[NPMUG] Goodwill, Burns & Scalo make partnership official 4-30-09

[Dave Sevick]

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2009/04/27/daily59.html?t=printable



Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, Goodwill President and CEO Mike Smith, and  
Burns & Scalo Principal Jim Scalo at a press conference earlier today.

Thursday, April 30, 2009, 3:05pm EDT  |  Modified: Thursday, April 30,  
2009, 3:27pm	
Goodwill, Burns & Scalo make partnership official
Pittsburgh Business Times - by Tim Schooley

Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania and Burns & Scalo Real Estate  
Services Inc. made official their partnership to find the long-time  
South Side nonprofit organization a new home and redevelop its current  
headquarters, a 153,000-square-foot former J&L department store  
building on Carson Street.

Goodwill hosted the press today to confirm its relationship with Green  
Tree-based Burns & Scalo, which made public its plans to convert the  
seven-story structure into an apartment building of between 60 to 70  
units, along with street-level retail.

“We decided on an action plan with Burns & Scalo, and we’re confident  
we can get there,” said Mike Smith, president and CEO of Goodwill,  
which has operated out of the building for more than 40 years. “Today  
we find ourselves at a crossroads regarding our surroundings.”

Goodwill initiated a request-for-proposal process last fall to choose  
a developer that can both help it find a new facility in which to move  
its administrative operations and then eventually buy its collection  
of Carson Street properties that include both its main building as  
well as some surrounding parcels, excluding Goodwill’s store.

Smith emphasized again that Goodwill’s current facilities are costly  
and inefficient to maintain and would be too expensive to upgrade,  
putting out an open call for suggestions of potential new locations.

Jim Scalo, a principal of Burns & Scalo, looked forward to helping  
Goodwill to further its mission with a new headquarters and eventually  
buy and redevelop its property. He described the building as “made for  
apartments” that he tentatively plans to redevelopment into one and  
two bedroom units rented at market-rate prices, with parking provided  
underground. Scalo gave a rough estimate that such a redevelopment  
would cost between $12 million to $15 million.

“The building is clearly the jewel of the South Side,” said Scalo, who  
believes the project may be eligible for historic tax credits.

First, however, Burns & Scalo must help Goodwill find a new home, a  
quest that so far has proven elusive due to the nonprofit’s need for a  
one-floor facility to best accommodate its host of disabled clients  
that is close to ample public transportation.

Its major challenge is an urban environment because of the mismatch of  
city neighborhoods well served by public transportation are typically  
too densely developed to have newly built facilities that offer  
100,000 square feet on a single floor that Goodwill is seeking.

“The challenge is great because they’re looking for the Cinderella’s  
slipper,” Scalo said.

Because of that unknown, Goodwill’s relationship with Scalo is so far  
a partnership, with no agreements of sale for any property.

Mayor Luke Ravenstahl pledged to help in the process if needed, with  
potential assistance for the Urban Redevelopment Authority.


tschooley at bizjournals.com | (412) 208-3826



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