Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle - 1983
Renaissance II

The Golden Triangle - 1983
The City of Pittsburgh in 1983 during the construction phase known as Renaissance II.

These photos show Pittsburgh's Golden Triangle from the fall of 1982 through January 1984. This was a time of major change in the downtown area. The light rail transit subway was under construction and three towering new skyscrapers were rising towards the clouds. The U.S. Steel, the City's signature building would soon by joined by PPG Place, Mellon Bank Tower and Oxford Centre. This was a time commonly referred to as Mayor Richard S. Caligiuri's Renaissance II. The three gleaming skyscrapers were all completed by the spring of 1984. A fourth tower, Fifth Avenue Place would soon follow, in 1988, to complete the stunning transformation of the Pittsburgh skyline.

Tower Construction Photos 1982-1984

The Golden Triangle - 1982
One Oxford Centre begins it's rise from ground level inn 1982.
The tower would rise to forty-six stories and open in 1983.

Oxford Centre rises in 1982.    The Mellon Tower rises in 1982.
Oxford Centre (left) and Mellon Tower (right) rise skyward as part of Pittsburgh's second renaissance.

Construction Derrick along Smithfield Street.    The steel skeleton of the PPG Tower.
A construction derrick along Smithfield Street (left) and the steel skeleton of the PPG Tower.

Oxford Centre and the Mellon Tower alter the landscape along Grant Street.    The majestic PPG Tower and accompanying buildings border historic Market Square.
Oxford Center and Mellon Tower under construction on Grant Street in 1982 (left); PPG Plaza in 1983 (right).

The steel-frame of the PPG Building rises in 1983.    Construction of the PPG Wintergarten in 1983.
The steel-framing of the PPG Tower rises skyward in early 1983 (left); The PPG Wintergarten in the fall of 1983.

The mirror-like facade being affixed to PPG Plaza in 1983.    PPG Plaza nearing completion in early-1984, taken from Wood Street at the PNC Building.
PPG Plaza being plated with it's mirror-like facade in 1983 (left) and nearing completion in early 1984 (right).

PPG Plaza is nearing completion in late-1983.    Oxford Centre and Mellon Tower are open in late-1983.
Pittsburgh in January 1984. PPG Plaza is nearing completion (left) and the Oxford and Mellon Towers are open.

The Golden Triangle in 1985

The Golden Triangle - 1985
By 1985 the construction of the three new towers was complete and the Pittsburgh skyline dramatically altered.

The Golden Triangle in 1988

The Golden Triangle - 1988
By 1988, the Fifth Avenue Place skyscraper had been completed and the period known as Renaissance II was complete.
The city skyline was transformed over the past seven years and will remain this way for the next two-plus decades.

The Grant Plaza Proposal - 1978

Proposal for Grant Plaza - 1978.    Proposal for Grant Plaza - 1978.
Artist's conception of the proposed Grant Plaza, presented in the mid-1970s.

Oxford Center, located on Grant Street near the City-County Building, opened in 1983. Plans for a second tower were abandoned in the mid-1980s. Another proposal for development of these lots was for the construction of an alternate set of skyscrapers that would have been known as Grant Plaza.

The proposed Grant Plaza would have consisted of twin towers with a 190,000 square foot glass-enclosed atrium connecting the buildings. The indoor garden at plaza level would have linked shops and restaurants within the buildings. The remainder of the towers would have consisted of office space. The $100 million complex, situated between Grant and Smithfield Streets, would have also included a five-level, 1000 car underground parking garage. The Grant Plaza proposal was abandoned in favor of the Oxford Centre project.

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