Philadelphia developer is an up-and-comer in downtown Pittsburgh

9/13/2012 | Real Estate Blog

According to the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, Philadelphia developer PMC Property Group is quickly becoming a leading property owner in downtown Pittsburgh. The developer recently bought a 30,000 square-foot building downtown for $525,000. The purchase pushes PMC very close to the 1 million square feet mark in terms of real estate ownership.

And if an expected purchase goes through with the James Reed Building, a 195,000 square-foot property, PMC will have in ownership 1.2 million square-feet of real estate. While that’s a significant number, it is still less than the 2.5 million square-feet of space owned by PNC Financial Services Group.

PMC’s most recent addition is planned to be converted into apartments, between 30 and 35 units in total, along with some possible street-retail use. PMC also reportedly plans to convert the James Reed Building into residential space.

A spokesman for PMC said the company’s recent purchases are based on seeing valuable opportunity for under-utilized or overlooked rental space in Pittsburgh and transforming them into “thriving rental communities and commercial spaces. PMC has had a similar strategy in Philadelphia, and currently owns over 3,000 residential units there.

Other recent acquisitions of the company are a 10-story building, which it plans to turns into apartment space in the upper levels; a 30-story building, with which it has similar plans; and a 13-story building which it plans to convert to 100 residential units and possible ground-level commercial space.

Companies and individuals engaged in this kind of development activity inevitably have legal issues come up, whether in the area of real estate law, construction law, development, or zoning issues. Having an experienced attorney to guide one through the legal issues is invaluable.

Source: Post-Gazette, “Philadelphia developer gaining presence in Downtown Pittsburgh,” Mark Belko, September 8, 2012