A downtown Pittsburgh block long zoned for office towers and park-like open plazas could soon see high-density residential towers and hotels under a sweeping zoning overhaul the city’s Planning Commission heard last week.
The changes stem from the Phase 1 amendment package presented to the Planning Commission last week, which was directed by Executive Order 2026-01.
The order declared Pittsburgh’s zoning code “outdated” and said it “makes it harder to build housing and bring economic opportunities to Pittsburgh.” City Council is expected to hold a public hearing and vote this fall.
The downtown rezoning, block by block
The most concrete change is a targeted rezoning of one downtown block—bounded by Stanwix Street, Fort Pitt Boulevard, Commonwealth Place, and Boulevard of the Allies—from GT-D zoning to GT-C…