In a 3-2 vote, the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh voted Wednesday to approve a development proposal for the old Civic Arena site, with three amendments added to the deal.
They include removing opposition by community groups, adding a 40 percent penalty if the work’s not done by the 2023 deadline and sending money from a 10 percent tax break to the Hill District Redevelopment Fund.
Not everyone was pleased with the outcome of the vote.
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“I don't understand why they're getting any parking revenue at all,” said a Hill District resident at the meeting. “So that's a concern.”
But City Council members like Daniel Lavelle say this is a lot better than what they originally had to work with.
“For me personally, there were more barriers to this, which is why I voted ‘no’ on the whole,” he said. “But what I do acknowledge is that this is better than where we were. We were handed a horrible, horrible, horrific deal and with the help of our mayor, with the help of our director, we've tried to make this better.”
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Now the Pens will have until Dec. 15 to pass the agreement, including those three amended conditions.
After the meeting, Channel 11 tried to speak with a Pens representative but we were told they had no comment.