Council holds public hearing on Central Catholic High School institutional master plan

Pittsburgh City Council held a public hearing Feb. 5 on Bill 13-43, a resolution presenting an institutional master plan (IMP) application by Central Catholic High School for its campus along Fifth Avenue and South Neville Street in Squirrel Hill North.

The IMP covers the existing Central Catholic campus and, city planning staff said, proposes no expansion of the campus footprint and no street vacations. "This is the first IMP for the campus. There's no proposed expansion and no street vacations," Paul Kinsella, principal planner with the Department of City Planning, told council members.

An institutional master plan is required in EMI (educational, medical and institutional) zoning before development, with limited exceptions, Kinsella said. The application identifies three projects within a 10-year development envelope: renovation of the brothers' residence; a new three-story student center with an underground parking garage; and a pedestrian bridge connecting the new center to the campus quad, plus renovations to the main building. "The design of the new student center building and how that building emerges, engages, and connects the campus with the residential neighborhood" was described as a focus of the submission, Kinsella said.

City planning staff said Central Catholic addressed several staff comments, including clearance under the proposed pedestrian bridge and proposed spectator seating. The IMP materials note shuttle and van parking are proposed on Carnegie Mellon University property; the applicant indicated Carnegie Mellon has provided permission for those parking arrangements. The transportation impact study accompanying the plan was reviewed and approved by the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure, Kinsella said.

The planning department also described required public-notification steps: property owners within 150 feet were notified and notices were posted on site in accordance with section 922.01.c of the zoning code. The planning commission made a positive recommendation on the institutional master plan on Dec. 10, 2024, city staff said, and council held the hearing within the 120-day window required by section 922.12.e.

Bob Reppy, university architect representing Carnegie Mellon University, spoke in support: "We applaud the work that they have done to bring forward such a good institutional master plan, thoughtfully considering all the neighboring components," Reppy said.

A registered speaker who had originally been scheduled for a separate item said she had engaged with neighborhood groups and also recommended approval; that testimony was recorded but not accompanied by a formal city endorsement during the hearing.

No final council action or recorded vote on Bill 13-43 appears in the hearing transcript. The hearing proceeded to other agenda business after public testimony.

The council hearing record shows the application remains subject to any additional approvals or requirements identified in the zoning code and planning commission recommendation.