Surcharge proposed for parking in Pittsburgh’s Hill District neighborhood

PITTSBURGH — For years, the former Civic Arena site in the lower Hill District has been under construction. However, there are now big plans to build the area into a massive live music space. The issue is that while this part of the neighborhood is being built up, community groups want to see those dollars spread throughout the entire Hill District.

“We are looking for $2 on parking,” said Marimba Milliones, president and CEO of the Hill Community Development Corporation.

Two dollars for parking and $2 for ticket sales is what one community group said is needed from developers looking to build a live concert venue in the lower Hill District.

“These are fees that could go back to the community and support redevelopment. You can see there is a lot of need, a lot of vacancy in the middle Hill District and the upper Hill District,” said Milliones.

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Milliones said that money is not only needed, but contractually owed through an agreement known as the Community Collaboration and Implementation Plan.

“It’s coordinated community development, so that what happens, down in the lower Hill benefits the middle and upper Hill as well,” Milliones, said.

But the Buccini/Pollin Group, developers of the project, disagree and said a surcharge of $2 could present an economic hardship to concertgoers — something supporters of the fee find hard to believe.

“That land is publicly owned, and that land is being sold for $10. So again, how is it economically infeasible to do a $2 surcharge?,” asked Milliones.

The group said with the painful history of the lower Hill District — the government removed 8,000 people and 430 businesses in a predominantly Black community to make way for the Civic Arena and highways — there is an obligation to right a wrong.

“There is an obligation ethically, morally and economically, to the entire Hill District,” said Milliones.

The group said community members can weigh in on the proposed surcharge and the plans for the lower Hill District during an upcoming city planning meeting on Nov. 15 at 1 p.m. For additional information, residents can visit www.hilldistrict.org.

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