Empty no more: art and businesses brought to former vacant retail space in downtown Pittsburgh

In January, downtown Pittsburgh’s Golden Triangle had nearly 50 empty storefronts. Now, all are either filled with businesses or art installations.

Local nonprofit Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership is leading what they call a “Vibrancy Initiative,” aimed at contributing to the ongoing revitalization of the neighborhood. The group is always working to fill vacant retail spaces, but the NFL Draft brought more urgency to those efforts, said Cate Irvin, senior director of economic development.  

The group revived a “pop-up” program earlier this year, allowing businesses to access retail space – pending an agreement from the property owner – for six to 12 months. Eighteen new businesses have opened within the past two weeks, including The Silly Goose Unapologetic Gifts & Novelties on Wood Street, whose owner came to the area because of the partnership’s initiatives leading into the NFL Draft.

“While the [Vibrancy Initiative] name is new, it really does lean into some very familiar work that you've seen here in downtown Pittsburgh,” Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership CEO Jeremy Waldrup said. “It takes all the strategies that have guided our organization's economic development and public realm programs over the last few years and puts them under one roof, continuing to drive ongoing and future investments here in downtown revitalization.”

Other areas of the Vibrancy Initiative include pedestrian infrastructure improvements, enhanced public spaces, and art installations, ranging from interior spaces for visitors to exterior, walk-by attractions.

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One of these art displays was created by Kristina Fisher and Neal Lucas Hitch on the corner of 7^th and Liberty Avenues. The installation, called “For Seasons,” is an interactive display composed of 3-D printed lamps and thermodynamic window decals.  

“I think the thing that's really exciting about this is not revitalizing anything but actually creating something new and uniquely exciting,” Hitch said. “The most exciting thing is just getting people excited about art. Window shopping is a kind of a term everybody's familiar with, but it's maybe more interesting to actually program the street front with cultural activities.”

Another installation inspired by the window-shopping experience is Owen Lowery’s “Worlds of Windows: Window Shop for Window Shopping” at the Century Building.  

While no windows are for sale, Lowery uses layered frames and shifting colors to encourage visitors to see themselves and the city of Pittsburgh from a different perspective.

Lowery and Hitch’s installations were made possible through Shiftworks Community + Public Arts, an organization dedicated to bringing together public art and civic design. The group has brought 35 unique installations by local artists to storefronts and building facades since 2025.

“We’re looking at how artists are continuing to shift spaces in Downtown, as well as our neighborhoods, transforming everyday spaces into connection and discovery,” Executive Director Sallyann Kluz said.

Some of these 35 installations also explore Downtown Pittsburgh’s history, such as “The Wall Street of Pittsburgh” at the former YWCA building on Wood Street, which continues into a walk-in display in the Benedum Trees Building.

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Over 100 various business and art projects have been completed this month in downtown Pittsburgh’s Golden Triangle, including 53 retail and storefront activations. Map courtesy of the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.

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“We are delivering 104 projects this quarter, representing about $1.5 million in investment,” Waldrup said. “Through this Vibrancy Initiative, [we are] engaging local artists and small businesses and bringing to life historic storefronts, streets and public spaces. With the ambitious goal of having these open in time for the draft, but with our number one mission being that these things last much, much longer.”

The NFL Draft is expected to generate $120 million to $213 million in economic impact, based on prior draft numbers. The main stage will be located outside of Acrisure Stadium on the North Shore. Other events will be spread throughout the North Shore and at Point State Park.  

VisitPittsburgh, the tourism agency leading draft preparation, estimates a crowd of 500,000 to 700,000 fans. More than $18.9 million in public funds has been committed by the Commonwealth, Allegheny County, and the city of Pittsburgh to host the three-day event. A $3.4 million upgrade to Point State Park was also completed earlier this year in preparation.  

“[The NFL Draft] is Pittsburgh's opportunity... to talk about small businesses and startups that are unique to Pittsburgh, that not every city has,” Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor said. “It's all these great Pittsburgh things telling the Pittsburgh story, which is why we are also supportive from the county to the state to the local level.”

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Erin Yudt is a reporter with the Pittsburgh Media Partnership Newsroom, part of the Center for Media Innovation at Point Park University. She most recently was a multimedia content producer and digital reporter at WKBN in Youngstown and is a graduate of Point Park University. Reach her at erin.yudt@pointpark.edu.  

The PMP Newsroom is a regional news service that focuses on government and enterprise reporting in southwestern Pennsylvania. Find out more information on foundation and corporate funders here.

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Header image: The intersection of Wood Street and Fourth Avenue in downtown Pittsburgh on April 21, 2026. Many new businesses and art displays have appeared within the past year and in preparations for the NFL Draft. Erin Yudt/PMP