From  the  Pittsburgh  Business  Times

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moving-­forward.html

Jul  11,  2013,  5:08pm  EDT

Gardens,  Indigo  Hotel  moving  forward

Tim  SchooleyReporter-­  Pittsburgh  Business  TimesEmail    |  Twitter    |  Google+    |  Facebook

Two  major  projects  signaled  they’re  ready  to  go  at  Thursday’s  board  meeting  of  the  UrbanRedevelopment  Authority.

The  Gardens,  Millcraft  Investment’s  mixed-­use  development  just  off  Market  Square  that  was  firstproposed  in  2006,  received  a  unanimous  vote  by  the  board  to  sell  the  now  open  land  for  theproject  to  the  company  for  an  appraised  value  of  $2.375  million.  The  Gardens  includes  a  198-­room  Hilton  Garden  Inn,  along  with  a  125,000-­square-­foot  office  building.

In  East  Liberty,  the  company  affiliated  with  Washington,  D.C.-­based  developer  Nigel  Parkinson,will  receive  a  Pittsburgh  Development  Fund  loan  for  $1.7  million  along  with  $75,000  in  street-­face  funds  to  push  forward  with  a  new  Indigo  Hotel,  also  based  on  a  unanimous  vote  by  theURA  board.  The  hotel  will  have  135  rooms  and  anchor  a  larger  Indigo  Square  on  Broad  Street.

Both  projects  have  been  in  the  works  long  enough  to  have  been  either  delayed  or  sideswiped  bythe  Great  Recession  only  to  now  reach  the  final  stage  of  starting  construction.

In  Millcraft’s  case,  the  Gardens  project  comes  with  an  escalating  price  tag.

“The  project  is  now  approaching  $100  million,  much  to  Millcraft’s  dismay,”  said  RobertRubinstein,  acting  director  of  the  URA.  “But  it’s  still  a  great  project.”

Brian  Walker,  CFO  of  Millcraft,  recalled  when  the  project’s  budget  was  less  than  $80  million  andnoted  the  development  now  has  11  layers  of  financing,  including  tax-­increment  financing  andother  support  from  the  city.

While  Turner  Construction  is  expected  to  serve  as  both  the  construction  firm  to  build  theGardens  and  an  anchoring  office  tenant  for  it,  Walker  didn’t  indicate  any  other  committed  officetenants.

“We’re  as  excited  as  can  be  to  see  it  popping  out  of  the  ground,”  said  Walker,  who  estimated  alate  August  groundbreaking  and  an  expected  opening  next  summer.

Tom  Link,  a  URA  staff  member,  emphasized  the  back-­from-­the-­dead  nature  of  the  Indigo  Hotelproject  in  introducing  it  by  saying:  “If  you’re  experiencing  some  deja  vu,  you’re  not  crazy.”

The  partners  in  the  Indigo  project,  which  include  hotel  operator  IHG  and  Parkinson,  have  longsought  support  from  the  city  in  order  to  establish  a  new  public  plaza  in  front  of  the  hotel.

“It  will  be  a  community  plaza,”  Parkinson  said.  “Indigo  is  community  driven.”

Parkinson  said  he  was  able  to  finalize  financing  through  a  bank  in  his  hometown,  making  aveiled  jab  at  his  struggles  to  get  financing  from  banks  in  Pittsburgh.

“Our  bank  said  Pittsburgh  is  up-­and-­coming,”  he  said.

State  Sen.  Jim  Ferlo,  a  URA  board  member,  noted  the  Indigo  Hotel  will  be  built  near  the  site  ofanother  new  hotel  in  East  Liberty.  The  Ace  Hotel  is  slated  for  the  former  YMCA  building  a  fewblocks  away.

“I  have  some  concern  about  a  competitive  boutique  hotel,”  said  Ferlo,  who  nonethelesssupported  the  project  with  the  expectation  it  would  be  the  only  one  in  the  city  and  wouldoperate  with  a  reservation  system  that  would  limit  too  much  overlap.

Parkinson  said  the  Indigo  is  expected  to  open  next  year.

Tim  Schooley  covers  retail,  real  estate,  construction,  hospitality,  arts  andentertainment,  and  government.  Contact  him  at  tschooley@bizjournals.com  or  412-­208-­3826.

'Plain' East Liberty hotel doesn't impressPittsburgh city plannersApril 3, 2013 12:00 AM

By Mark Belko Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Plans for a 137-room boutique hotel in East Liberty hit a bit of turbulence before the cityplanning commission Tuesday.

At the same meeting, members got their first glimpse of a proposal for another big developmentin the East End neighborhood -- a 360-unit apartment complex built around a $52 million transitcenter.

The commission delayed a final vote on plans by Governor's Hotel Co. LP to build a Hotel Indigoafter several members expressed concern about the side of the building facing North HighlandAvenue.

"This has a real plain look to me, something you would see driving down the highway,"commission chairwoman Wrenna Watson said.

Other members said the side facing Highland looked too much like an office building or did nothave a "presence" at street level in an area booming with redevelopment. They also wanted to seemore detail regarding landscaping and lighting at the hotel, to be built at the corner of NorthHighland and Broad Street.

"You're setting the tone for the next 20 years with this building," member Page Thomas said.

Felix A. Cardella III, president of TKA Architects, said afterward he should be able to address theconcerns raised by the commission before it meets again in two weeks.

Governor's Hotel Co. LP hopes to break ground this spring and have the hotel open about a yearfrom now. The developer will utilize three existing buildings, including the former Governor'sHotel, and a new five-story addition.

The hotel will feature oversized beds, hardwood-style floors with area rugs and spa-styleshowers. It will be managed by InterContinental Hospitality Group. Rates are expected to rangefrom $140 to $150 a night.

A short distance away, Mosites Co. is proposing a 360-unit apartment complex on a four-acreparcel of land adjacent to the East Busway. The $52 million transit center, which will serve as thehub for nearly 1,000 bus arrivals and departures each day, will feature new bus shelters, a newpedestrian bridge and a bicycle depot.

The development also will include 42,000 square feet of retail space, a central courtyard with aswimming pool, a rooftop garden, and parking for 540 vehicles. Mosites already has landed aclothing store to anchor part of the retail space.

Steve Mosites, president of Mosites Co., said bids should go out on the transit center, the parkingand other site infrastructure this summer. Mosites expects to get started on the apartments nextyear, with the first ready for occupancy in spring 2015.

In other action, the commission continued its hearing on L.W. Molnar Associates' proposedOakland Portal development of offices and a hotel on a 12-acre site between Fifth and Forbesavenues at Robinson Street until April 16.