Pittsburgh Planning Commission gave final approval on April 4 to Pitt’s planned arena and sports performance center in the bowl next to the Petersen Events Center.
The $240 million, 240,000-square-foot facility is part of Victory Heights — a multi-building project that was announced in January 2020 and has seen some delays because of the pandemic. The arena will be the new home for gymnastics, volleyball and wrestling. Sixteen of Pitt’s 19 varsity teams will train in the sports performance center.
Many of the plans for the building, which will be in two sections, have already been reported. A few new details were presented at the planning commission meeting:
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The Panther statue now located near the Terrace Street entrance of the Petersen Events Center will be moved to outside the entrance to the new arena.
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The pedestrian bridge that leads to a green roof on the arena and goes over the arena entrance plaza will be able to light up to signify significant events or Pitt victories within the building.
Pedestrians will enter the arena on the 300 level, which will be about midway up the side of the Petersen Events Center. The sports performance center will sit adjacent to Aliquippa Street, with the entrance on the 500 level.
“As part of the University’s ongoing efforts to make all our elevations of campus accessible, the Arena and Sports Performance Center has been developed with several points of entry at different elevations and clear paths through the building itself to make the hillside traversable,” Chuck Alcorn, University planner, told the commission.
Some work has already been taking place at the site, related to lines to the new chiller plant at the top of the hill and related utilities.
Construction on the new building is expected to begin in late spring with completion expected around November 2025. See Pitt’s full slide presentation to the planning commission here.
— Susan Jones
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