strip District,\u201d said Pittsburgh city councilwoman Deborah Gross.<\/p>\n<p>The Strip District\u2019s heart is made up of the businesses and people who thrive there.<\/p>\n<p>Toni Haggerty, manager of Primanti Brothers, a native Pittsburgh chain restaurant that originated in the Strip District, has high expectations for the redevelopment of the produce terminal.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cReal big things are coming,\u201d said Haggerty. \u201cI think it\u2019s going to be good for the business and bring in more people from out of town. It\u2019s going to be beautiful,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Walter McCaune, assistant manager of The Pittsburgh Popcorn Company, agrees that the redevelopment could generate more foot traffic, but still has some concerns.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI feel like obviously it\u2019s going to bring people with income into the city and a lot more customers,\u201d McCaune said, \u201cbut, at the same time, it\u2019s also going to detract from what the Strip is, which is small, family-owned businesses. It might turn into something different.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7321\" style=\"width: 310px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-7321\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-7321\" src=\"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/ToniHaggarty-450x300.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-7321\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Toni Haggerty is the manager of Primanti Brothers in the Strip District. Haggerty is originally from Italy and has been working for Primanti Brothers for 42 years (Photo by Madison Brown).<\/p><\/div>\n<p>John Bubin, manager of Pamela\u2019s P&amp;G Diner, has similar thoughts, but does not think the redevelopment will have a negative effect, just a different one. \u201cMost businesses are small and privately owned, so more retail will definitely change the character,\u201d Bubin said.<\/p>\n<p>Goldman thinks Pittsburgh is unique because of the \u201cgritty feel\u201d the city has to it. The introduction of more retail stores that will come with the redevelopment could affect that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs long as they don\u2019t try to make it super commercial and as long as they preserve some history, I think it will go well,\u201d Goldman said.<\/p>\n<p>The redevelopment proposal has a lot of eyes on it to make sure the Pittsburgh Strip District keeps its historic attributes and charm. For instance, an earlier plan to demolish part of the produce terminal was voted down.<\/p>\n<p>Councilwoman Gross said she is pushing for a \u201c$2 million revolving loan fund to preserve the history.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While the final contract for redevelopment with McCaffery Interests is not yet finalized, \u201cplans are still underway,\u201d McNulty said.<\/p>\n<p>It will take some time before people see the effects of the redevelopment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe project is slated to be open starting in 2018,\u201d Austin said.<\/p>\n<p>Redevelopment of the produce terminal will change the historic Strip District in many aspects.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the Strip is changing for the better,\u201d McNulty said, \u201cbut we want to make sure it doesn\u2019t lose its character.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Posted December 15, 2016 By MADISON BROWN PITTSBURGH &#8212; A couple walks down the street together holding cups of coffee, snowflakes flutter to the ground, and a young woman crosses the street, her energetic golden retriever leading the way. A &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/projects\/produce-terminal-redevelopment-brings-changes-to-pittsburghs-strip-district\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":3284,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"sidebar-page.php","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7327","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7327","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7327"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7334,"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/7327\/revisions\/7334"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3284"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reporting\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}