Apartment Boom Downtown

The Pennsylvanian - Downtown Pittsburgh

There are 101 new units planned at the former Saks site on Smithfield Street, 241 at the old Alcoa Building on Sixth Avenue, 100 at the John P. Robin Civic Building on Ross Street, and many more it seems. In all, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership estimates about 200 apartment units are under construction and another 750 are in the conceptual or planning stages in the Golden Triangle. That's on top of 2,262 existing units in Downtown, the lower Hill District, the Strip District and the North Shore -- or 412 more than four years ago.

PMC Property Group, the Philadelphia developer that two years ago did not own a single apartment Downtown, now hopes to have 1,000 in the next three to five years. It already has completed 158 units at 201 Stanwix St., the former Verizon Building, with another 33 at the Penn Garrison apartment complex on Penn Avenue.  Local developers Millcraft Industries and McKnight Realty Partners earlier this month proposed 101 apartment units at the site of the closed Saks department store as part of a parking garage and retail development.

All of this building raises a question: Just how many apartment units can Downtown support?

The Downtown Partnership estimates a 95 percent occupancy rate for apartments Downtown and at the fringes.  Carole Clifford, an associate broker for Stonebridge Realty, who follows the market closely, sees a "rental economy" Downtown and elsewhere in the region for the next five to 10 years. Factors driving that include the difficulty in getting mortgage money, the high down payments required for home buying and a transient population more comfortable with renting than buying.

PMC, which has built more than 3,000 apartments in its hometown of Philadelphia, also has gobbled up the Regional Enterprise Tower on Sixth Avenue, where it is planning 241 units; the adjacent James Reed Building, where an estimated 175 units will be built; and is negotiating with the city to buy the John P. Robin Civic Building on Ross Street, where another 100 units are on tap. It also has a bought a couple of smaller buildings Downtown with plans for more apartments. In all, PMC hopes eventually to have as many as 1,000 units Downtown.  They say the majority of those renting are coming from outside the city, many being young professionals.   At 201 Stanwix, rentals range from $1,200 a month for a one-bedroom unit to $1,950 for a two-bedroom unit. At the Penn Garrison, one bedrooms start at $1,135 a month.

Millcraft is finishing up the 218 units at River Vue, the former State Office Building, where it already has leased 68 percent and expects to be at 80 percent when construction ends next month. It has fully leased all 46 units at Market Square Place, the old G.C. Murphy store. Rents at River Vue run from about $1,050 for a one-bedroom to $5,500 a month for a large penthouse. Rents at Market Square Place go for $900 to $3,000 a month.  Millcraft said many of those who come to Pittsburgh from other cities are looking first to rent Downtown as opposed to the suburbs. About half of all those who rent from Millcraft come from outside the city limits.

But lack of affordable parking could be a deterrent to the apartment boom. The best option is to have integral parking on site, although that can be expensive. Second best is to have a public parking garage nearby. Century Building residents are able to park at the privately owned Theater Square garage. Millcraft has on-site parking for residents at River Vue and Market Square Place. On-site parking also will be available at the former Saks site. There's no integral parking currently available at 201 Stanwix or the Penn Garrison, although residents are able to park at nearby garages.

All things considered, there's a clear demand and need for more housing Downtown and at this point, units cannot be built fast enough to keep up with demand.



Metro Pittsburgh Real Estate
Millcraft Industries
Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership
PMC Property Group