One of the most expensive development projects in modern Pittsburgh history, the $740 million Esplanade on the North Side, took a definitive step forward Monday with a groundbreaking ceremony that drew Pennsylvania’s governor and generated accolades for its intent to revitalize a long-stagnant brownfield.

Gov. Josh Shapiro called the ambitious multi-use development in the Chateau neighborhood and its planned signature attraction, a giant Ferris wheel, a “game changer for the North Side.”

More than that, Esplanade has the potential to become a key first-day tourist attraction and massive economic generator for the region, officials said.

Developer Lucas Piatt, CEO of Cecil-based Piatt Companies, has lofty aspirations for the 15-acre property along the Ohio River.

He framed the groundbreaking as a significant step forward after years of challenges to bring his vision to reality.

Over the past decade, Piatt and his team have tweaked their plans for the site, raised funding and sought community input.

During that time, Piatt fought cancer, saw costs for the development jump by about 40% and lost his father, the company’s founder.

Piatt told supporters packed into an empty warehouse on the site there were about 50 reasons they shouldn’t have made it to the groundbreaking. But, thanks to a plethora of partners who supported his aim, the project is poised to move ahead.

“What’s good is worth fighting for,” Piatt said. “This project is good. It’s worth fighting for.”

Esplanade is set to include a 126-unit condominium complex, a 13-story hotel and a mixed-income apartment tower. The new development will be punctuated by a 200-foot-tall Ferris wheel.

The project includes green space, a marina, a winter garden, an incubator for local entrepreneurs, entertainment areas and space for pop-up events.

The development also is expected to have public restrooms, a grocery store, parking for cars and bicycles, restaurants and shops.

Work on the site is starting immediately, said Molly Onufer, a spokeswoman for Piatt. Existing structures will be demolished in the weeks ahead, and the development team is finalizing designs for new construction.

Building the first phase — which will include the Ferris wheel, a 300-unit apartment building, parking, retail and restaurants — will start about this time next year, Onufer said.

Shapiro said the site will become “a hub of new activity.” He estimated it will contribute about $600 million to the regional economy once complete. It also is expected to create 4,500 permanent jobs, as well as thousands of construction jobs.

The governor credited Piatt with picturing a more vibrant future for a property that has seen little investment.

“The Esplanade project is an incredible example of how we can remake these abandoned and underutilized spaces to see the potential that Lucas saw to create new opportunities for people in Pittsburgh,” the governor said.

Shapiro pointed out Esplanade is moving ahead as the city also is embarking on a $600 million revitalization of its Downtown core nearby.

“I never thought as a child I’d see a Ferris wheel on the North Side going round and round and round,” said Mayor Ed Gainey, who attended the ceremony.

River power

Gainey highlighted how the development will give people a chance to enjoy the city’s key natural asset — its rivers.

Piatt previously told TribLive he felt the city too often turned its back on the rivers, using waterfront properties to house industrial projects and the county jail rather than unlocking recreational opportunities or showcasing the city’s natural beauty.

Mayor-elect Corey O’Connor — who serves as Allegheny County controller — said his administration will support the project as it goes through the process of securing permits in the coming years.

He pointed to Esplanade as an example of the kind of development he hopes to encourage to spark more economic activity.

When the 2026 NFL Draft comes to town in April, he said, hundreds of thousands of eyes will be on the city. He wants them to see projects like Esplanade.

“We have to tell them the new Pittsburgh story, that if you want to be a responsible developer, we will welcome you into our community,” O’Connor said.

Tax diversion

City and county officials have largely been bullish on the development, hoping it will attract visitors, create jobs and boost the economy.

Pittsburgh, its school district and Allegheny County have approved a tax diversion that will plow new money from the project back into the development and the surrounding community.

The Transit Revitalization Investment District will allow 75% of taxes generated by the property’s added value after development to fund public infrastructure, riverbank restoration and affordable housing within the development and in the Manchester neighborhood.

The tax district will last for 40 years, but individual parcels will be eligible for only a 20-year diversion.

The property that makes up the Esplanade footprint now generates about $84,000 in property taxes annually.

Officials estimate the completed development will result in about $8 million in property tax revenue each year.

Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program provided a $25 million grant to help fund utility and road infrastructure and prepare the land for construction.

Lingering concerns

Piatt also is the developer behind the sprawling 589-acre Southpointe development in Cecil, Washington County, and Highmark Stadium, the home of the Riverhounds professional soccer team on the South Side.

Formerly known as Millcraft, the development company was launched in 1957 in Washington County by Piatt’s father, Jack Piatt. Its first project in Downtown Pittsburgh launched in 2005; since then, it has developed nearly $450 million worth of mixed-use projects there.

No one lives on the property being developed for Esplanade, so no one will be directly displaced as Piatt forges ahead.

But some residents from nearby Manchester — a historically Black neighborhood largely cut off from the site by Route 65 — have voiced concerns.

Manchester Neighbors, a grassroots group that opposes Esplanade, has argued the new development could raise housing costs in Manchester, potentially forcing out low-income residents.

The group has also sounded the alarm on environmental concerns, as the new development will be constructed on a brownfield.

But the developer has sought to alleviate such concerns. Piatt has set aside 20% of housing on the site as affordable for low-income people, and the project received necessary state approvals to ensure there are no environmental risks.

LaShawn Burton-Faulk is executive director of the Manchester Citizens Corp., as well as chair of the Pittsburgh Planning Commission. She said she felt the development was in the community’s best interest.

“Since 2017, the Piatt team has worked alongside us with intention, patience and collaboration,” Burton-Faulk said.

“This has not been a development done to a neighborhood but a development shaped with one. Together we have anchored this process in core values like community voice, ensuring residents are not just heard, but they’re reflected in this plan.”

Turning the page

Pittsburgh Councilman R. Daniel Lavelle, whose district includes the area, said the development is not just for visitors, but will be something that can benefit all Pittsburghers.

He credited Piatt for sticking with the project. It was a challenge to raise enough funding, Lavelle said. And building next to Manchester meant the developer would have to combat fears of gentrification from that community.

But Lavelle credited Piatt for immediately volunteering to create affordable housing on the site, committing to creating jobs and joining in numerous community meetings, some of which became “very contentious.”

Monday’s groundbreaking was a long time coming. Plans for Esplanade have been in the pipeline for nearly a decade.

The development team has tweaked their blueprints several times. Piatt told TribLive there have been at least eight iterations of the project, some of which included 30-story buildings — which were since scaled down — and a 2-acre water feature that has been scrapped in favor of recreation and activity space.

“For years, this site sat without a clear path forward,” Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said. “But today we turn the page.”

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