Pittsburgh Architecture Week Showcases The City's Built Environment of the Past, Present and Future
By Olivia Miller
On your walk to the office in the morning, it is easy to stare at the ground while listening to your favorite podcast or get lost in your phone. But, lifting your head and taking in the built environment will open a whole new world.
You can observe the clash of modern accents from the glassy One PNC Plaza skyscraper against the historic luxury of the Frick Building and the future modernistic FNB Financial Center. The American Institute of Architects’ (AIA) Pittsburgh Architecture Week serves to give Pittsburghers a new perspective on the structures they see and use everyday.
Now in its second year, the initiative not only celebrates the city’s architectural heritage but also educates the public about the technical and design talent that was needed to create the structures.
AIA executive director Michelle Franzo says, “We see buildings and public spaces every day but often don’t think about how they got there, what makes them work, or all the people with a wide variety of expertise involved in creating them. We are excited to once again celebrate the past, present and future of the city’s rich and varied architecture through Pittsburgh Architecture Week and take this opportunity to advocate for great design.”
From Oct. 6 through Oct. 13, there will be a full schedule of events taking place throughout the city, including several in Downtown Pittsburgh.
On Oct. 7 and Oct. 8, there will be rooftop tours of some of the most iconic Downtown skyscrapers. Hosted by Mark Houser, a local writer and professional speaker, the tours will stop at the Koppers Building, Oliver Building, Clark Building and the Benedum Center. At each of these locations, guests will be given unique, birds-eye views of the city from the rooftops and have the chance to hear entertaining anecdotes about the architects who built the structures.
The two-hour tours will be held rain or shine from 10 a.m. to noon, 1-3 p.m., and 4-6 p.m. on each day. Tickets for the tours are $32 and can be purchased on Eventbrite.
On Oct. 11, the AIA will host their Remaking Cities: the Future for Downtown Buildings panel. The event will feature architects Sean Beasley (Strada), Jonathan Glance (LGA Partners), Quintin Kittle (QK Architecture) and Christine Mondor (evolveEA) as panelists. Matters such as affordable housing and post-COVID revitalization as well as best practices for both will be discussed before a question and answer session with the audience.
The event will be held at the Strada Offices at 611 William Penn Place. Admission is free but attendees will need to register here for building access. It is important to note that attendees should arrive at 11:45 a.m. as the event will start promptly at noon.
To cap off Pittsburgh Architecture Week, on Oct.13, there will be a walking tour of the Penn and Liberty corridor. The tour will be facilitated by the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation and will start and end at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center at 980 Liberty Avenue. The tour will start at 10 a.m. and end around 11:15 a.m.; participants are encouraged to arrive 10 minutes early. Tickets for the event are $20 and are available on the PHLF’s website here.
To learn more about Pittsburgh Architecture Week and to see a full list of their events, click here.
