The Andy Warhol Museum on the North Shore is making a pitch to build a new entertainment venue. And in the process, it has made a rock-solid case that no public dollars be used.
As the Post-Gazette reports it, the museum went before the city zoning board Thursday last seeking approval of a four-story complex that “would anchor a six-block Pop District that would include an economic and workforce development program along with public art.”
Dan Law, the Warhol’s associate director, said the new facility would “serve a number of core functions that are very, very necessary for the museum to sustain itself.”
To wit, as the P-G reported, “the first two floors would house an entertainment space with a capacity of up to 1,000 people standing. The third floor would consist of offices and support spaces, particularly for workforce programs.
“The top floor would host an event space used mainly for corporate events, weddings, conferences and other functions.
“Such events are ‘quite popular requests for the museum but we are unable to fulfill most of them’ because of a lack of space, he said.”
It seems, Law has said, that Warhol officials turn down hundreds and hundreds of requests each year for use of the museum for such functions. As a result, it misses out on opportunities that “would be beneficial to our bottom line,” he said.
Voila!
Now, there’s been no talk of any public money in this project. And, given Law’s words, neither should there be.
Right?
The P-G also reports that “the Pittsburgh Penguins asked the zoning board to extend a special exception granted in 2021 for another year so they can continue to use Hunt Armory in Shadyside as a seasonal ice rink.”
But the real story here is this:
“The Penguins are in the process of buying Hunt Armory from the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) for $2 million,” the newspaper has been reporting.
$2 million?
The price is rationalized as being what the URA paid for it and to cover other costs. But it strikes us as yet another sweetheart deal for the Pens.
If the Pens, already recipients of a sweetheart new hockey arena, and sweetheart development rights of the old Civic Arena site, want to buy the historic armory, well bully, bully for them.
But what’s the real and true market price for this prime parcel of historic real estate?
We’ll likely never know given government’s long-running intervention in the private sales process. But we can just about guarantee that it’s far more than $2 million.
Colin McNickle is communications and marketing director at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy (cmcnickle@alleghenyinstitute.org).
