Getting off the ground
Innovation campus may finally launch development near Pittsburgh’s airport
Over the years, a bluff overlooking Pittsburgh International Airport has been the stuff of broken dreams for everything from a hotel to the world’s first indoor auto racing complex.
But now Allegheny County Airport Authority officials have a vision for the 195-acre tract that they believe will take off — and take hold.
Joined by a host of dignitaries, they unveiled plans Thursday for an airport innovation campus that could house offices, research and development labs, and industrial manufacturing facilities — all built around a town center with restaurants and retail.
Not only that, there eventually could be access to the airport’s runways from the site, a possible light rail or bus rapid transit link, and a direct shot from the site to the new terminal planned as part of a $1.1 billion modernization.
The authority broke ground Thursday on the 13-acre first phase of the innovation campus site preparation work, a job being handled by Cast and Baker of Canonsburg at a cost of $4.5 million. The work is expected to produce three pad-ready sites by the 2019 fourth quarter.
Under the vision laid out Thursday, the campus, formerly known as the World Trade Center, will total 1.4 million square feet — not including parts of the Findlay airport’s existing parking lots that eventually could be incorporated into the development.
In all, the authority hopes to have 16 padready parcels available to developers or possible tenants by 2023. The overall site was one of the prime ones offered to Amazon for its second headquarters in the region’s losing bid.
While the site work takes place, the authority will be working on a strategy to attract companies and business to the campus, CEO Christina Cassotis said.
It also will be collaborating with local universities to help chart a course for the development, she said.
Carnegie Mellon University already is partnering with the authority to make
Pittsburgh International “the smartest airport on the planet” through the use of apps, sensors, and other technology.
“This is really a big vision for the airport in terms of bringing the manufacturing that will take advantage of the region’s destination as a leader in [artificial intelligence] and robotics,” Ms. Cassotis said.
“So what does that mean and how does that fit with natural gas that’s being produced? So what is the industry cluster we should be looking at and then let’s figure up what companies we should be attracting.”
One goal, she said, might be to target industries that can produce goods that can then be shipped directly from the airport.
That is one reason the authority is hoping to keep the Qatar Airways cargo service in place long term even after paying $1.48 million in subsidies in the flight’s first year after it fell short of tonnage goals.
“The big strategy is that this airport, with all of its available land and the region’s assets in energy and high tech, can all come together right here,” Ms. Cassotis said.
Officials also see potential spin-offs emerging from the development of the Shell Oil Co. petrochemical cracker plant a short drive away in Beaver County, a venture that is expected to provide 600 jobs.
“Today is about economic vitality and about jobs,” said county Executive Rich Fitzgerald, noting that the airport project has been in the works for many years.
Among those joining Mr. Fitzgerald Thursday at the groundbreaking were U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb, state community and economic development secretary Dennis Davin, who served in a similar role for the county, and state House Speaker Mike Turzai.
Mr. Lamb pointed out that the airport is the first impression many people have of Pittsburgh when they come to visit.
“We’re making a great first impression right now, but I think it can even be better. People will show up here and what they immediately see is one of the most technologically advanced airports in the entire world, let alone the country, and they see a thriving commercial sector with tech startups and restaurants and light manufacturing, all in one place,” he said.
Authority officials hope to model the development after one at the Schiphol Amsterdam International Airport, where offices, a shopping mall and other facilities sit near the terminal and runways.
The Pittsburgh airport’s innovation campus has been designated as a licensed World Trade Center site and is located within a foreign-trade zone — meaning that companies doing business there can find relief or exemptions from certain duties and tariffs.
Full development of the site is expected to take at least 10 years. Construction of the first building could begin in two to three years.
Ms. Cassotis said the development also could help the airport generate nonaeronautical revenue that can be used to help lower costs to the airlines and attract more service.
“This is something I think can be transformational,” Mr. Davin said.