Pittsburgh and Allegheny County officials, as well
execs from the Pirates and Steelers, "unveiled the newest
drawings of several hundred million dollars of proposed
stadium-related development on the North Shore," according
to Tom Barnes of the PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE. If built, the
project would include a $211M football stadium, a $209M
baseball stadium, a 5,000-seat riverfront amphitheater, a
new hotel, two 2,000-to-2,500 car parking garages, a mass
transit line along General Robinson Street, a $60M expansion
of the Carnegie Science Center, as well as sports bars,
stores and other development. Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy
and county Commissioner Mike Dawida, supporters of the plan,
"admitted the unveiling was timed to drum up support for the
stadium plan before next week's funding vote in the state
Legislature." Murphy: "It comes down to having the will to
make this happen. These stadiums are a symbol of whether
this region will move forward or live in the past." The PA
House and Senate "are expected" to vote Monday or Tuesday on
whether to provide $75M to $80M each for the two stadiums,
and without state funding, "they probably won't be built"
(POST-GAZETTE, 11/20). An "emotional" Murphy, "with a
cracking voice and tears in his eyes, pleaded with state
legislators to support" the plan: "We need the Legislature
to make the right decision" (TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 11/20).
