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Udin wants to clear way for cultural heritage center

Saturday, April 12, 2003

By Timothy McNulty and Tom Barnes, Post-Gazette Staff Writers

City Councilman Sala Udin wants to threaten the use of eminent domain to acquire up to five Downtown properties needed for a $33 million African-American Cultural Center.

Udin, a strong supporter of the cultural center, is pressuring other council members and Mayor Tom Murphy to support him.

"The mayor supports our need to use (or threaten) eminent domain, but he needs to know that if he sends the legislation to council, he will not be rebuffed," Udin wrote his colleagues in a March 21 letter, obtained by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Udin said he's seeking the signatures of at least five council members who are "willing to agree to support (property) condemnation legislation."

"We do not intend to have to actually utilize eminent domain taking of property, but having the arrow in our quiver will cause the property owners to sell at a reasonable price," Udin wrote.

Udin said that in recent years, many adult entertainment uses have been removed from Liberty Avenue.

"However, there are a few remaining 'seedy' buildings. The block we want to purchase contains several of these," he wrote.

Murphy's threat in 1999-2000 to use eminent domain to acquire buildings in the Fifth and Forbes redevelopment area played a major role in angering property owners, which helped cause that project's demise.

The African-American Cultural Center is planned for a triangle-shaped site at Liberty Avenue and William Penn Place.

The land is currently occupied by a tavern, tailor shop, striptease club, adult book store, parking lot, two vacant buildings and two lots where buildings were torn down last year.

The site is in a prime location -- catty-corner from the Westin Convention Center hotel and a block from the new David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

The city's Urban Redevelopment Authority has already acquired four properties in the target area -- 974, 970, 968 and 964 Liberty, consisting of one vacant building, two vacant lots and the tailor shop.

However, the URA is having trouble buying five other properties, Udin wrote.

URA Executive Director Mulugetta Birru said a New York company, Liberty Partners, owns two buildings needed for the cultural center but hasn't responded to his letters.

Deals also must be worked out with Ralph and Sally Maiette, owners of the Chez Kimberly strip club, and William Zotis, who owns a building where Liberty Tavern is located. Birru also needs to acquire a parking lot owned by Central Parking Systems of Nashville, Tenn.

Birru said he still hopes to acquire those properties "amicably" and didn't ask Udin to use eminent domain.

Governments can take private property deemed vital for a public use or purpose, like a road, park or public building. Governments have to pay fair market value and a series of public approvals must occur before governments can use the power.

The Murphy administration has used eminent domain once -- in its effort to take over the X-rated Garden Theater on the North Side, as part of the Federal-North redevelopment project. The owner, a New York City businessman, has fought the URA, and adult movies are still showing there as the matter remains in court.

In an interview yesterday Udin said he hopes sales transactions will be finished without the hammer of eminent domain.

"We hope it goes amicably and we will not have to pull the trigger," he said.

In his March 21 letter, Udin said some of the existing property owners are holding out for "outrageous" prices and the fate of another property is stalled in a divorce dispute.

None of the holdout property owners could be reached yesterday.

In interviews, Len Bodack, Barbara Burns and Alan Hertzberg issued full support for Udin's plan; William Peduto said he would support it with full public hearings and disclosure; and Jim Motznik said he would use it as a last resort to build the center and "clean up" Downtown.

Council members Twanda Carlisle and Gene Ricciardi could not be reached. Udin said he has no timetable for bringing condemnation legislation to council.