Bakery Square

Bakery Square is a mixed-use development in Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood, near Shadyside and East Liberty. The campus occupies approximately 5.1 acres along Penn Avenue and combines office, retail, hospitality, and residential uses. Its central building originated as a Nabisco bakery factory constructed in 1918, giving the modern development a distinctive industrial heritage. The factory operated until 1998. In 1999, the Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern Pennsylvania acquired the building and leased it to Atlantic Baking Company. Atlantic Baking later became associated with Bake-Line Group, which entered bankruptcy in 2004. The vacant or underused property subsequently became part of Pittsburgh’s wider East End redevelopment effort. In 2006, the city designated the building as blighted, helping clear the way for a redevelopment proposal led by Walnut Capital. After renovation, the principal Bakery Square building reopened in May 2010. The completed project repositioned the former factory as a technology-oriented office and commercial campus. The development has approximately 950,000 square feet of office space and approximately 90,000 square feet of retail space. Google became one of its most prominent office occupants, leasing roughly 115,000 square feet by January 2011. The preservation of a large dough mixer from the former factory serves as a visible reminder of the site’s manufacturing history. Bakery Square’s office community has also included educational, government, research, defense, and technology-related users. Listed occupants and affiliated operations include the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, rehabilitation-science and assistive-technology programs, Carnegie Mellon University, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Sheetz, and other organizations. Retail and hospitality uses have included SpringHill Suites by Marriott, Anthropologie, FP Movement, West Elm, restaurants, cafés, an ice-cream shop, fitness facilities, and other food-service businesses. The development expanded through Bakery Square 2.0, a later project created through collaboration between Walnut Capital and the Urban Redevelopment Authority of the City of Pittsburgh. The expansion involved the former Reizenstein school site and added office and residential development. The residential component, marketed as Bakery Living, opened in stages: the first apartment building was completed in early June 2014, followed by a second building in June 2016. Sustainability features associated with the residential project include Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification, green roofs, bioswales, bioretention areas, and porous paving. Bakery Square is therefore best understood not as a packaged-food brand or conventional shopping center, but as a place-based redevelopment brand built around the adaptive reuse of a former industrial property. Its identity combines historic preservation, office leasing, retail and dining, residential living, and the attraction of major institutional and technology tenants to Pittsburgh’s East End.

Bakery Square developed from a former Nabisco manufacturing facility in Pittsburgh’s East End. The main building was constructed in 1918 as a bakery factory and remained in operation until 1998. Its industrial purpose shaped the later identity of the site; a large dough mixer from the factory was retained in the redeveloped complex as a reference to the property’s manufacturing past. In 1999, the Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern Pennsylvania purchased the building and leased it to Atlantic Baking Company. Atlantic Baking subsequently became part of, or merged with, Bake-Line Group. The baking operation did not provide a lasting future for the property, and Bake-Line Group entered bankruptcy in 2004. The former factory then became part of the broader challenge of reusing older industrial buildings in Pittsburgh’s East End. The City of Pittsburgh designated the building as blighted in 2006. That designation helped enable a new redevelopment approach, and Walnut Capital advanced plans in 2007 to convert the property into a mixed-use office and retail project. The remodeled building opened in May 2010. Rather than reproducing the site’s former industrial function, the redevelopment used the factory structure as a platform for offices, retail, food service, and other commercial activity. The resulting Bakery Square campus grew into a substantial office destination, with approximately 950,000 square feet of office space. Google became a prominent tenant, while educational, research, public-sector, defense, and technology-related users also occupied space. Organizations and programs associated with the campus have included the University of Pittsburgh’s rehabilitation and assistive-technology activities, Carnegie Mellon University, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and other institutional tenants. The office mix helped establish Bakery Square as more than a conventional retail project. Retail space accounts for approximately 90,000 square feet. The tenant mix has included apparel and home-furnishing retailers, restaurants, cafés, hospitality, fitness, and specialty food businesses. Reported tenants have included Anthropologie, FP Movement, West Elm, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, Panera, Starbucks, Jimmy John’s, L.A. Fitness, Jeni’s Ice Cream, Tako Torta, Alta Via Pizzeria, and City Kitchen. Tenant rosters can change over time, so these names describe reported occupants rather than a permanent commercial directory. The project later expanded through Bakery Square 2.0. Walnut Capital worked with Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority to acquire and demolish the former Reizenstein school site, creating room for additional office and residential construction. The residential portion became known as Bakery Living. Its first apartment building opened in early June 2014, and a second building opened in June 2016. The residential design incorporated sustainability features including LEED certification, green roofs, bioretention, bioswales, and porous paving. Bakery Square also gained wider public attention in June 2014 when President Barack Obama visited TechShop at the complex. The visit highlighted the site’s connection to technology, prototyping, and innovation-oriented workspaces. Overall, Bakery Square represents the adaptive reuse and expansion of an early twentieth-century industrial property into a modern mixed-use campus. Its continuing identity rests on the combination of preserved industrial character, large-scale office accommodation, retail and dining, institutional tenancy, hospitality, and residential development.

1. 2016Second residential building opens

   The second Bakery Living building is completed and made available for rent in June.

   Source
2. 2014Bakery Living’s first building opens

   The first residential building in the Bakery Living component is completed and begins accepting tenants.

   Source
3. 2010Remodeled Bakery Square opens

   The renovated main building opens in May as a mixed-use office and retail development.

   Source
4. 2007Walnut Capital advances redevelopment

   Walnut Capital develops plans to transform the former factory into a mixed-use office and retail project.

   Source
5. 2006Building declared blighted

   The City of Pittsburgh declares the former factory building blighted, supporting a subsequent redevelopment process.

   Source
6. 2004Bake-Line Group enters bankruptcy

   The baking operation associated with Atlantic Baking and Bake-Line Group ends after Bake-Line Group enters bankruptcy.

   Source
7. 1999Property acquired for continued industrial use

   The Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern Pennsylvania acquires the building and leases it to Atlantic Baking Company.

   Source
8. 1998Factory operations end

   The Nabisco bakery facility ceases operations after roughly eight decades of industrial use.

   Source
9. 1918Nabisco factory is constructed

   The principal Bakery Square building is built as a Nabisco bakery factory along Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh.

   Source

A historic-industrial redevelopment positioned as a mixed-use destination for technology, education, government, retail, dining, hospitality, and residential activity in Pittsburgh’s East End.

• Bakery Square office campusOffice real estate2010

  The office component occupies approximately 950,000 square feet and accommodates technology companies, universities, research programs, government agencies, defense users, and other organizations. Google is among the best-known reported tenants. The space is housed largely within the rehabilitated former Nabisco factory and related campus buildings.

• Bakery Square retail and diningRetail and food service2010

  The development includes approximately 90,000 square feet of retail space. Reported uses have included apparel, furniture and home goods, cafés, restaurants, fast-casual food, specialty desserts, fitness, and hospitality. Examples of reported tenants include Anthropologie, West Elm, Starbucks, Panera, Jeni’s Ice Cream, and L.A. Fitness.

• Bakery Square 2.0Mixed-use expansion

  Bakery Square 2.0 is an expansion associated with the redevelopment of the former Reizenstein school site. The project was planned to add a combination of office and residential uses to the original Bakery Square campus.

• Bakery LivingResidential real estate2014

  Bakery Living is the residential component of the expanded development. Two apartment buildings opened in stages, with the first completed in early June 2014 and the second in June 2016. Reported design features include LEED certification, green roofs, bioswales, bioretention areas, and porous paving.

• 2016Complete the second Bakery Living buildingProduct launch

  The Bakery Square 2.0 expansion included more than one residential building.

  What changed. A second apartment building was completed and opened for rent in June 2016.

  Aftermath. The expansion strengthened Bakery Square’s role as a combined workplace, retail, hospitality, and residential destination.

  Source
• 2014Open the first Bakery Living residential buildingProduct launch

  The Bakery Square campus was expanded beyond office and retail uses through a residential project associated with Bakery Square 2.0.

  What changed. The first Bakery Living apartment building was completed and opened to tenants in early June 2014.

  Aftermath. Residential occupancy became part of the campus’s mixed-use model, followed by a second apartment building in June 2016.

  Source
• 2007Convert the former factory into a mixed-use campusStrategy

  The former Nabisco facility had lost its original industrial use and had been declared blighted by Pittsburgh in 2006.

  What changed. Walnut Capital pursued a redevelopment plan combining office space, retail, and other commercial uses while retaining the historic factory structure.

  Aftermath. The remodeled main building opened in May 2010 and became the core of the Bakery Square development.

  Source

• 2016Second Bakery Living building opens

  A second residential building associated with the Bakery Square expansion was completed and opened for rent in June 2016.

  Product launch
  Source
• 2014President Barack Obama visits TechShop at Bakery Square

  President Barack Obama visited TechShop, a workshop and prototyping facility located at Bakery Square, in June 2014.

  Other
  Source
• 2014Bakery Living opens its first residential building

  The first apartment building in the Bakery Living residential component was completed and opened to tenants in early June 2014.

  Product launch
  Source
• 2011Google establishes a major office presence at Bakery Square

  Google was reported to be leasing approximately 115,000 square feet at Bakery Square, reinforcing the campus’s technology and office identity.

  Other
  Source
• 2010Bakery Square redevelopment opens after conversion of former Nabisco factory

  The former Nabisco factory reopened in May 2010 after a redevelopment led by Walnut Capital, establishing Bakery Square as a mixed-use office and retail destination.

  Other
  Source

1. Bakery Square
2. Bakery Square official website