Axios Pittsburgh

🌳 OUTDOOR AIRPORT TERRACE: Pittsburgh International Airport opened its first outdoor terrace today, joining a short list of major U.S. airports with public, open-air spaces.

✈️ ZOOM IN: The first of four planned terraces blends native plants, walking paths and seating in a pre-security space where anyone, ticketed or not, can relax and watch planes ascend.

— The 36,000-square-foot UPMC Terrace sits on the arrivals level of PIT’s new landside terminal, just past Café Conmigo and the Visit Pittsburgh desk.

— It will be open during airport hours, all year long — if winter patio season is your thing.
You can eat and drink outside. Smoking isn’t permitted.

🎫 BETWEEN THE LINES: The addition reflects a growing trend: Outdoor decks that double as places to decompress, ease terminal crowding and give travelers a break from the bustle.

⏩ WHAT’S NEXT: Three more terraces, one pre-security and two post-security, are still to come, but that timeline is still in flux.

🎥: Chrissy Suttles/Axios
✍️ Link in bio

🎶 NEW MUSIC VENUE: Live Nation gave Axios a hard-hat tour of Citizens Live at The Wylie, the new 98,500-square-foot venue located next to PPG Paints Arena in the Hill District.

🏟️ BY THE NUMBERS: There will be 4,000 seats across the general admission ground floor and a balcony with rows of seats and space for tables. It has seven bars, including a rooftop deck overlooking the FNB Financial Center and the rest of the Pittsburgh skyline.

🎹 THE VIBE: Guests are greeted by a massive 38-step grand staircase flanked by photographs from Charles “Teenie” Harris, whose acclaimed work documented Black life during the Hill District’s heyday. The hall and bar will feature an upside-down, glimmering piano, a nod to the famous mirrored piano at the former Crawford Grill in the Hill.

🗣️ WHAT THEY’RE SAYING: Designer Sara Silvestri said they needed to pay homage to the area’s history. “It was important for us to build something with soul,” she said.

Tom Loudermilk, Western Pennsylvania president for Live Nation, said the design also ensures every seat has a great view. “There is not a bad sightline in the balcony.”

⏩️ WHAT’S NEXT: Indie-pop sensation ROLE MODEL plays the opening show on Oct. 1, followed by hometown favorite Wiz Khalifa on Oct. 2.

✍️ by Ryan Deto

🛣️ PARKWAY REOPENS: The Parkway East’s new Commercial Street Bridge will reopen this evening (July 27) at 8pm — a full week ahead of schedule, Gov. Josh Shapiro and PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll announced today.

🚧 WHY IT MATTERS: The major highway project, which detoured roughly 100,000 daily motorists, wrapped up in just over two weeks.

🚗 ZOOM IN: The highway will reopen to eastbound traffic at 8pm tonight, with westbound lanes following shortly after. PennDOT and law enforcement will help es**rt the first vehicles through.

🔙 FLASHBACK: PennDOT kept crews working around the clock after the July 10 closure under a contract that offered up to $2 million for reopening the bridge before Tuesday and imposed penalties if the project slipped past the Aug. 3 deadline, per PennDOT.

— Crews spent more than a year building the new Commercial Street Bridge adjacent to the 75-year-old span before imploding the old bridge on July 16 and sliding the new bridge into place soon after.
 
✍️ BETWEEN THE LINES: The project joins Philadelphia’s rapid I-95 repair in 2023 as a high-profile example that infrastructure projects don’t have to drag on.

🎥: Chrissy Suttles/Axios

🪴DEATH BLOOM: One of Phipps’ oldest residents is showing off before the curtain falls for good.

🌼WHY IT MATTERS: The conservatory’s 50- to 60-year-old Agave americana is in the middle of its only bloom — a spectacular event that signals the end of the plant’s life cycle.

🏜️THE INTRIGUE: The flowering stalk soared so high that Phipps removed a pane of glass from the Desert Room roof to accommodate it. As the plant declines, new “pups” growing at its base will carry on its legacy.

🍋‍🟩WHAT’S NEXT: Adiós Agave Night at Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens is 5pm–10pm July 24 with agave-inspired cocktails and mocktails, horticulture talks and free succulents for the first 300 guests.

📍1 Schenley Dr., Oakland. The event is included with the price of admission. Tickets available at phipps.conservatory.org.

🎥: Chrissy Suttles/Axios