With funding from a Transit Revitalization Investment District (TRID) grant,
Mt. Lebanon is completing a study of two development scenarios for sites surrounding its
Washington Rd. T station.
Funded by a state grant of $75,000 to the
Borough of Dormont and the Municipality of Mt. Lebanon, the study is being led by
Allegheny County Economic Development in cooperation with
Port Authority. The intergovernmental group is considering long-range plans for development surrounding light rail stations in the two neighborhoods.
“We’re taking advantage of an untapped asset we have in the T, and its proximity to our central business district. There’s a trend around the country of people moving back into urban centers,” says Mt. Lebanon’s commercial districts manager, Dan Woodske. “It calls for more high-density residential. It makes sense for people who work in Pittsburgh.”
Two development scenarios are under consideration. A low-density alternative would bring a 42-unit building, 11 townhouses and four lofts to Shady Dr. E. A high-density option calls for a 90-unit residential property above the T station, as well as nine levels of residential and 94,000 square feet of offices along Washington Rd.
“We’ve had preliminary interest from developers. The low-density plan gives us future options to see what the market will bear. We’ll make infrastructure improvements so we can sustain this type of development,” adds Mt. Lebanon planner, Keith McGill, who says the TRID project will be complemented by plans to bring an $11 million, 98-room hotel to the 600 block of Washington Rd. “The hotel is a constant. I don’t when the last hotel was built in the South Hills. It’ll be very fresh looking, in between Downtown and the airport.”
The third and final
public meeting of the South Hills TRID planning study takes place on March 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Mt. Lebanon's municipal building. Project consultant
DMJM Harris will discuss
its findings and outline next steps for funding sources and an RFP. To read Mt. Lebanon's TRID study, go
here.
Writer:
Jennifer BaronSources: Kevin Evanto and George Darakos, Allegheny County; Dan Woodske and Keith McGill, Mt. Lebanon
Image courtesy Mt. Lebanon Planning Department