An Interface Studio-led team was hired by the City of Pittsburgh and the communities of Beechview and Allentown, Beltzhoover, and Mt. Washington to create a SMART TRID plan (SMART = South Metro Area Revitalization through Transit / TRID = Transit Revitalization Investment District). The purpose of this plan was to examine the existing conditions and future opportunities located roughly within a ½-mile of South Hills Junction and the Red Line stops in Beechview with the goals of increasing transit ridership, spurring economic development, strengthening existing neighborhood assets, enhancing the public realm, improving safety, and encouraging community building around transit.
The South Metro Area neighborhoods enjoy proximity to downtown Pittsburgh and represent opportunities to integrate transit-oriented development into both stable and distressed communities on the South Side.
While each of the South Metro Area neighborhoods has a distinct relationship to its respective transit station and significant variations in overall neighborhood conditions, they all present unique opportunities to encourage investment in underutilized land and buildings in the blocks adjacent and in close proximity to each station.
Our process was a collaboration with the City, Port Authority and local residents to understand the on-the-ground issues with regard to each station.