Project Profile
The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh (URA) and Summerset Land Development Associates are rejuvenating Nine Mile Run, a former riverside slag dump bordering the main access highway to Pittsburgh’s eastern suburbs, into Pittsburgh’s largest and most noteworthy residential development since World War II, Summerset at Frick Park.
Located just four miles from downtown Pittsburgh, minutes from Squirrel Hill and Homestead’s Waterfront shops, theaters, and restaurants, and convenient to the universities and hospitals of Oakland and Shady Side, Summerset at Frick Park connects directly to the parklets and trails of the City’s beautiful Frick Park, down to the banks of the Monongahela River. This brownfield remediation will provide Pittsburghers with new housing, improved river access, increased tax revenue, community beautification, and enhanced recreational opportunities.
During design and planning, more than 400 community meetings were held resulting in a series of conditions that were approved by the City of Pittsburgh Planning Commission and incorporated into the final land development plan.Transforming the 230-acre site required grading and stabilization of more than 1.5 million cubic yards of slag; upgrading the Nine Mile Run valley to extend Frick Park to the Monongahela River to significantly increase green space; and improving the infrastructure in the upstream Nine Mile Run communities by eliminating combined sewer systems. Installation of pollution control, water-quality manhole structures as part of infrastructure improvements is an innovative way to reduce stormwater pollution and prevent floatable debris and silt from entering the stream. Another positive effect of the project was the beneficial reuse of the slag.
The new, yet traditional looking neighborhood offers sidewalks, alleyways, wide roadways, and residential courtyards. When complete, the multi-phased project that has a density of 6.6 units per acre will include a total of 713 housing units comprised of 336 single-family homes, 121 townhouses, and 256 apartment units. (The density figure excludes Frick Park extension and land that was not developable.) The $243 million project is noteworthy not only because of its 230-acre size, but because developing any brownfield site for residential use is rare.
Project Merits
Summerset at Frick Park will provide a variety of residential housing including single-family homes, townhouses, and apartments. Forward Avenue was widened from the project entrance to Beechwood Boulevard. Sidewalks were constructed and stormwater was separated from sanitary sewers by the installation of a new storm sewer to Nine Mile Run.
The site was rezoned from an “S” District (Special District – which was the only reasonable designation for a dump site) to a “Planned Unit Development.”
Numerous innovative techniques were applied to the project including the use of an architecturally treated form liner for construction of concrete retaining walls. The result is an aesthetically pleasing structure that offers the appearance of stone, but at less cost.
While Nine Mile Run is the last remaining free-flowing stream in the City of Pittsburgh, it was severely degraded by sewage overflows and high-alkaline seeps from the slag pile. Reduction of stormwater into the sanitary system was a significant environmental issue that was resolved by separating storm and sanitary sewers and applying pollution control, water-quality manholes, to decrease the amount of floatable debris entering the stream. Current activities include development of a mitigation plan to remediate the high pH leaching from numerous seeps. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Pittsburgh are currently involved in stream restoration. Another environmental benefit was the reuse of on-site soils which decreased waste and reduced the amount of imported soils. A soil blend including on-site soils, granular slag, wood chips, and fertilizers was constructed on the steep slopes after grading and seeded with a mixture of warm season grasses and legumes. Deciduous and coniferous seedlings and saplings, both bare root and b&b, chosen for their tolerance of high pH and compaction, were planted on the slopes. Ongoing monitoring of vegetation performance will guide future phases.
Summerset at Frick Park is an outstanding example of a project that is responsive to public and private entities and the surrounding environment. Through the application of innovative and cost-effective techniques, conversion of this major brownfield site will provide Pittsburghers with 713 new housing units, improved river access, and enhanced recreational opportunities.
Brownfield remediation at the Summerset at Frick Park site was a complex and challenging venture that revitalized the existing community. A task force comprised of the URA, Summerset Land Development Associates, the City of Pittsburgh, private developers, the site consultant, and surrounding community groups was formed at the start of the project to facilitate open discussion and impart a sense of ownership to the community. The task force continues to meet monthly to address environmental issues and questions regarding the status of the project. By engaging citizens in this process, communication was enhanced and public resistance minimized.
Major environmental issues addressed in the development plans for this site were the potential health hazards of exposure to airborne slag during grading operations to the residential communities surrounding the site, workers on the site, and exposure to slag by future residents of the site. To assess any fugitive dust that may have been generated from site development construction activities, GAI Consultants, Inc. (GAI) developed and implemented an ambient air monitoring program to assure that earthwork was in compliance with the local air pollution control regulations.
Reduction of stormwater into the sanitary system was a significant environmental issue that was resolved by separating storm and sanitary sewers and applying pollution control, water-quality manholes, to decrease the amount of floatable debris entering the stream.
The Army Corps of Engineers in conjunction with the Department of City Planning is working to protect natural resources by revitalizing the stream back to a natural habitat for fish and vegetation.
The project, which reduced land and resource consumption by reusing abandoned land, is expected to add $3.4 million annually in property and wage taxes to the City. The City anticipates $1.6 million for Phase I lot proceeds and more than $21 million over the next 10 years.