When First National Bank began its search for its new headquarters, it had plenty of options -- some of them beyond Pittsburgh.
There were opportunities in two North Carolina cities, Raleigh and Charlotte, as well as in other parts of the region.
But in the end it settled on the 28-acre former Civic Arena site -- not only because of its value to the bank but for the promise it offered to the Hill District and the region as a whole, CEO Vincent J. Delie Jr. said Wednesday.
“We went down the path on other sites,” he said. “We evaluated locations in other parts of the country and came to the conclusion that this particular site was the most impactful, not just for us and our employees but for the region in general.”
The bank’s seven-year quest for a new location culminated Wednesday with the groundbreaking for the 26-story FNB Financial Center, a $240 million project that represents the start of development at the former CIvic Arena site after years of delay.
For others, it stood for the start of something even bigger -- the potential revival of the Hill, part of which was destroyed with the construction of the Civic Arena six decades ago.
It’s a project that not only survived a pandemic that has disrupted the office market but a lengthy and sometimes contentious approval process that involved the Hill community and political stakeholders.
“It was pretty challenging to keep things going when the world was turned upside down,” Mr. Delie said. “It’s a miracle that we’re standing here today.”
For the bank, the new tower will allow it to consolidate the seven locations it now operates on the North Side into one while providing a state-of-the-art building, one of the first to be built post-COVID, to attract talent.
About 600 employees will work inside the complex, which will total more than 475,000 square feet. FNB, as the anchor, will take more than 160,000 square feet spread over nine floors with options to expand.
Mr. Delie said he’s not sure where the bank would have ended up had the deal with the Penguins, who hold the development rights to the lower Hill site, and the Buccini/Pollin Group, their developer, had collapsed.
FNB ultimately committed to the location, Mr. Delie said, after he talked to Penguins CEO David Morehouse, who spoke of the overall benefit the project could have on the Hill.
“What appealed to me the most about participating in this project was the impact it was going to have on this overall development, on the Hill District, on Pittsburgh. It worked for everybody and became the top choice for us,” he said.
It was that potential impact on the Hill that was first and foremost on the minds of many of those who spoke Wednesday.
For them, the project and others to be developed on the site represent a chance to right the wrongs that occurred more than 60 years ago when thousands of lower Hill residents were displaced by the arena construction.
State Rep. Jake Wheatley, a Hill Democrat who has been a key player in the redevelopment of the site, hopes the start of work will be seen as “the defining moment that changed the reality of far too many lost voices.”
“For too many years we’ve been on the receiving end of bad deals and bad promises. We’re all looking to this site, this development, to be the spark to change the reality that takes us into the next generation,” he said.
But he stressed that accountability comes with promises.
“So when you talk about having real opportunities on this site, guess what? We’re going to hold you to that. When you talk about having employment and contracts and sparking things that happen beyond the lower Hill, we’re going to hold you to that.” he said.
As part of its commitment, FNB has pledged to advance $7.5 million in tax revenues generated by the project for use in other parts of the Hill. That transfer should occur later this month.
The advance is part of a broader commitment by the Penguins and Buccini/Pollin to divert up to $40 million in tax revenues from projects at the site to the middle and upper Hill.
They also have committed to 30% minority business and 15% women’s business participation on the FNB project. That’s above the city’s goals of 18% and 7%, respectively.
Kevin Acklin, the Penguins’ chief operating officer, said the development team so far has obtained a combined 43% MBE and WBE participation in the pre-development phase and is “tracking” toward 30% MBE and 15% WBE on construction.
City Councilman R. Daniel Lavelle, another Hill Democrat who has been instrumental in negotiations surrounding the site and the FNB tower, said he is hopeful the team will be able to reach those numbers. He noted it might be tough on the steel and glass work given there aren’t many minority vendors.
But overall, he feels good about the progress in reaching the goals.
“I think everyone has been busting their butts to achieve and exceed them actually,” he said.
“So I feel good. I think we’re in a good place. But again, we just have to collectively stay on it in order to deliver what we promised to the community.”
FNB also has provided $2 million to the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority for use by minority contractors so that they have upfront access to capital to participate in the development, he said.
Marimba Milliones, the Hill Community Development Corp. CEO who has battled the Penguins and FNB to hold them to their promises, called Wednesday’s groundbreaking a starting point but said there are still commitments that need to be finalized.
She said, for example, there are no job commitments for Hill residents beyond construction and hospitality and no affordable commercial spaces within the development for small or Black-owned businesses beyond outdoor kiosks.
“So while we can acknowledge the significance of the moment, we also have to remain accountable to the things that have not been fulfilled,” she said.
The FNB development is expected to create 1,250 construction jobs, 2,000 permanent jobs, and more than $40 million in overall investment in the middle and upper Hill.
Construction is expected to start by the end of the month, with completion set for late 2023.
After waiting more than a decade to get work going on the publicly owned site, the Penguins now will turn their attention to two other projects -- an indoor/outdoor live music venue and an 850-space parking garage.
Mr. Morehouse said he hopes to get started on both within a few months after the beginning of the FNB construction.
Beyond those developments, the Penguins and Buccini/Pollin are looking at a high-end health and fitness center and entertainment concepts, including some that are sports related.
They also have been talking to potential tenants about occupying two additional office buildings at the site. “We have people on the list. We have prospects,” Mr. Morehouse said.
Beyond the projects that have been announced, the overall development is expected to include a 400-room hotel, more than 1,000 residential units, 1 million square feet of office space, and 190,000 square feet of retail.
For URA Deputy Director Diamonte Walker, whose mother was displaced by the Civic Arena construction, the success of the development will not be judged so much by the buildings it produces but by the impact it delivers.
“Will this tower be another Civic Light Opera [an arena tenant] or will it signal transforming this community to be one that people like me who live here now can still recognize?” she asked. “That’s very important. That’s how we’re going to know that we got it right.”
Mark Belko: mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262.
First Published: September 1, 2021, 11:48 p.m.
