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Downtown borrowing plan held while job placement support and North Shore development move forward

City Council

Downtown’s Golden Triangle could see $50 million redevelopment investment by the end of the year.

Offices make up about 66% of Downtown real estate, an Urban Redevelopment Authority official said. On June 3, the authority asked council to approve a 40-year Downtown investment district. Future real estate taxes would repay loans for projects like turning vacant offices into housing. Still, only the city would pay the interest, and council held the plan a week.

Written by Amy Whipple

The city is looking to bring development to Downtown by using future real estate taxes to pay off loans for local improvements.

The URA asked council to approve the Downtown Pittsburgh Transit Revitalization Investment District (TRID) Project at the June 3 committee meeting.

If approved, the TRID would be in effect for 40 years. Council must give individual approval for each 20-year bond taken out for projects’ initial funding. Even though the TRID would also have to be approved by the county and school board, only the city will assume responsibility for paying interest on loans.

The area of the TRID includes the Central Business District (the Golden Triangle), a portion of the North Shore and the Strip District. The investment footprint is only the Golden Triangle. Typically, those footprints are the same.

Map of the proposed TRIP screenshotted from the proposed resolution.

Of the resulting money, 75% will be reinvested and 25% will be retained by the three taxing bodies (the city, the county and the school board). It will help fund projects such as transit infrastructure, small businesses and real estate development, including converting vacant office buildings into housing.

 Tom Link, the URA’s chief development officer, said currently offices comprise most of Downtown real estate at about 66%. Housing accounts for 20% and recreation the remainder. An ideal balance would be 45-40-15.

Construction projects that cost more than $5 million would qualify to be part of the program. Council does not have a say over which specific projects receive funding.

Link said that third-party financial analysis showed the potential of approximately $200 million in borrowing power over the TRID’s 40-year term. This would include an initial loan of $50 million. 

According to Catherine Murray, director of government affairs for the URA, that ask will likely happen before the end of 2026.

Council voted to hold the legislation for one week. According to Link, the school board will hear the proposal on Monday. It is not yet on the county council agenda.

City Council

Six neighborhood organizations selected to receive $210,000 in job placement support.

Neighborhood employment centers offer residents job placement help, educational referrals, and employment counseling. On June 3, council gave preliminary approval to $210,000 for the city's Neighborhood Employment Program. Six centers were selected, and they'll also work as a network for job fairs and other opportunities. The money can go toward needs such as staff salaries, computers, and software.

Written by Amy Whipple

Neighborhood agencies are on track to receive grants to help residents find jobs.

Council gave preliminary approval during the June 3 committee meeting to provide $210,000 for the 2025 Neighborhood Employment Program. The program includes neighborhood employment centers and the Learn and Earn Summer Youth Employment Program. The centers offer services such as job placement assistance, educational referrals, and employment counseling.

During the June 3 committee meeting, Chris Barnes, youth program supervisor, said the city recently selected six employment centers to receive reimbursements for improvement costs. This year’s recipients include Pittsburgh Community Services, the Kingsley Association, East End Common Ministries, Davis Consulting Solutions, the Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation, and the Squirrel Hill branch of the Carnegie Library.

Barnes said the organizations will operate as a network for events such as job fairs and employment opportunities. They will also be connected to the city’s talent acquisition coordinator for “streamlined city opportunities.”

 Each organization will receive $47,660 in federal grant money. The amount reflects the standard award of $35,000 as well as the disbursement of leftover funds from previous years. The money can go toward needs such as staff salaries, computers and software.

City Council

$750,000 approved to redesign Beaver Avenue for the Esplanade project.

Route 65, built in the 1960s, divides Manchester and Chateau and gutted the commercial core along Beaver Avenue. On June 3, council advanced $750,000 more for study and early design work on the avenue. Part of the Esplanade development's effort to reconnect the neighborhoods, the redesign would make the road two-way. The full $1 million is reimbursable with federal funds.

Written by Amy Whipple

City work around the Esplanade site may get a shot of money.

Council voted during the June 3 committee meeting to go forward with a $750,000 increase for the study and preliminary design phases of the Beaver Avenue Esplanade project. The additional money will bring the total cost of the work to $1 million, all of which is reimbursable with federal funds.

The Esplanade is a $740 million mixed-use 15-acre development project that is slated for land in Manchester that was formerly industrial. Plans include high-end dining and retail as well as mixed-income housing.

The project also aims to reconnect the Manchester and Chateau neighborhoods that are currently divided by Route 65. The highway, built in the 1960s, gutted the commercial core along Beaver Avenue. The new money will reconfigure the road into a two-way street with the possibility of widening it as well. 

The site preparation and design for the Esplanade is scheduled to be completed this year with the first phase of construction due to begin. Under the current timeline, phase one of the project is scheduled to open to the public in 2028 with phase two opening in 2029.