Out Of The Junkyard
Event Traffic Not Foundation For Success
By Guy Junker

The sign in the window said "Gone on vacation. See you for baseball season." That was in March. But the Triangle 2 on Federal Street is still closed. Just down the block and closer to PNC Park, another bar and restaurant, Firewaters, is often locked on weekdays when the Pirates are out of town or not playing. With the Pirates completing just their third season at PNC Park, development around the park has been slower than expected. Attendance is down nearly 11,000 a game from the record setting first season at PNC Park two years ago. And while no one expected those numbers to hold up, they are down another 2,000 per game from last year. Over an 81 date schedule, that is a significant decrease in customers for the establishments around the park. But fear not, all is not lost on the banks of the Allegheny just yet.

Casie Caldwell has been a bartender at Hi-Tops since it opened. She says business after games "has definitely dwindled" this year. But Hi-Tops does well on non-game nights, attracting the nightclub crowd on weekends and business folks for lunch. General Manager Ed Olson says the addition of their outdoor sidewalk cafe has been good for that end of it and on Sundays they cater more toward families. They had a huge New Year's Eve bash when baseball was as far removed from the psyche as any day of the year. The Chicago based chain is in solid shape and is, in fact, in the process of buying their building on the corner of Federal and General Robinson Streets.

At Atria's, which is part of PNC Park proper, business has actually been going through a period of steady growth. Jack Hunt, better known as Johnny Angel of Johnny Angel and the Halos, is one of the partners at Atrias. He credits a lot of residential customers from people living in apartment buildings on the North Side and downtown for keeping them on their toes. "Our lunch business has grown steadily and we also have live entertainment Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. You can't depend on just one element because if it's taken away, you're finished."

Up Federal Street at Castellano's, Louise Garrity says that last month she had her best week of business in the three years that PNC Park has been open. It came during a Pirate home-stand when the Cardinals and Brewers were in town. "We sold out the third floor for pregame tailgate parties right up through the start of the games." She admits, however, that on nights the Pirates do not play at home, she could easily close the doors at 5:00.

But the place doesn't have to rely on the baseball crowds. "I'm serving the same people I did 10 years ago" says Garrity. Actually some customers have been around a lot longer than that. Garrity's parents opened Castellano's in 1950, ironically in the same building that they now occupy, although there have been moves to other places in between. Her father Sam is 93, a North Side icon, and still works the first floor lottery stand. Her mom, Georgia, is 75 and still mans the take-out. The take-out and delivery service makes Castellano's unique for the block. That family-run atmosphere is a big part of the reason they are doing well.

Then there sits the 222 Bar which amazingly survived the I-279 wrecking ball. 222 Bar customers take the edge off in typical old-time Pittsburgh tavern fashion. They sip Iron City on chrome stools while waiting to shoot pool. The 222 benefits from overflow Pirate business, but it was there before PNC Park and would still be there if the Pirates left town tomorrow. Within a few short blocks around the ballpark, there really is someplace for everybody. Surprisingly, many of those places are doing okay. Although those establishments compete with one another, it's not as cutthroat as you might think. It's not uncommon for one bar to borrow a keg of beer or bottle of vodka from the folks next door when they run low.

Perhaps the biggest disappointment hasn't been the occasional failure or two, but that new development has been so slow. Construction of a Spring Hill Suites is most likely the next venture, and the Irish-themed pub Finnegans Wake, one of the newer joints on General Robinson, seems to have found its own niche already. But hotels, amphitheaters and other such dreams are still hoped for.

Diversity is the key to success around PNC Park. Depending on Pirate fans and location alone is a guarantee to fail. Even with baseball, football, and the occasional concert, there are only about 100 events a year at the two new stadiums. Businesses that do well use event traffic as gravy, not as the foundation for customers. With that in mind, hopefully it won't be long before the signs hanging in North Side windows say "coming soon" instead of "closed".

Whispers on the street have former Pirate pitcher John Smiley interested in buying the Triangle 2. Hope he brings back the battleship sandwich. He'll just need more than a baseball theme to make it work.

Guy Junker covers sports business for Pittsburgh Sports Report.