By SUSAN JONES
While one of the centerpieces of Pitt’s 2018 Campus Master Plan for Oakland — the Recreation and Wellness Center — is well on its way to reality, the University is getting ready to refresh the master plan, in the same way it’s taking another look at the Plan for Pitt.
The 30-year campus master plan was launched in 2018. “But of course, it was inked before COVID,” said David DeJong, senior vice chancellor for business and operations. “So it didn’t envision the sort of flex work and the reduction of back office space that we need — just as one example of an opportunity to refresh.”
When Joan Gabel became Pitt’s chancellor last year, DeJong said that in order to get her up to speed, “we basically quantified all of the things that we had done under the plan; talked about the environmental changes that had happened; identified areas for improvement, and then laid that all out for her.”
“And at the end of that, she said, ‘Well, OK, we’re updating a Plan for Pitt. I want to update the campus master,’ ” DeJong said.
They are in the final stages of forming a steering committee, which will engage with the internal University community and Pitt’s neighbors in Oakland. The process also will eventually involve updating the University’s Institutional Master Plan, which must be approved by the city.
“To me, it’s a great opportunity to remain engaged with the University community — help them know what’s going on and weigh in on where their priorities are. We’ll have a new provost by then, and updating our academic priorities will be critical there.”
He said they’re not pitching the old plan, which is very projected-oriented. “Where there are opportunities for improvement are in wayfinding, helping define our campus edges better and in viewing the campus with a sense of place.”
Pitt is partnering with Sasaki, which redesigned the Schenley Plaza in 2006, on a master signage plan that will help with those aspects, including how pedestrians interface with traffic.
DeJong spoke on several other construction and safety-related issues during a recent interview.
Construction site safety
With construction ongoing on two major Pitt projects — the rec center and the Arena and Sports Performance Center — and the new UPMC hospital, all within a couple blocks of each other, safety is a major concern.
“Our safety record has been exemplary,” DeJong said, “which in light of the difficulties of the hillside and three overlapping major projects on the hillside is really, really gratifying. It’s not an accident. It’s our number one priority for the campus community and on the sites.”
DeJong said Pitt construction officials meet with their UPMC counterparts weekly. “One of the critical things that (UPMC) has been great with is not letting heavy machinery cut through the campus, especially at Bigelow,” he said. “It’s happened a couple of times, but that’s just because the drivers didn’t get the memo, and then that’s a teachable moment.”
Pitt and UPMC construction safety planners never let their guard down, he said. “We’ve got folks whose full time job is construction safety for our campus. All of our construction partners, they have their own safety guys. Those are inside the sites and our guys go back and forth. We’re walking the sites every day. We’re walking through the campus every day. Our eyes are on that stuff.”
The interactive campus map now has a construction tab that users can select to highlight the projects and accompanying street or sidewalks closures.
He said the rec center and arena projects are on or under budget. The timetable for completion has been shifted a couple months later for both — March 2025 for the rec center and January 2026 for the arena and sports performance center. The UPMC bed tower at Presbyterian Hospital is expected to be completed by fall 2026.
Quality Inn site
The Pitt-owned location on the Boulevard of the Allies, along with a nearby area on Bates Street where several townhouses once stood, are still very much on the minds of University developers, DeJong said.
“Our goals remain that we want to densify housing in Oakland, we want a walk to work (location), and we want a grocery store,” he said.
Pitt has owned the property for several years and leased it to the hotel, which closed in 2020. The University said in 2021 it wanted to build non-student housing at the site for faculty, staff and community members.
It was supposed to be the first project of Walnut Capital’s Oakland Crossings development, which the company announced it was pausing in January 2023.
DeJong said a request for qualifications resulted in “eight great responses,” and now Pitt has gone back to those companies with a request for proposals.
Mazeroski Field
The field next to Mervis Hall has long been memorialized for its connection to Bill Mazeroski’s ninth-inning home run that won the World Series for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1960. The left-center and center field brick wall of Forbes Field still stand nearby.
Work is ongoing at the field as part of Pitt’s chilled water and stormwater system. A giant tank is being installed under Mazeroski Field that will capture rainwater and recycle it back into the chilled water system. Pitt will save money two ways, by not having to purchase as much water for the system and also reducing runoff, which the city now charges for.
But Pitt is not forgetting the baseball legacy of the area. There will be two double-post signs near the field. Some of the proposed signage includes a history of Mazeroski Field; a history of Forbes Field; and a profile of Bill Mazeroski. All signage will require city approval since the site is city property and located in a historic district.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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