Steelers approved for multimillion-dollar retail store addition to Heinz Field

The Sports and Exhibition Authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County on Thursday unanimously approved a request by the Steelers to build a two-story addition to the FedEx Great Hall at Heinz Field that will include a merchandise shop along Art Rooney Avenue.

Team spokeswoman Heidi Edwards told SEA board members that the Steelers would fund the estimated $11 million to $13 million project.

Interior demolition is scheduled to begin in November followed by exterior work in February. The store is expected to open by July.

It will include storage space, restrooms, a lobby, interior access and a main entrance along Art Rooney Avenue, Edwards said. She called it a “small and modest addition, but a critical one for us to add more retail space.”

Ticket offices in that space will be moved farther south along Art Rooney Avenue as part of the project.

The store will be open daily to the public and during yet-to-be-determined hours on game days. Fans will have access from inside the stadium during games.

“The plan needs to be refined,” Edwards said. “At some point, we would need to shut down the store, clear it out, shut it down from exterior access and then bring people in from the inside.”

The Steelers have not determined what will be included in the second-floor space. State Sen. Wayne Fontana, D-Brookline, who chairs the SEA, said it could be rented for events.

“They just indicated there’s a range of possibilities,” he said. “It could be just a porch where people just go to hang out and eat and relax, or it could be something where there’s space to be rented, or to have a gathering of some sort, a party or reception. I think they’re still kicking that around.”

SEA members lauded the team for a project they said would increase North Shore tourism.

“I love the idea, I really do,” said Anthony Coghill, an SEA board member who also serves on Pittsburgh City Council. “I think this would be a tourist attraction.”

Edwards said the shop would complement the Bud Light Pub 33 restaurant and Franco’s Pizzeria, which opened next to the Great Hall in 2018.