Metal and paint warehouses may join Strip District housing surge

Oct 21, 2023

On a small strip of Smallman Street sits an unassuming tan and red industrial building, once the home of the now-defunct Gateway Paint & Chemical Company. Behind it, separated by a narrow alleyway, sits a sheet metal, barn-style warehouse that once housed Hartman Metal Company. The site is not much different from other buildings in the Strip District — boxy, simplistic and purpose-built for industry.

Now, however, the site may be the next location for continued residential development in the Strip. The Hudson Companies, a real estate development company based in Hermitage, briefed the City Planning Commission on Tuesday on their plans to develop two properties located on Smallman and 30th Streets.

The two developments will each be six stories and comprise a total of 56,500 square feet of space and 234 units.

“We’re very familiar with the city and with the community, and we’re really happy to continue to invest in the neighborhoods the City of Pittsburgh has,” Hudson Companies Principal Jonathan Hudson said at the meeting.

The buildings will feature a pickleball court, yoga studio, a golf simulator and a pool, among other amenities.

The Smallman Street building would be located on the site of the former Gateway Paint & Chemical Company, while the 30th Street development would be on the former site of Hartman Metals Company. Hudson acquired the two properties in 2021 and 2022 for a total of around $6.2 million.

If the plan is approved, demolition of the two sites could begin by August. In addition to being both the developer and construction contractor, Hudson Companies would be the eventual manager of the apartment buildings.

“We’re along for every step of the ride here,” Jonathan Hudson said.

Representatives from the company made no comment about the pricing of the apartments, and could not immediately be reached after the commission meeting. The company is currently building a 148-unit luxury apartment complex on Melwood Avenue in North Oakland.

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The Commission also heard a proposal from UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh to expand its existing Heart Institute. The proposed project is a three-story, 50,000-square-foot building that would be constructed on top of the hospital’s mid-campus garage. A sky bridge would connect the new building to the hospital’s existing campus.

Hospital President Diane Hupp cited a need for the hospital to expand the institute in order to invest in growth and new technology.

“Our heart program is a longstanding program of excellence,” Hupp said. “We’re out of space in our current facility.”

The proposed new building would be significantly smaller than what was laid out in the institution’s master plan in 2013. According to the 2013 plan, the building was intended to be 180,000 square feet — 130,000 square feet more than the building now proposed.

Construction on the site would take two years, and would require the closure of a portion of 45th Street for 10 to 12 months in order to erect the building’s steel support structure.

Both projects are set to go before the commission for public comment and votes on July 11.

Lucas Dufalla is an editorial intern with PublicSource and can be reached at [email protected].

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