U.S. Steel, which has operated in Pittsburgh for more than 100 years, plans to stay at least 18 more.
The giant steelmaker—which sold its 64-story U.S. Steel Tower headquarters in April 2011 and a year later announced it would move out of that building—has inked a deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins hockey franchise to build a five-story, 268,000-sf office building on the old Civic Arena site downtown, which the Penguins own.
A subsidiary of the Penguins and the team’s developer, St. Louis-based Clayco, will jointly own the new building, for which construction is scheduled to begin next summer and be completed by October 2017, around the time that U.S. Steel’s five-year lease on 450,000 sf in the U.S. Steel Tower expires. The projected cost of the new building was not disclosed.
U.S. Steel plans to move 800 employees from that tower and offices at Penn Liberty Plaza into 250,000 sf of the new building, which it will lease for at least 18 years, with an option to extend its lease beyond that. The rest of the space will be used for retail stores. The 2.25-acre site will include a museum highlighting Pittsburgh’s and U.S. Steel’s role in the worldwide steel industry.
The company’s decision to remain in Pittsburgh put an end to more than two years of speculation about where it might be headed. Indiana and Illinois reportedly were wooing U.S. Steel to relocate. U.S. Steel had also looked at several other buildings in different areas in and around Pittsburgh.
Site plan for U.S. Steel's new HQ, which will be located across from the Consol Energy Center, home of the Penguins NHL hockey team.
Several local news reports stated that it was Penguins’ CEO David Morehouse who convinced U.S. Steel’s CEO Mario Longhi to keep the company in Pittsburgh. The two chief executives met during a September 2013 barbecue at the home of the Penguins’ legendary player and co-owner Mario Lemieux. At that meeting, Morehouse impressed on Longhi that U.S. Steel was the “foundation upon which this city was built.”
Indeed, Pittsburgh’s Mayor Bill Perduto was on record saying “I didn’t want to be the Pittsburgh mayor to lose U.S. Steel.” Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald lobbied federal environmental, transportation, and trade officials on U.S. Steel’s behalf. And Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett last month announced nearly $31 million in state grants to rehab three U.S. Steel plants in the state.
By agreeing to move into new digs, U.S. Steel would be the first corporate anchor tenant for a 28-acre Uptown site next to Consol Energy Center, where $440 million in development is planned, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and other news reports. That development would include retail, housing, and office space, and would be partially funded by more than $30 million in state grants and local tax-increment incentives, which would direct some of the development’s revenue to job training and other programs.
U.S. Steel has agreed to take only half of its potential abatements, with the rest of the incentives going to fund other parts of the Hill District, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Related Stories
Engineers | Sep 15, 2023
NIST investigation of Champlain Towers South collapse indicates no sinkhole
Investigators from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) say they have found no evidence of underground voids on the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse, according to a new NIST report. The team of investigators have studied the site’s subsurface conditions to determine if sinkholes or excessive settling of the pile foundations might have caused the collapse.
Office Buildings | Sep 14, 2023
New York office revamp by Kohn Pedersen Fox features new façade raising occupant comfort, reducing energy use
The modernization of a mid-century Midtown Manhattan office tower features a new façade intended to improve occupant comfort and reduce energy consumption. The building, at 666 Fifth Avenue, was originally designed by Carson & Lundin. First opened in November 1957 when it was considered cutting-edge, the original façade of the 500-foot-tall modernist skyscraper was highly inefficient by today’s energy efficiency standards.
Healthcare Facilities | Sep 13, 2023
Florida’s first freestanding academic medical behavioral health hospital breaks ground in Tampa Bay
Construction kicked off recently on TGH Behavioral Health Hospital, Florida’s first freestanding academic medical behavioral health hospital. The joint venture partnership between Tampa General (a 1,040-bed facility) and Lifepoint Behavioral Health will provide a full range of inpatient and outpatient care in specialized units for pediatrics, adolescents, adults, and geriatrics, and fills a glaring medical need in the area.
Adaptive Reuse | Sep 13, 2023
Houston's first innovation district is established using adaptive reuse
Gensler's Vince Flickinger shares the firm's adaptive reuse of a Houston, Texas, department store-turned innovation hub.
Giants 400 | Sep 12, 2023
Top 75 Retail Sector Engineering and Engineering Architecture (EA) Firms for 2023
Kimley-Horn, Henderson Engineers, Jacobs, and EXP head BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest retail building engineering and engineering/architecture (EA) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors revenue for all retail buildings work, including big box stores, cineplexes, entertainment centers, malls, restaurants, strip centers, and theme parks.
Giants 400 | Sep 11, 2023
Top 140 Retail Sector Architecture and Architecture Engineering (AE) Firms for 2023
Gensler, Arcadis, Core States Group, WD Partners, and NORR top BD+C's ranking of the nation's largest retail sector architecture and architecture engineering (AE) firms for 2023, as reported in the 2023 Giants 400 Report. Note: This ranking factors revenue for all retail buildings work, including big box stores, cineplexes, entertainment centers, malls, restaurants, strip centers, and theme parks.
Resiliency | Sep 11, 2023
FEMA names first communities for targeted assistance on hazards resilience
FEMA recently unveiled the initial designation of 483 census tracts that will be eligible for increased federal support to boost resilience to natural hazards and extreme weather. The action was the result of bipartisan legislation, the Community Disaster Resilience Zones Act of 2022. The law aims to help localities most at risk from the impacts of climate change to build resilience to natural hazards.
MFPRO+ Research | Sep 11, 2023
Conversions of multifamily dwellings to ‘mansions’ leading to dwindling affordable stock
Small multifamily homes have historically provided inexpensive housing for renters and buyers, but developers have converted many of them in recent decades into larger, single-family units. This has worsened the affordable housing crisis, say researchers.
Engineers | Sep 8, 2023
Secrets of a structural engineer
Walter P Moore's Scott Martin, PE, LEED AP, DBIA, offers tips and takeaways for young—and veteran—structural engineers in the AEC industry.
Healthcare Facilities | Sep 8, 2023
Modern healthcare interiors: Healing and care from the outside in
CO Architects shares design tips for healthcare interiors, from front desk to patient rooms.
