FORWARD AVENUE RENDERING | COURTESY INDOVINA ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS

The Pittsburgh Zoning Board of Adjustment has denied requests for several variances that would have allowed the building of a 160-unit condominium complex on the site of the closed Irish Centre next to Frick Park and its Nine Mile Run trail system.

In a 17-page decision released Oct. 30, the board stated that the developer, Toronto-based Craft Development Corporation, failed to meet its burden of proof on why the four variances were needed to construct an 8-story complex at this 4.25-acre site at 6886 Forward Ave. in Squirrel Hill.

The proposed project drew avid criticism from UpstreamPgh, a nonprofit with the mission to promote healthy ecology and restore and protect the Nine Mile Run watershed; Frick Park Friends, a grassroots environmental group; and several neighborhood organizations and individuals. Thousands of signatures were collected on petitions opposing the project. Opponents feared the impact of additional traffic on the hilly, narrow road, the environmental impact and its impact near Frick Park.

HOME IN REGENT SQUARE DISPLAYS SIGN PROTESTING THE FORWARD AVENUE DEVELOPMENT | PHOTO BY VIRGINIA LINN

Craft Development Corporation on Aug. 3 formally presented its request for four variances at a several-hour board of adjustment hearing that also drew support from a pro-housing group and testimony opposing the project. Craft now has 30 days to appeal.

The variances were needed to change the site’s current park zoning district to a multi-unit residential district and to raise the site’s current allowed building height, retaining wall height and floor area maximums. The developer had to prove a “reason for hardship” for each variance, meaning a reason why the special conditions of the building and the location would have made strict conformity to the zoning laws unreasonable.

Zoning officials, in their decision, stated that the applicant failed to address other uses permitted in a park zoning district. Craft Development’s conclusion that the property could only be viably used for multi-unit residential use was not credible, they concluded.

Moreover, the developers were “unable to credibly demonstrate that an 8-story structure for a multi-unit residential use on the subject property would be consistent with the essential character of a neighborhood that includes, as its predominant feature, Frick Park.”

Ray Baum, attorney for Craft, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that it had not had a chance to discuss the decision with Craft officials and could not comment. He also did not know whether they would choose to appeal.

Vicki Yann, a resident of Swisshelm Park – located near the Irish Centre — and designated spokesperson for Frick Park Friends, said members of the ad hoc group that opposed the project were thrilled with the decision and appreciative of the work of the zoning officials.

“We were hopeful, but we were also holding our breath,” she said about the zoning board’s decision. 

Rarely has such a sophisticated campaign been launched in the Pittsburgh area against a proposed project like this. When neighbors around Frick Park learned of the project, they quickly pulled together the skills of various people to create a Frick Park Friends website, Facebook group, yard signs, legal strategies, letter-writing campaigns and more. There are 965 members on the Facebook group.

“We were united unequivocally that this project was inappropriate for that parcel of land, and we all opposed it,” Yann said. “We have some incredibly smart and resourceful people in our neighborhoods. It was such a group effort. Everybody had a different skill set to bring to the table.”

The next effort is to continue a letter-writing campaign to the city’s Historic Review and City Planning commissions to support the historic landmark nomination of Frick Park, which would provide extra protections in the area.