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Fifth & Forbes chronology
Thursday, November 23, 2000
Spring 1996: Urban Redevelopment Director Mulugetta Birru meets with developer Urban Retail Properties in Chicago. Urban Retail executives take Birru and his URA colleagues on a tour of their Downtown Chicago holdings, including Water Tower Place, a seven-level vertical mall that at the time generated nearly half of the retail sales along Chicago's Magnificent Mile. Over dinner, Birru and Urban Retail Properties' executives discuss the potential for new retail in Downtown Pittsburgh.
July 1997: Urban Retail Properties signs a development option and consulting deal with the city, agreeing to explore the potential for a new Downtown project.
Spring 1998: Kansas City-based AMC Entertainment signs a letter of intent with Urban Retail Properties to build a movie theater complex in Downtown Pittsburgh as part of a larger Fifth and Forbes project. A prospective leasing plan produced by Urban Retail Properties shows the AMC theater surrounded by a Tiffany & Co., a Borders Books & Music, a Computer City, an FAO Schwarz, a Coach, a Kenneth Cole and a Banana Republic, among others. It lists 38 stores, in all.
July 1, 1998: Mayor Murphy predicts the cost of the Fifth and Forbes project could top $200 million. A spokeswoman says the city might reach a development agreement with Urban Retail Properties by summer and start acquiring Downtown real estate by January 1999. The stores and restaurants would open in 2001.
Fall 1998: After toying with the idea of a new location on the North Side, Seattle-based Nordstrom once again considers Downtown Pittsburgh as the site for a new department store. It expresses an interest in a block-long site bounded by Fifth and Forbes avenues, Wood Street and an alley off Market Square.
June 1999: Price for Fifth and Forbes project jumps from $200 million to $400 million.
August 1999: Price rises to $440 million. Birru claims "basic funding" for the project is in place.
Oct. 3, 1999: Murphy officially unveils $480 million development proposal. City wants to acquire 64 properties along Fifth and Forbes and tear down all but two of them. About 10 facades would be saved. About 40 new shops and restaurants would rise in their place, along with a 18- screen movie theater. Murphy also claims to have a preliminary commitment from Nordstrom. Of the $480 million, $53.5 million would come from public sources. Urban Retail Properties agrees to contribute $179 million, including $38 million up front. Murphy hopes City Council will consider the proposal by the end of 1999. In that case, the new stores would open in 2002. At a press conference, protesters complain about Murphy's plan. One shouts: "Dump Murphy!" Murphy's response: "Don't we love democracy." Leaders of two preservation groups express disappointment that the mayor is unwilling to save more facades and businesses.
December 1999: Market Square building owner William Jacobowitz becomes first Downtown property owner to sue over Murphy's Fifth and Forbes plan.
February 2000: City Councilman Sala Udin and the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership offer a way to reach a consensus on the Fifth and Forbes project through a conference and town meetings. The goal is to produce a set of recommendations to Murphy by mid-April, allowing City Council to consider a final development plan in May. The process becomes known as the Downtown Planning Collaborative.
April 5, 2000: Murphy announces a commitment from Dan Marino Town Tavern. He claims to have enough votes on City Council to get the project approved.
July 2000: City offers Nordstrom a $28 million package of public and private incentives. Price of Fifth and Forbes project rises to $522 million.
August 2000: Amid a sagging stock, sales and earnings, Nordstrom's CEO and CFO quit.
Sept. 25, 2000: Urban Retail Properties agrees to be purchased by a Dutch-based real estate company for $3.4 billion. A few days later, Murphy says project will move ahead. "They are committed to the deal," he said. "We have every reason to think they will move forward."
Nov. 13, 2000: Downtown Planning Collaborative ends eight months of work without a firm position.
Nov. 22, 2000: Nordstrom delays decision on new Downtown store. Urban Retail Properties and AMC Entertainment drop out of the redevelopment picture. Murphy pledges to re-examine Downtown plan and start over.
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