Fifth Avenue

UPMC Presbyterian Bed Tower

About

UPMC plans to construct a new building on the former Children’s Hospital site on Fifth Avenue.

The Presbyterian Bed Tower would include 636 beds for ICU, stepdown, and discharge patients. The proposed building would be 288’ tall, at no more than 17 stories, occupying just under 900,000 square feet above Fifth Ave. Plans include room for 450 cars in its garage.

Plans include green space consisting of a tree canopy, native plant species, and on-site stormwater capture. Also part of the design is a lifestyle village that would invite both staff and community members into the hospital.

Updates

UPMC hosted two community meetings in late 2018 to answer resident questions and discuss how the development plans could include some community benefits. This hospital is consistent with the UPMC Institutional Master Plan (IMP) approved by the city in late 2014. This development requires City Planning Commission approval but does not need to go in front of the City Council as it is in their IMP.

As of early March 2019, UPMC is putting this project on pause and plans to re-engage the community with public meetings later.

April 2021 update - The project is still on hold. UPMC has re-engaged its architect and restarted the design process. UPMC plans to share its community engagement plan this summer and will then go through the approval process.

May 2021 update - UPMC announced that they expect to begin construction in summer 2022, with the building opening in fall 2026

UPMC presented at the August 31 Oakland-Wide meeting and returned for the November 30, 2021 Oakland-Wide/Development Activities Meeting. The project went to the Planning Commission meeting for a briefing on March 8. UPMC returned to the Planning Commission for a hearing on March 22, 2022 where the Commission unanimously approved the project.

June 2022: UPMC breaks ground.

Resources:

William Pitt Union patio renovations

The University of Pittsburgh plans renovations to the William Pitt Union building to address the Forbes Avenue side patio’s leaking roof, column reinforcement, and accessibility.

Pitt presented plans at the March 21, 2022 Development Activities meeting. The Historic Review Commission approved the project at its May 4, 2022 meeting. Construction is expected to begin in in summer 2022.

Resources:

UPMC - 3412 - 14 and 3416 5th Avenue

UPMC plans to restore exterior walls, replace the roofs, and add an elevator machine room to the Children’s Hospital office building/Oakland medical building at 3412 - 14 and 3416 Fifth Avenue.

They presented the renovation at the February 23, 2021 Oakland-Wide meeting as a required Development Activities Meeting (DAM), to the Planning Commission for a briefing on May 4, and at a Planning Commission hearing on May 18, 2021.

Project resources

The Portal - West Oakland

Project Summary: The Portal is a proposed development on three sites near Fifth Ave and Robinson streets that would include retail, restaurant, office, housing and hotel space. OPDC and West Oakland oppose the Planning Commission's approval. Although current efforts to continue the development are stalled, we are monitoring the project and will alert the community if developers resume plans.