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The Allegheny Building, Downtown, as photographed Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020
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Back for more: Philadelphia developer to convert Allegheny Building to apartments

Andrew Rush/Post-Gazette

Back for more: Philadelphia developer to convert Allegheny Building to apartments

The Philadelphia developer that helped to spark the residential renaissance in Downtown Pittsburgh over the last decade is back for an encore.

Ten years after its first foray into the Golden Triangle, PMC Property Group has purchased the 19-story Allegheny Building at 429 Forbes Ave. near Grant Street with the intent to convert it to apartments.

It paid $10.1 million for the structure, built in 1905 as an annex to the Frick Building, its next-door neighbor.

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PMC is planning to convert the building, now used for offices, into as many as 180 apartments, a mix of one- and two-bedroom units.

The Clark Building is being developed as apartments by the PMC Property Group. This is the open-plan living area in a two-bedroom apartment.
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Martin Perry, a Newmark Knight Frank managing director who represented the seller, the King Penguin Opportunity Fund, in the transaction, said that he expects PMC to start the renovations later this year.

A PMC representative declined comment.

The new owner won’t have to worry about relocating or buying out many existing tenants. The entire building is just about empty. One remaining tenant is the Apollo Cafe, which PMC expects to keep.

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Tina Hammerling, who owns the longtime restaurant along with her sister, is excited about staying.

“Who wants to move 31 years worth of stuff? This is our little baby here,” she said. “I’d like to retire this way.”

PMC got its start Downtown in late 2010 when it acquired the 12-story former Verizon building at 201 Stanwix Street for $4.4 million. It converted that property into 158 apartment units, a mix of one- and two-bedroom.

That launched a buying spree over the next few years that saw PMC acquire six other buildings, including two of Downtown’s most iconic — the former Alcoa Building which it converted into a mix of apartments and office and the Clark Building, which also became apartments.

Developers are looking at the James Reed Building on Sixth Avenue in Downtown to be the site of a future upscale hotel.
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PMC also has three other residential properties Downtown — Penn Garrison Lofts on Penn Avenue, 526 Penn Avenue Apartments and 908 Penn Avenue.

The developer also acquired the James Reed Building, the former home of the Reed Smith law firm, in 2012. It has since been converted into the Hotel Monaco.

In addition, PMC transformed the former Schenley High School into 180 apartments. It also owns the Kenmawr apartment building in Shadyside.

All together, the firm holds about 1,400 apartment units in the city.

Along with Millcraft Investments, PMC led the way in the surge of residential building Downtown. Mr. Perry called the company the “experts in the market for Class B office conversions to residential.”

In a report last year, the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership estimated that 2,575 residential units have been added since 2010 to greater Downtown, which includes the Golden Triangle, the Strip District, the North and South shores, Uptown, the Bluff, and the lower Hill District.

The Allegheny Building will give PMC a toehold near the south end of Grant Street. It could end up competing against the redevelopers of the former Kaufmann’s/Macy’s department store, part of which also has been converted into apartments.

Charleston, S.C.-based Greystar has taken over as manager of those apartments after residents complained about a host of issues, including a rodent infestation, non-working elevators and other maintenance problems, and a lack of promised amenities.

Some residents have moved out of the building as a result of the problems and others have withheld their rent.

Philadelphia-based Core Realty, the building owner, is bringing in a new investment team Lubert Adler Partners LP, also of Philadelphia, to address such issues and to complete the long-delayed redevelopment, which has been plagued by liens, lawsuits and other issues over the last five years.

Core recently landed the Target retail chain to occupy a prominent first floor spot in the redevelopment.

Mark Belko: mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262.

First Published: September 25, 2020, 10:14 a.m.

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