Retail Recruitment and Liberty Avenue
Over the past two years, two of the Downtown Neighbors Alliance (DNA) two of the DNA's projects have been a crucial factor in revitalizing Downtown Pittsburgh’s retail landscape. In 2023 and 2024 alone, DNA's Retail Recruitment program assisted in opening 30 retail establishments, and our efforts continued into 2025 as 19 more businesses opened. Through persistent outreach, including making phone calls, meeting in person with potential new downtown businesses, and collaborating with commercial realtors, we have been able to drive meaningful change.
Our vision is to transform Downtown into a thriving, unique urban village with independent boutiques, cafes, and retail experiences that cannot be found in malls. This includes music venues, outdoor and diverse ethnic dining options, and a strong emphasis on women-owned businesses. We have already compiled a database of fifty vacant storefronts, and our goal is to have them all occupied within three to four years.
A large part of the Retail Recruitment plan is anchored by the revitalization efforts of our Liberty Avenue Program. Through this program, we aim to transform Liberty Avenue into a dynamic, welcoming street, filled with ethnic restaurants, live performances, boutique shops, and office spaces. The Retail Recruitment and Liberty Avenue Project efforts coincide, both aspiring to fill empty storefronts with unique businesses not currently present in downtown. Alongside our plan for storefront retail recruitment, we have launched a second-floor economy program, tracking available second-floor units that could house business and activity spaces such as salons, dance studios, martial arts gyms, and yoga studios.
Our previous Retail Recruitment projects have created approximately 522 permanent jobs in Downtown Pittsburgh beginning in 2023 and spanning through the first half of 2025.
The DNA remains committed to recruiting diverse and high-quality businesses to Downtown Pittsburgh. Our proactive engagement, incentives, and strategic partnerships continue to reduce vacancies and foster economic growth. We are optimistic about upcoming opportunities and will persist in our efforts to reshape Downtown into a vibrant and inclusive urban retail, dining, and entertainment hub. It is our belief that empty storefronts portray an image of blight and a feeling of being unsafe. Occupied storefronts create a vibrancy and energy that attracts other businesses, residents, and tourists alike.
