SAVE OUR CITY:COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Commercial Revitalization

CASE STUDIES

Denver Larimer Square

PittsburghEast Carson StreetFifth & Forbes Retail CorridorSouth Side Works

LARIMER SQUARE

THE DETAILS

Larimer Square is centered on Denver’s first city streetOnce housed Denver’s first bank, bookstore, photographer, and dry goods store; also site of city’s first post office and theaterRenovation of sixteen late-nineteenth century commercial buildingsFirst revitalization of Larimer Square in late ’60s and a second revitalization in ’90s

THE PROCESS

Led by urban visionary, Dana Crawford, sixteen Victorian

buildings on 1400 block of Larimer Street rescued from wrecking ball in 1965Larimer Square designated as city’s first historic district in 1973Historic Larimer Square became home to shops, nightclubs, and cafes, connected by courtyards and open spacesOutdated, low retail sales, diminishing # of visitors…led to 1990s transformation

THE RESULT

Design that emphasizes the historic setting

Changed Larimer Street’s status as a state highway to a city streetOn-street parking, which acts as buffer between pedestrians, diners, and trafficWider sidewalk on street’s sunny side allows for outdoor diningIn total, close to 200,000 sq ft of retail, restaurant, and office space

SOUTH SIDE

                     

             

THE DETAILS

South Side Local Development Company (SSLDC) formed in 1982150+ new businessesMore than 220 building facades restored100+ homes constructed

THE PROCESS

1983: East Carson Street listed on National Register of Historic Places1985: Establish South Side Planning Forum; also East Carson Street selected to be one of seven participants in National Trust’s Main Street Program1990: South Side Planning Forum adopts a Neighborhood Plan1993: East Carson Street Local Historic District established

THE RESULT

East Carson Street named a “Great American Main Street”

in 1996Today, home to a mix of creative businesses, cafes, restaurants, and retail shopsLess than 10% vacancy rate, down from 40% in 1982

FIFTH & FORBESRETAIL CORRIDOR

                                   

                      

THE DETAILS

Upgrade Downtown Pittsburgh’s central retail area, which is located in the Fifth and Forbes retail corridor

THE PROCESS

1998: Pittsburgh Downtown Plan completed1999: MarketPlace at Fifth & Forbes proposed by City of Pittsburgh2000: Downtown Planning Collaborative established; in November, Mayor Murphy announces MarketPlace plan null and void; also National Trust puts Fifth & Forbes on list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic PlacesMid-2003: Kravco & Downtown Works present new plan for Fifth and Forbes

THE PROCESS (continued)

Late 2003: Kravco Company merges with Simon Property Group2004: Pittsburgh Task Force is formed; Dranoff Properties expresses an interest in projectEarly 2005: Proposed Dranoff plan has a greater focus on housingMid-2005: Dranoff Properties indicates it is no longer interested in the project

THE RESULT

Momentum buildsin early 2006City, County, foundation community, and public support redevelopmentModeled to some degree after the Dranoff plan with residential development being the primary componentCurrent developers: Millcraft (Piatt Place); PNC; Point Park University, Cultural Trust; individual developers

SOUTH SIDE WORKS

                                                                                                                 

              

                                    

                                                      

                                    

                                                      

                                    

                                                      

THE DETAILS

South Side between Carson Street & the Monongahela River, extending from the Hot Metal Bridge123-acre former LTV Steel plantBrownfield remediationMixed use development: Office, medical, recreational, housing, retailTax increment financing package

THE PROCESS

1993: URA purchases site1994-96: URA works w/ SSLDC & others to develop community consensus1996: URA begins predevelopment activities1998: Ground broken on 1st building – a distribution facility for UPMC1999: Tax increment financing plan approved by local taxing bodies and construction begins on several buildings

THE PROCESS (continued)

2000-2001: Soffer Office & Retail Development gets underway and substantial infrastructure improvements are made2002: Phase 2 of Soffer Office & Retail Development begins, along w/ 3-story, 270-unit multi-family housing 2003-2004: Work continues on Soffer’s buildings, INS offices completed, and URA continues w/ infrastructure improvements

THE RESULT

First class riverfront development utilizing a mix of office, retail,

medical, recreational, and housing usesExpiration of TIF, $8 million in tax revenuesAt buildout, total private investment to

reach $250 million and provide up to 5400 jobs and over 400 housing

units