Industry Noize: Fight For August Wilson Center

Mayor William Peduto and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald asked a judge in a joint statement to remove Judith Fitzgerald (no relation to the county exec) as the conservator who’s been handling bids for the venue.

The politicians said they “strongly support” a bid to buy the building from the Pittsburgh Foundation, the Heinz Endowments and the Richard King Mellon Foundation. They said Fitzgerald favored a “commercial approach” and the foundations said she favored a higher bid for the property making their offer futile.

The $40 million center, built in 2009, hosted jazz concerts, dance and other cultural events but the construction went far over budget and the center has been in debt since opening.

A judge recently approved selling off the building to settle a mortgage default and other debts totaling about $10 million.

Judith Fitzgerald said in a report that a bid by a developer could be “very attractive to the city, the county and the African-American community in Pittsburgh,” because the proposed commercial addition could subsidize arts-related programming and the developer is offering free gallery, office and storage space to the center.

The foundations voiced “significant concerns” about the proposal saying it would give the center limited access to its own theatre. The venue is named after the late Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright who grew up in Pittsburgh.

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