Category Archive: Threatened Historic Resources
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Grant may get Dormont residents in the pool
By Rick Wills
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, June 13, 2007The state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources is giving Dormont $250,000 to boost efforts to restore the borough’s 87-year old pool.
The borough must match the grant. If that happens, the amount raised will be $812,000, the bulk of the $1 million needed to fully upgrade the pool, said John Maggio, president of Friends of Dormont Pool and a Democratic candidate for borough council.“I am confident we can match the grant,” Maggio said. “We have been able to match other grants we have gotten.”
The state money will pay for rebuilding the pool tank and filtration system, deck paving and landscaping — most of the needed repairs.
“This is the biggest gift we have had so far, and a grant of that magnitude goes a long way toward the pool’s renovation and future,” said Dormont Mayor Thomas Lloyd.
The landmark art-deco pool, which opened in 1920, is believed to be the largest public pool in the state. Other than the addition of a community recreation room in 1996, the facility has undergone little renovation.“It’s important to our borough, and we certainly want to maintain it,” Lloyd said.
State Rep. Tom Petrone, who helped secure the state money, said the pool is one of the region’s most popular attractions.
“The pool is a real selling point for the borough. It’s really a recreational facility for the whole area, and the quality of life in the South Hills would be affected without it,” said Jon Castelli, research analyst for the House Urban Affairs Committee, which Petrone chairs.
In the past 18 months, plans for the pool and surrounding Dormont Park have generated controversy, sparking a grassroots effort to save the pool as some borough officials discussed closing it.
In January, many residents protested after learning that some council members met with private developers interested in commercially developing parts of the park in exchange for building facilities there.
Last month, three Dormont council members, including the council’s president, were ousted in the Democratic primary.
Rick Wills can be reached at rwills@tribweb.com or (724) 779-7123.
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Iron City’s new owners predict full-bodied future
By Joe Napsha
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, June 6, 2007The new owners of Pittsburgh Brewing Co. believe the brewery is well-positioned for growth under a bankruptcy reorganization plan approved Tuesday, and a beer industry expert agrees.
The ownership group, led by Connecticut investment manager John N. Milne, plans to take over the Lawrenceville brewery on July 7 and operate it under the name Iron City Brewing Co., which was the name of the brewery when it was formed in 1861.“Today marks a positive first step for Iron City Brewing Co.,” said Timothy Hickman, who will become the brewery’s president, in a statement yesterday.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge M. Bruce McCullough approved the reorganization plan, which will enable the beermaker to emerge from bankruptcy for the first time since Dec. 7, 2005.
“Pittsburgh Brewing was in bankruptcy for two main reasons — a weak balance sheet and an excessive cost structure. The reorganization plan addresses those issues and positions it well for future growth,” Hickman said.
A beer industry expert believes that with the right business plan, the new ownership can succeed.“They are just sitting on a gold mine,” because Pittsburgh Brewing’s brand equities “are just phenomenal,” said Daniel Bradford, publisher of All About Beer magazine in Durham, N.C.
Even so, though the new owners pledge to spend $4.1 million on a new kegging line and a new gas-fired boiler, and $500,000 on marketing the brands, having money to spend is not a guarantee of success, Bradford said.
“It is not just a question of (spending) money. You have to be strategic, and you have to execute well,” Bradford said.
Bradford believes the news ownership can “tap into some really strong trends right now.” One of those is what he calls the “retro trend,” the popularity of older beer brands like Iron City and IC Light, among adults in their 20s.
The new ownership group has an opportunity to create a specialty beer segment, a whole new brand they can roll out within the existing market, and add value to the business, Bradford said. Brewers such as High Falls Brewing Co. of Rochester, N.Y., which brews the Genesee family of beers, along with the Matt Brewing Co. of Utica, N.Y., and City Brewing Co. of La Crosse, Wisc., which bought the former Latrobe Brewing Co. plant, are among such success stories.
“It’s not just an extension of Iron City. It is thinking more along lines that reflect the indigenous culture of Western Pennsylvania,” Bradford said.
The new ownership group will take over the brewery from Joseph R. Piccirilli, who bought the business out bankruptcy in 1995. Milne’s group convinced creditors to accept a repayment plan that offers creditors no more than $5.03 million on claims totalling more than $26 million. There was a near-unanimous approval of the reorganization plan, brewery attorney Robert O. Lampl told the judge.
“I did not think we would be here today,” McCullough said as he approved the reorganization plan during a 15-minute hearing. However, he added a cautionary note, saying, “I don’t know how long it will last.”
The developments yesterday “give us optimism,” said George Sharkey, president of the negotiating board for the bottlers and brewers, members of the International Union of Electrical Workers-Communication Workers of America Locals 144b and 22b. “We’re hoping for great things. We hope the people of Pittsburgh buy the beer and support the business.”
Milne’s group projects that it can boost sales from $30.5 million in its first full year of operation to $37.4 million after three years.
The group will be able to take advantage of a 15 percent reduction in union workers’ wages and benefits under a contract that takes effect when new ownership is in place. Retirement costs were cut by terminating the union-sponsored pension plan, and medical insurance costs for employees were reduced by 20 percent.
Joe Napsha can be reached at jnapsha@tribweb.com or (412)-320-7993.
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New owners of Pittsburgh Brewing to take over July 7
By Joe Napsha
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, June 5, 2007Pittsburgh Brewing Co.’s 18-month journey through bankruptcy court ended today when a federal judge approved a reorganization plan that gives the brewery new owners and new source of money to modernize.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge M. Bruce McCullough today gave his stamp of approval to a plan that was approved last month in a nearly unanimous vote. All groups of creditors — those whose debt was secured by liens and those who debts were unsecured — approved the reorganization plan, said Robert O. Lampl, Pittsburgh Brewing’s attorney.
Commenting on the successful reorganization of the bankrupt brewery, McCullough said that when he took the case in December 2005, “I did not think we would be here today.” He added a cautionary note, saying, “I don’t know how long it will last.”
The new ownership group, led by Connecticut equity fund manager John N. Milne, will take over on July 7, not Thursday, as it had been proposed in the reorganization plan. The new owners need additional time to get permits from the Allegheny County Health Department and wrap up other details related to the bankruptcy, said Joel Walker, attorney for Pittsburgh Brewing Acquisition LLC., the company that will fund the brewery.
Milne’s group convinced creditors to accept a repayment plan that will offer creditors no more than $5.03 million, on claims that totalled more than $26 million. If the plan failed and the brewery were liquidated, the creditors might not receive any repayment, Pittsburgh Brewing said.
The 147-year-old Lawrenceville brewery, maker of Iron City, IC Light and Augustiner brands, will be operated under the name of Iron City Brewing Co., Walker said.The ownership group has promised to invest about $4.1million to modernize the brewery, including a new kegging line and boiler. In addition, increased marketing efforts will be launched to promote the brewery’s brands, which include Iron City, IC Light, Golden Lager and Augustiner, said Timothy Hickman, who will become the brewery’s president next month.
“It gives us optimism and we’re hoping for great things,” said George Sharkey, a negotiator for the local unions representing the brewery’s 150 bottlers and brewers.
Pittsburgh Brewing President Joseph Piccirilli, who bought the brewery in bankruptcy court in 1995 for $29.4 million, did not attend today’s hearing and declined a request for a comment. Piccirilli will serve as a consultant for three months after the sale, but will not play a long-term role in the management of the brewery, according to the court-approved plan.
The brewery filed for bankruptcy on Dec. 7, 2005, after the Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority threatened to shutoff its water over an estimated $2.5 million in unpaid water and sewage bills. Operating under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code, the brewery was able to withhold paying debts prior to its bankruptcy filing, while it continuing to operate.
But, even after being relieved of those old debts, the brewery has struggled. Production was slowed last month because the brewery did not have sufficient funds to pay for the raw materials to make beer. Brewery attorney Robert O. Lampl said suppliers wanted to be paid in cash for their products.
The brewery’s reorganization plan is based on receiving public funding from a combination of state, Allegheny County, City of Pittsburgh . The new owners say they want $250,000 grant and low-interest loans of $500,000 in low-interest loans from government sources within the first two years of its operation.
Milne’s group says that new efforts in marketing can boost sales of the brewery’s Iron City, IC Light and Augustiner brands to $30.5 million in its first full year of operation. The brewery’s revenues were $27 million through the first 10 months of 2005.
A beer industry expert believes a new management can succeed in reviving Pittsburgh Brewing.
“The brand equities on those beers (Iron City and IC Light) are just phenomenal. They can tap into some really strong trends right now ,” said Daniel Bradford, publisher of All About Beer magazine in Durham, N.C.
One of those trends is what Bradford calls the “retro trend” — the popularity of older beer brands among young adults in their 20s. “Retro is cool.”
Pittsburgh Brewing’s new owners also can tap into the “support your local brewery” movement among beer drinkers, Bradford said.
The new ownership group also has an opportunity to create a specialty beer segment, a whole new brand they can roll out within their existing market, and add value to the business, Bradford said. Brewers such as High Falls Brewing Co. of Rochester, N.Y., which brews the Genesee family of beers, along with the Matt Brewing Co. of Utica, N.Y., and City Brewing Co. of La Crosse, Wisc., which bought the former Latrobe Brewing Co. plant, are among such success stories.
“It’s not just an extension of Iron City. It is thinking more along lines that reflect the indigenous culture of Western Pennsylvania,” Bradford said.
“It is not just a question of (spending) money. You have to be strategic and you have to execute it well,” Bradford said.
“They need to be very judicious. They are just sitting on a gold mine,” Bradford said.
Joe Napsha can be reached at jnapsha@tribweb.com or (412)-320-7993.
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Meeting airs arena concerns
By Kevin Crowe
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, June 5, 2007The displacement of families and businesses caused by the construction of the Civic Arena in the late-1950s was on the minds of some residents who attended a meeting Monday about the design and construction of the Penguins’ new arena.
Lois Cain, 69, grew up in the Hill District and lived there during the construction of what now is the Mellon Arena. She watched some of her neighbors and friends get forced out of the Hill. There were public input meetings at that time, she said, but the recommendations made by the community quickly were forgotten.“I lived through this equation,” Cain told about 300 people who attended the meeting at the arena. “The Penguins have never been a friend of the Hill District.”
Cain’s comments underscored the feeling of distrust in many of the comments and questions fielded by the meeting’s hosts, representatives from the Penguins, the city Planning Department, the Sports & Exhibition Authority and Urban Design Associates, the development firm hired by the Penguins to help run the meetings, and members of organizations based in the Hill District.
The meeting was held to organize focus groups with the goal of getting input from the public about the construction and design of a $290 million arena Uptown, said host Don Carter, of Urban Design Associates.
It was the first step in a public participation process the arena project must follow to gain approval from the City Planning Commission.In response to the comments questioning the process by which public input would be handled, City Councilwoman Tonya Payne said she wanted city planners to forward minutes from the focus group meetings to her office.
“If that information can get presented to my office, I’ll make sure it gets to the community,” she said, drawing applause.
Carter said that while he was happy so many people attended last night’s meeting, the time to discuss specifics of the new arena will be during the focus group meetings. They will be held as soon as a traffic study of the area surrounding the proposed arena is completed, and the times, dates and locations will be available on the city’s Web site, he said.
Carl Redwood, a spokesman for the One Hill Community Benefit Agreement, said the meetings should be about “more than just bricks and mortar.”
Redwood led about 50 people from Freedom Corner at Crawford Street and Centre Avenue to the arena for the meeting. They carried signs that read “One Hill,” and chanted “One Hill, One Voice.”
“We want to ensure that the community surrounding this development will see tangible benefits,” he said.
People who did not attend the kick-off meeting can sign up for the focus groups by contacting the Department of City Planning, the Hill District Consensus Group or the Hill Community Development Corp.
The six focus groups are: residents; churches and social organizations; community organizations; city and public agencies; business and land owners and developers; and historic preservation groups.
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Storm Damaged Allegheny Library Repaired
Today, the granite finial of the historic Allegheny Library was returned to its commanding position atop the clock tower after months of restoration work.The Allegheny Library, located next to the Children’s museum in Central Allegheny City, was struck by lighting last summer which caused extensive damage to the finial, causing it to break into several large pieces, some of which landed inside the building and some on the lawn outside. No one was injured.
The library itself is relocating to a new building soon to be erected on Federal Street just north of North Avenue. Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF), working with the Children’s Museum and neighborhood North Side organizations, the Carnegie Library system, and the City, has commissioned studies by the architectural firm of Landmarks Design Associates for the possible adaptive use of the building.
The Allegheny Carnegie Library was the first Carnegie Library commissioned, but it opened later than the one at Braddock. It was designed by Smith, Meyer & Pelz in 1888-1889 In the 1970s, the City announced the demolition of the Library, but PHLF spearheaded a petition drive, accumulating 7,000 signatures.After that, the interior suffered unfortunate modernization, but the exterior is still in excellent condition. An interesting feature of the building is the slight lightening of color in the stone rising in the sections of the tower. Landmarks staff worked with Cost Corporation to try to achieve the appropriate coloration of the granite for
the finial.
The building is on the National Register of Historic Places, is a City designated landmark, and has PHLF plaque. -
New life proposed for former South Hills High School
By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, April 19, 2007The former South Hills High School soon could be given new life after sitting dormant for 20 years in the heart of a Mt. Washington residential neighborhood.
“It’s been a white elephant for a long time,” said Mt. Washington resident Virginia Gates, a 1959 graduate of the school, which was built in 1916 and closed in 1986. “You can see from the sheer size of it what an impact its (revival) is going to have on the whole community.”
North Shore-based developer a.m. Rodriguez Associates Inc. has prepared a $20 million redevelopment plan to build 84 one- and two-bedroom apartments and 25 two-bedroom, market-rate rental lofts in the building.
The apartments would be marketed to senior citizens. The first floor could have more than 10,000 square feet of commercial space and a health center.
Room for off-street parking should be plentiful once the developer removes three sections of the mammoth building to bring its size to 155,000 square feet.
“In terms of why it’s important to bring this building back, it’s a huge building that at one time was a landmark and center of activity for that community,” said Tom Link, manager of the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s business development center. The URA has targeted the school for redevelopment.
Gates, chairwoman of the South Hills High School committee, believes the renovation project will boost property values around the site and drive out drug dealers and vandals.
Link and Gates said many developers have tried over the past 20 years to devise ways to renovate the building, but none has come as far as Rodriguez Associates.
Victor Rodriguez said his company has applied for $12 million in tax credits from the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency. If those credits come through in September, an estimated 15 months of construction could begin as soon as June 2008.
“There’s a great market for this up there, especially for seniors,” he said.
Ethan Raup, executive director of the Mt. Washington Community Development Corp., credited Gates and the URA for helping to persuade the building’s owner — Pittsburgh Public Schools — to make the property more enticing to developers by removing asbestos, adding a new roof and doing other renovations.
“To me, it’s going from having an enormous dead space in the middle of a residential community to injecting it with new life,” Raup said.
Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or (412) 765-2312.
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Repairs on North Side library branch expected by early summer
By Bill Zlatos
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, April 10, 2007The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh expects to finish repairing damage done by a lightning bolt at the former Allegheny branch by early this summer.
“In the next few weeks, they’ll place the actual capstone upon the clock tower,” said library spokeswoman Suzanne Thinnes.Lightning struck the 117-year-old, Romanesque-style library in the North Side’s Allegheny Square on April 7, 2006. It has been closed since, and plans call for it to no longer be used as a library.
A piece of granite weighing several hundred pounds fell into the lecture hall on the second floor, and a one-ton chunk destroyed the building’s heating and cooling system and damaged waterlines.
The collapse did not injure anyone or damage the library’s collection.
The repairs will cost an estimated $2 million. Insurance will cover most of that, Thinnes said.
North Side-based Mascaro Construction is doing the work. “We chose them because they have expertise in repairing historical buildings,” she said.
The building was named a historic landmark by Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation in 1970 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places four years later.
“The work that’s going on is helping its historical fabric, not hurting it,” assured foundation President Arthur P. Ziegler Jr.
Carnegie Library is planning a new building along Federal Street, and will not be using the Allegheny branch building after the repairs are done.
The New Hazlett Theater and a city senior citizen center occupy the building. Landmark Design Associates, a South Side firm, is studying possible uses for the space once used by the library.
Ziegler said one option is office space, possibly for a nonprofit group.
The library hopes to break ground on the Federal Street building this fall, Thinnes said.
Bill Zlatos can be reached at bzlatos@tribweb.com or (412) 320-7828.
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Teacher wants Point View’s history documented
Brad Pedersen
Staff Writer, South Hills Record
Trib-Total Media
Thursday, April 5, 2007The Point View Hotel is all but history, though Sarah Martin, a teacher from the city’s Knoxville neighborhood, hopes to help document what happened in the building before it is torn down.
“Saving the Point View is moot,” said Martin. “It’s going to be torn down and there’s not much chance of saving the physical facility. What I’d like to do is document it as carefully and well as possible before it is demolished.”
A three-story medical facility will be built at 3720 Brownsville Road, where the Point View stands, for now. The projected plan is to tear the Point View down to build the facility for Brentwood Medical Group.
The medical group was recently granted a zoning variance, allowing them to build a three-story facility in the area zoned for two-story structures. According to Ralph Costa, Brentwood building inspector, without the variance, Brentwood Medical Group would have had to build an expanded two-story building, which they feared would impact parking space around the facility.
Martin has been taking groups of students throughout the city on hikes of documented Underground Railroad routes for the past 15 years. She has been coming to Brentwood for the past eight years.
According to Martin, Brentwood, the Hill District, North Side and Mount Washington have the most credible evidence of Underground Railroad activity.
“Those four areas of the city I’ve done for a long time,” said Martin. “I’m very much interested in hiking and walking and children and history, so it all comes together for me.”
There are no specifics on when the Point View was built, although most estimate it was built during or before the 1820s along the Brownsville Road carriage route. When it was constructed, it was a part of Baldwin Township, which was broken into several villages, including Point View. Brentwood became a borough in 1915.
The hotel boasted eight modest rooms and the most famous was referred to as the President’s Room. Prior to their presidencies, Andrew Jackson, James Buchanan and Zachary Taylor stayed in the room. It is also one of few structures standing that served as an Underground Railroad “station” in Allegheny County, along with the Bingham House in Chatham Village and the Morning Glory Inn, Southside.
“I’m going to hold their feet to the fire,” said Martin.
Martin has contacted the Brentwood Medical Group and feels that they are willing to work with her efforts in documenting the site, whether it be allowing her to take photographs of the inside or displaying a plaque.
According to Martin, Brentwood Medical Group representatives told her that they are looking into allowing her access to the building. The group has not given Martin a definite answer, though she is optimistic about the project.
Along with photographs and a plaque, Martin is also hoping to bring an archaeologist to the Point View, either before or during its demolition. She hopes to verify the age of the columns in the basement.
“It is a part of our history that needs to be reconciled and shared,” said Martin. “History usually just talks about the institution and what happened. All the small people along the way did things, it gives us perspective and balance and helps us to understand that not everybody is on the same issue and page.
“It’s an opportunity to get to know and revisit that, to know that there were people there to help runaway slaves and they were not all in favor of institutional slavery. It helps us see both sides of people and help us understand how we got through that period, even prior to the civil war.”
Since the time of the presidential stays and Underground Railroad, the building has gone through several updates, including the addition of the kitchen and bar area, aluminum siding and many other changes. These changes have prevented the Point View from achieving a historical landmark designation. A high cost to restore the Point View to its original state has kept previous owners from earning the designation.
