Downtown Housing Heats Up

Every market has its "hot" spots, and one of southwestern Pennsylvania's hottest can be found in downtown Pittsburgh. "I've never seen as much foot traffic as I've had here," said Lorrie Andria-Crummie, sales manager for Piatt Place. "Interest has been overwhelming."
Located at Fifth Avenue and Wood Street, Piatt Place, a mixed-use development of Class-A office and retail space and luxury condominiums, sits at the heart of downtown Pittsburgh. It is an important part of an ongoing multi-million dollar makeover that has seen stadiums and a Convention Center built, as well as the revitalization and construction of hotels, department stores and residential buildings.
A rejuvenated downtown Pittsburgh is getting lots of attention. According to the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership, more than 3,000 people now live in the heart of the city, and more people are on the way. Permits for housing units are being issued at a fast clip. Some of the new arrivals will be moving into Piatt Place, which will have 65 luxury condominiums.
Heartland Homes has responsibility for the sale, marketing and completion of the 65 condominiums. The units range from one-bedrooms of 1,000 square feet to four-bedrooms of more than 3,000 square feet. Twenty-six condominiums have been sold thus far, said Andria-Crummie, all of them with move-in dates of December 2008. In some cases, buyers have chosen to combine two or even three suites horizontally or vertically, increasing the space of their units. The sold suites, said Andria-Crumme, have ranged in price from $290,000 to a cool $1.5 million for a three-unit combination.
No stranger to real estate sales, Andria-Crummie worked for Heartland Homes at four different community developments in the suburbs before coming to Piatt Place in 2007. The transition wasn't difficult, for Andria-Crummie and her husband, Devin Crummie, live in Pittsburgh. Both are passionate about city living—a fact, said the sales manager, "that makes it easy for me to communicate with the people who want to live downtown."
Closing 26 sales prior to construction says a great deal about the appeal of downtown living. To date, according to Andria-Crummie, buyers represent three major slices of the demographic pie. One of those slices includes empty nesters, many of them about to sell their homes in the suburbs, and who are ready to "resize" for the conveniences of downtown living. Another segment comprises "part-time Pittsburghers," people who have moved away but return here on a regular and extended basis to visit family and friends, or for business reasons. Then there are the died-in-the-wool city dwellers, people who have made the most of city living and are ready to buy a condo in Piatt Place.
While their demographic makeup may differ, the people who opt for downtown living tend to love it. And why not? There's lots to love.
The hub of downtown Pittsburgh is the Golden Triangle, where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers meet. The Point, as it's called, formed by the joining of the two rivers, is where the Ohio River begins to flow west to the Mississippi River. When a very young George Washington first saw the Point in 1753, he immediately reported on its strategic importance. Then began a long struggle for control of the confluence of the rivers. Eventually it led to the establishment of Pittsburgh. No wonder the Point has been designated a National Historic Landmark.
While downtown Pittsburgh is steeped in American history, it is without question in the throes of a most modern revitalization. Some basic building blocks provide a firm foundation for this rebirth. Downtown Pittsburgh, for example, is home to a large number of Fortune 500 companies, and the city ranks among the top 10 nationally in that regard. The cultural district, with theaters, galleries, and concert halls, is one of downtown's enduring attractions. But the heart of the city is undergoing a renaissance. It is not the first renaissance in the history of the city, but it may well be the defining one. Plans are coming to fruition that are changing not only the landscape, but also the way in which people live, work and shop downtown. A downtown urban lifestyle, slow to catch on in Pittsburgh in past decades, is now very much in style. Efforts by organizations such as the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership to promote this lifestyle have met with increasing success. The PDP cites short commutes, breathtaking views and cultural conveniences as just a few of the reasons why individuals and families choose to live downtown.
But it isn't only bricks-and-mortar that is leading downtown to a leap into a dynamic future. A downtown Wi-Fi service, for example, launched in 2006, has exceeded all expectations, and continues to perform well. The service provides downtown workers, residents and visitors with outdoor wireless access.
Piatt Place, a remarkable redesign of what was once the Lazarus Department store, is a signature development in downtown's renaissance. It brings truly luxurious living to the heart of the city. Among its outstanding features are a center, open courtyard, a business center and a fitness room. The Capital Grille and McCormick Schmick's Seafood restaurants are already open on the first floor, Class-A office space is found on the second through the fourth floors, and condominiums on the rooftop levels.
Andria-Crummie has no doubt that Piatt Place is a special place, with some special advantages. Among them is the fact that each condominium has its own balcony, for a touch of outdoor living in the midst of the city. Another is a tax abatement program that adds up to $6,200 a year for 10 years, which applies to Piatt Place condominiums.
"There are a lot of neat things happening downtown," said Andria-Crummie, "and our building is right in the center of it."