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A Civic Renewal: A Proposal for the Reuse of the Pittsburgh Civic Arena

A Civic Renewal

A Proposal for the Reuse of the Civic Arena

Cover of 20 page advocacy booklet (Actual size)•


“. . . Cultural or civic centers, can probably in a few cases

employ ground replanning tactics to reweave them back into

the city fabric. The most prominent cases are centers located

on the edges of downtowns. . . . One side of Pittsburgh’s new

civic center, at least, might be rewoven into the downtown,

from which it is now buffered.” –Jane Jacobs, The Death and

Life of Great American Cities, 1962

The history of urban renewal and modernist design in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is a story of success and failure. Pittsburgh’s post-war environmental reforms are well known, as are many of the groundbreaking visions of patrons and designers, such as Edgar Kaufmann (Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater), Henry Heinz (Gordon Bunshaft’s Portal Bridge), and Richard King Mellon (Mies van der Rohe’s Mellon Hall).

Pittsburgh is challenged with reconstructing once-innovative attempts to redesign large areas of the city. These sudden, top-down, clean sweeps of the past mostly failed, leaving economic decline in neighborhoods like East Liberty and Allegheny Center. Today we are making important decisions to erase rather than repair the palimsest (revealed layers of history) that give cities charcater, memory and meaning. Pittsburgh’s Lower Hill was extensively destroyed for construction of the Civic Arena, an unprecedented moveable modernist dome. The project, conceived by Kaufmann and funded as an inventive public-private partnership, tragically evicted 8,000 people from their homes.

Four decades later, the community has not recovered and many see the Arena as inflammatory or obsolete. While significant in design, the 1961 Civic Arena (architects Mitchell & Ritchey with structural engineers Ammann & Whitney) is a symbol to many in the Hill of the great injustice of urban renewal. To over 1500 dislocated families (80 percent black), the Arena destroyed the community bonds that most planners recognize as indicators of well-being and long-term sustainability.

As a new, state-subsidized arena is constructed adjacent to the current Arena, conventional wisdom and political expediency assumes reconstruction of the lost street grid between the Hill and Downtown. A key part of this plan in the minds of the Penguins and political leadership is the demolition of the Civic Arena as a “renewal of urban renewal.”

This thinking reflects trends by many cities hoping to “undo” the damage of urban renewal by promoting current New Urbanist planning over past modernist design, to the point that the latter is considered unworthy of preservation or even reuse.

To local officials, urban design consultants and the prime tenant of the Civic Arena—the NHL’s Penguins—the demolition is a done deal. But a small group of preservation and modern design advocates has not given up on the building—or the community.

The author has proposed that renewal of physical (and ultimately social) connections across acres of parking around Mellon Arena—as it is now known—can be accomplished more successfully through reuse of the Arena shell as a civic space that could anchor the community, much like a traditional town square. One of many models is Lucca, Italy’s ancient Roman coliseum—now a model urban space surrounded by housing and shops.

Many civic design advocates hope there can eventually be a comprehensive master plan for the entire Hill where the community that was so damaged over forty years ago can openly evaluate the merits of reusing the Arena. The challenge parallels debates around the world, where idealistic mid-century plans for renewing cities are becoming historic in their own right.

The complexities and contradictions of twenty-first century design and preservation are not easily navigated in the rich social context of the Hill. One of its greatest residents, playwright August Wilson, may point the way: “My plays insist that we should not forget or toss away our history.” While he was referring to his roots in the community and the culture he knew, his words challenge us to ask questions about the many histories and memories that exist—some good, some bad.

The question for buildings like the Arena is, do we delete it from our memories or transform it? This proposal is intended provoke thought and debate during the planning process yet to come. It is also intended to demonstrate that architects are in a unique position to call attention to civic design issues through “visual advocacy” and grass roots advocacy planning.

THE PITTSBURGH CIVIC ARENA: MEMORY AND RENEWAL


Renewal of Urban Renewal

Pittsburgh is undertaking initiatives in many of its groundbreaking urban renewal projects from the mid twentieth century. This proposal along with the renewal of Point State Park and the Proposed Charm Bracelet for “Alleghney City” all serve to correct the failures and build on the successes.


Sketchbook Excerpts

These early sketches show the idea of connecting and surrounding the arena with new development. Imagine the crescent form of Mario Lemieux Place, becoming a great mixed use address with shops and entertainment venues along the first floor covering the parking decks hidden behind it. The roof of the entire structure would create a sustainable platform that deemphasizes the auto.


Community Engagement

Preservation Pittsburgh has worked to advocate and support preservation in the Hill by helping found the Historic Hill Initiative and particpating in the Community Benefits Agreement process. A plank was pro-posed to advocate for preservation and planning driven by community consenus. The ideas and con-cepts behind the arena reuse ultimately must be integrated into the formal planning process for the Hill that is yet come. The advocacy for the arena’s reuse is founded on the belief that the building can be reborn as a positive icon for the Hill, while also providing an ever-present reminder of the burdened history of the Hill and urban renewal in general.


Before (event after construction of additional seating) After

Before (construction photo 1960) After


mixed use development:structure parking with hous-ing and open space on top

mixed use development:structure parking with hous-ing and open space on top

large floor plate officeover retail mixed use

large floor plate officeover retail mixed use

hotelrecreationalsmall perfomance venuesrestaraunts

Reuse of the Arena adds valueCapacity study of the 28 acre site indicates the potential added development value over the government plan (pink) that envisions demolition of the Arena. The reuse of the Arena allows less investment in reconstruction of streets and more in the development of public open space. The reconnection of Wiley Avenue would occur as a pedestrian way reinforcing the modern functions of Centre and Wiley Avenues.


Capacity Study with flexible 4,000 seat amphitheaterCapacity Study with reuse of rink (park space in green)

Hotel/Entertainment

Flexible seating

Rink

stagesummer cafe

Programmatic Capcity and FlexibilityThe Civic Arena’s 450,000 gsf footprint could provide accomodation for a wide range of uses including: A themed W-style hotel with entertainment and restaurant functions. Com-munity uses would include a convertible rink/court with the capacity to accomodate outdoor events similar to venues like Millenium Park in Chicago .

Hotel/Entertainment


Animation Excerpt: Full open afternoon sun.

Animation Excerpt: Half open afternoon sun.

A spectacular venue for special events and everyday life

Imagine a Circ Du Soliel or Blue Man group playing beneath the stars. Imagine pregame and preconcert events for the new arena held in this great civic space. Surrounded by new development, the Arena compleents community and new arena needs. It would give new development an incentive to locate next to a landmark that would have similar cache to parks and waterfronts. With its 3 minute opening or closing dome, weather would never be an issue. More ambitous ideas of creating a biodome and adding glass to two of the leaves, could make the reuse a national destination.


View from a Civic Arena Hotel

Imagine this sunset view (on the right) from your hotel room on the evening of a Stanley Cup Playoff or major event at the new arena. This image shows a grand interior glass “storm door” to allow light in even when closed during bad weather. The opening and closing of the dome (3minutes) could be choregraphed like Milwaukee’s Museum of Art that opens every hour to the reverie of the Valkerie!

Before After


A view from Wiley and Crawford Avenues

Imagine a Jazz and hip hop flavored row of venues lining a set of stairs and linear park that celebrates the Wiley Avenue legacy in a 21st Century style. On either side of the proposed “Wiley Steps” would be the top deck of the garage. On top, urban loft structures would create an innovative extension to Crawford Square that claims spec-tacular views of the dome of the arena and skyline beyond. The Hill would gain an exciting pedestrian venue that complements the redevelopment of Centre Avenue and Wiley Avenue’s new residential flavor.


An optimistic ad of the times from the opening of the Civic Arena in 1961.

The question now is will our children and grandchildren remake this unique structure for a diverse 21st century neighborhood, not a “new-urban” lifestyle center pastiche? Will the NEW arena be integrated into the fabric of the city as Jane Jacobs asserted almost 50 years ago? Will we overcome but not forget the failed urban policies and lack of civic engagement that marked its construction decades ago? This advocacy planning strategy elevates the dialog within our community. This proposal serves as only a beginning–we hope that the community based planning process yet to come will use this idea for inspiration!

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