Overview

The expansive North Shore Riverfront Park is the result of a $35 million investment in rehabilitation and reconstruction on the northern banks of the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers. In total, the park includes 11.25 acres of public space and parkland. Specifically, the park contains 3.1 acres of lawn and 2.1 acres of planting area. The remaining acreage is dedicated to a riverwalk, walkways, memorials, and public art.

Key Facts

Features

The Sports & Exhibition Authority completed the park with assistance from federal, state, local and philanthropic sources which include:

• Pennsylvania Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program
• Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
• Federal Transportation Enhancements Safe Routes to School Program
• The Heinz Endowments
• Richard King Mellon Foundation
• The Grable Foundation
• Eden Hall Foundation
• Hillman Foundation
• Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation
• Roy A. Hunt Foundation
• Jewish Healthcare Foundation
• Laurel Foundation
• H.J. Heinz Company Foundation
• Alcoa Foundation
• PNC Charitable Trust
• Anonymous

The park was designed and programmed through a series of public workshops. EDAW, Inc. developed schematic designs from a weeklong charette, held in November 1999. Hundreds of individuals and dozens of interest groups gave input to the design team.

Construction is complete from the Roberto Clemente Bridge and PNC Park, westward to the Carnegie Science Center. Features include:

• Riverwalk, Market Street Pier, and Esplanade
• Great Lawn
• Water Steps and Canal Square
• Carnegie Science Center Connection and Shoreline Mitigation
• Memorials and Public Art

Riverwalk, Market Street Pier, and Esplanade

The Riverwalk is used for a variety of recreational activities. Populated with runners, boaters and walkers, the riverwalk encourages public access to the river.

The Esplanade, a broad walkway of brick, granite and sandstone is an elegant walkway extending the length of the park. It is set at the plateau of the riverbank and is 16 feet above the river and above the level of the hundred-year flood plain. The Esplanade offers visitors outdoor dining opportunities at local restaurants including:

• Jerome Bettis Grille 36
• Calico Jack's
• Hyde Park
• McFadden's

The Market Street View Corridor is adjacent to the Esplanade and between the Del Monte building. It enables pedestrians to access the park from retail developments along North Shore Drive.

Great Lawn

Located east of Heinz Field, the Great Lawn is a two-acre lawn which overlooks the river. The Great Lawn offers people a picnicking, boat watching, and ball playing venue. It is the largest such place in the North Shore Park and also can accommodate huge crowds for festivals and performances.

Water Steps and Canal Square

The Water Steps are a popular destination feature in the North Shore Riverfront Park. The steps offer a playful element to the Park and a beautiful display of water landscaping.

Located just west of PNC Park, between the Equitable Building and the Allegheny River, the Water Steps are constructed of nearly 500 blocks of sandstone cut from a Butler County quarry and more than 1,000 smaller pieces of sandstone. The Water Steps are approximately 40 feet wide at the top, but broaden as the steps descend. Young and old alike gather and enjoy the spectacular view.

In 2007, Canal Square was completed which connects North Shore Drive with the Esplanade and Water Steps. Canal Square is eighty-eight feet wide and paved with similar bricks as the Esplanade. Its central feature is a reflecting pool that varies in width from twenty-six to thirty-five feet and recreates the form and location of an historic canal of the nineteenth century.

The Canal flows from the same source as the Water Steps. The sides of the pool are demarked by sandstone curbs at seating height encouraging visitors to sit along its length. At the midpoint of the canal is a small waterfall and a twelve-foot wide pedestrian bridge, so that visitors may cross the canal.

Carnegie Science Center Connection & Shoreline Mitigation

In September 2005, the Carnegie Science Center Connection was created to join existing trails to North Shore Riverfront Park. The Connection included seating steps, a public plaza and landscaping. This project was funded through a Federal Transportation Enhancement grant.

The Carnegie Science Center Connection provides the missing link between Steeler's Quay and the Carnegie Science Center and provides park users direct access westward along the trail. The pathway is accessible both for event and emergency vehicles and for people with disabilities.

This second phase of the Carnegie Science Center Connection project included underwater mitigation along the entire stretch of North Shore Riverfront Park. Completed in August 2007, this aquatic mitigation includes dredging, rip rap and boulders and was required by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The recommended measures protect endangered and threatened species of fish while also improving river habitat.

In addition, shoreline mitigation increases opportunities for educational enrichment. The natural environment on the riverfront and in the water will serve as new “laboratories” for discovery and recreational activities. Schools, community organizations and the Carnegie Science Center could use this section of the park for field trips, lessons and simple experiments, encouraging both children and their families to learn about and interact with the rivers.

Memorials and Public Art

North Shore Riverfront Park contains several different memorials as well as a public art piece created by nationally acclaimed artist R.M. Fischer. Please visit Public Art & NSRFP for more information.

Event Information

The North Shore Riverfront Park is a popular location for special events. Many run/walks, festivals, ceremonies, and other community events are held in the park each year. Please visit Events and NSRFP for more information on scheduling an event in the park.

Last Updated 2/5/08

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