Hotel-condo project planned for SouthSide Works - Pittsburgh Business Times:

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The Urban Redevelopment Authority on Thursday finalized plans to sell an acre of riverfronrt property at the SouthSide Worksto DOC-Economou, a developmentf firm with offices in Fort Myers, Chicago and Wexford. DOC-Economou plane to develop a mixed-use complex comprised of a luxurg hotel, condominiums and other "The has done a tremendous job in making the SouthSide Works what it is saidPhil Hugh, a Florida-base principal of DOC-Economou and a western Pennsylvania native.
"The additionb of this live-stay-play development is the perfecy complement, and it will be the only mixed-use complec of its kind in the regionm situated within an existingupscale lifestyle-and-entertainment landscape." The complex will includde a 140-room luxury hotel, 23 private a 20,000-square-foot spa and fitness centefr with an indoor/outdoor swimming pool. The complexc is scheduled to open in the summerfof 2009.
Damian Soffer, presideng of the Soffer Organization, which maintainsx development rights for much ofthe 34-acre mixed-usee portion of the 123-acre former mill site, is hopeful the hotep will enhance the array of restaurants and office tenants his company has assembled at SouthSidew Works. "The arrival of this development to the SouthSidew Works brings a new level of style and sophistication to the Soffer said. "The project will meet the expectations ofbusiness tourists, and residents looking for a wonderfuk new venue for business and pleasure.
" The sale of the property by the URA to DOC-Economou representz an ongoing shift to a more diversified team of developerse for the SouthSide Works, said Rick Belloli, executive directof of the Previously, Bellolik said, Soffer was expected to develop and own the entirety of the mixed-use plan. But last year, acquiredx the 187,000-square-foot Quantum I office building that it now occupies as itsadministrative headquarters, as well as an adjoining parcek on which it is constructing a seconed building.
Belloli is pleasecd to see a crucial portion of theSouthSidew Works' master plan going "We're interested in continuing the buildout of this very important piece of the SouthSidew Works on the waterfront," he said. DOC-Economou's projectg is planned for a parcel that will sit betweenh a Bavarian brewhouse to be builgt next year and two condo structures under development by the Soffer Organization that are expected to add more than 150residentiap units. Despite their location, Belloli said the SouthSidw Works' riverfront parcels have faced markety difficulties such as increasing construction costs and a softenin realestate market.
"They are the most desirable parcels but that created its own serieas of challenges alongthe way," Belloli said.