Mt. Lebanon unveils renovations of uptown business district
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Pyper Fleming successfully removes a block from the giant Jenga game set up on Washington Road for the Mt. Lebanon Uptown Unveiled celebration.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Chef Rufat Sultanov demonstrates his culinary skills while making a specialty dish at Caspian Corner Restaurant. The eatery is one of the newer business located on Washington Road in Mt. Lebanon and excited that the renovation project, that included the installation of new sidewalks, lighting and planters, has been completed.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Joe Laughlin engages Betsy Thomas and her son, Milo, in conversation over dinner at Caspian Corner, the latest restaurant to open in the Uptown Mt. Lebanon business district.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
The Wolf family: Josh, Erin, Jamie Wolf and Linda, along with Lauren Johnson and her daughter, Aria, enjoy beverages from Orbis Caffe before continuing on their tour of the recently renovated Washington Road during special festivities in Mt. Lebanon.
Photos: Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Scott Smith, who owns East End Brewing with his wife, pours a beer for a customer during Mt. Lebanon’s Uptown Unveiled event.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Linda Weir, Pyper Fleming, Mike and Ronan McPherson participate in a giant Jenga game during the Uptown Unveiled event held in Mt. Lebanon.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
East End Brewing’s Scott Smith, Allegheny County Commissioner Rich Fitzgerald, Mt. Lebanon Municipal Manager Keith McGill, Mt. Lebanon Commissioner Vice President Anne Swager Wilson, state Rep. Dan Miller, Mt. Lebanon Partnership President Chris Reidenbaugh and Mt. Lebanon Commissioner Mindy Ranney cut the ribbon during a ceremony marking the end of the first phase of development in the uptown business section.
Photos: Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
People mingle in the street during Mt. Lebanon’s Uptown Unveiled event. For six hours on Aug. 5, citizens were able to enjoy a stroll on Washington Road as the community’s business district showed off a two-year, $4 million renovation project that included new sidewalks, planters and lighting.
Photos: Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
James and Nora McCrone peruse the cases of treats offered at Amy’s Bakery in Mt. Lebanon.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Commercial Districts Manager Eric Milliron served as emcee for the Uptown Unveiled event and welcomed the dignitaries for the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Fungus was one of six musical acts performing at Uptown Unveiled. A Grateful Dead tribute band, Fungus played classical rock favorites to the crowd that gathered at the Clearview Common pavilion in Mt. Lebanon.
They danced, dined and drank in the street on Aug. 5 as Mt. Lebanon celebrated the completion of phase one of a multimillion- dollar project to renovate and revive the business district on Washington Road.
“We are having a great time,” said Sue Jordan as she grooved to “Fungus,” a Grateful Dead tribute band. “They should do this more often.”
Dawn Thomas agreed. As a Mt. Lebanon resident, she “wished” the municipality would host play-in-the-street parties like this with more regularity. “It’s a nice event,” she said.
An avid walker, Thomas resides on Washington Road about a mile south of where construction took place. For nearly two years, she has had to negotiate the disruption caused by the infrastructure and cosmetic improvements to the uptown business district. The $4 million renovations included new sidewalks, improved lighting and self-irrigating flower planters as well as upgrades to electrical conduits.
“I’ve not been down here because of the construction. I just wished they would get the sidewalks finished,” said Thomas. She usually traveled uptown for the Saturday morning market as well as the Wednesday farmers market. “It’s nice it’s all open,” she added.
The businesses were most excited about Uptown Unveiled. The street fair was the municipality’s symbolic of giving back the business district to the business community. “They can embrace normalcy and get back to why they are there,” said Eric Milliron. The Mt. Lebanon commercial districts manager served as emcee for the day and welcomed dignitaries such as state Rep. Dan Miller and Allegheny County Commissioner Rich Fitzgerald to a special ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Clocktower Plaza. “We hoped it would bring a robust crowd that would get reacquainted with the businesses.”
Well into the event, which ran from noon to 6 p.m. Laura Pace Lilley was pleased. She is the public information officer for Mt. Lebanon.
“I love the vibe,” she said. “Everybody is in such a good mood and excited to be together again. There’s such a positivity. People are able to socialize and be out in the streets. They are relaxed and it’s been such a fun day.”
Six musical acts provided entertainment, including Mt. Lebanon native Dan Petrich, Fungus and Big Fat Mallard at the Clearview Common. Pat Hodge and Mackin Duo performed at the Clocktower Plaza. DJ sounds were also provided by Greg Anderson, who owns Vinyl Remains in Uptown.
“It’s a super cool event,” said Petrich. “A little hot but fun,” he added. “I grew up in Mt. Lebanon so I enjoy being up here and it’s nice to see this revitalization.”
Longtime residents and recently relocated citizens raved about the renovations and applauded the celebration.
The Wolf family shared lattes and lemonade with Lauren Johnson and her young daughter Aria at Orbis Caffe. They purchased a bag of sweets from Grandpa Joe’s Candy Shop, tacos from the food truck and beer from East End Brewing, one of the business district’s newest tenants.
Johnson married a Mt. Lebanon man but the couple moved in 2005. Uptown was already under construction when the Johnson family relocated in 2022.
“We like the updates,” said Johnson. “The lighting is really pretty. Almost like a flame.”
“All solar power,” added Josh Wolf.
“It looks beautiful. Really nice,” interjected Wolf’s wife, Erin. “They did a nice job.”
Josh Wolf was particularly pleased with the sidewalks.
“Everybody in Mt. Lebanon got frustrated with the construction at one point or another.” he said. “As a jogger, who uses Washington Road a lot, it would get really annoying. So I am really happy that now you can go up and down Washington Road without the constant zig-zagging.”
During the day’s festivities, revelers weaved in and out of businesses, including the many eateries along Washington Road. Joe Laughlin along with Betsy Thomas and her son, Milo, shared a meal at Caspian Corner. Brothers, Gunel and Abbas Aliyeva opened the Azerbaijani restaurant on Washington Road with their mother, Sevinj, in May.
“Amazing,” said Thomas. “(Milo) just rated it a 10.”
“Absolutely,” said Laughlin, “We would come back.”
Because the trio lives in Upper St. Clair, the family did not have to negotiate the construction. Nevertheless, Thomas said, “We are happy (Uptown) is totally open. We absolutely love it and this was a great event. We stopped to eat here first before we strolled around. We enjoyed it.”
Amy Zhang also was thrilled the first phase of the project to continue to improve Mt. Lebanon was complete. For nearly five years, the Upper St. Clair resident has owned and operated a bakery on Washington Road. Amy’s Bakery Cafe specializes in birthday and layered cakes as well as Asian pastries and bubble teas.
“Business is better and picking up. I’m happy,” Zhang said. “The biggest problem during construction was parking. Customers always say, there is no parking. It’s hard to find a spot.”
During Uptown Unveiled, it wasn’t hard to spot Scott Smith. The Mt. Lebanon resident poured beer at a pop-up tent and participated in the ribbon-cutting event. Smith and his wife, Julie, founded East End Brewing Company in 2004 and opened the Mt. Lebanon Tap Room in March.
“It was something we have been threatening to do for quite some time,” Smith said. “It’s wonderful to do something so close to home. Mt. Lebanon is a great sidewalk community.”
Despite only experiencing the renovation project for a few months, Smith incurred his share of headaches, such as where to put 100 sheets of drywall when there was no sidewalk.
“Construction hit us hard on the build-out,” he admitted. “There were challenges. I am told it is like child birth. Once you show me the baby, you forget about the pain. The baby is up the street and doing great,” Smith said. “We have had a wonderful response to our beers and our food.”
Smith added that Uptown Unveiled was also “wonderful” because it provided access to the street and to all the other independent businesses that exist on Washington Road.
“Everything is unique and local,” he said. “That is the one thing that was attractive to me and our family when we moved here. The sidewalks. The independent shops. You don’t find chain restaurants and chain stores in this neighborhood.
“Now, you don’t have to cross bridges and tunnels to get to our brewery,” he added. “You can do it from this side of the river.”
Lucky Rattan would travel to Larimar for the pilsners from East End Brewing. After attending Uptown Unveiled, the Mt. Lebanon resident is sold on the walk-to pub. The Tap Room can be easily reached from the PRT stop.
“The beer is fantastic,” he said. “I’d not been to this location but I will now. I ran into a lot of familiar faces. Mt. Lebanon has a great sense of community and it’s family-friendly.”
Anne Swager Wilson agreed. She is Mt. Lebanon Commission vice president.
“Main street is the heart of a community and that is what Washington Road is. A gathering place,” she said. “This infrastructure that this town has put in is meant to bring you together and talk to each and visit. This is money well-spent in bringing people together.”
Mt. Lebanon municipal manager Keith McGill believes the project was an investment in the future.
“Washington Road has remained the place to be: whether you want to relax with a meal or bring home a one-of-a-kind gift or to get expert health care or services,” he said.
“Now we are poised to burst into this iteration with brighter lights, more accessible sidewalks, more greenery and unlimited potential. Together with business, we created a destination that people will visit again and again. The space will continue to grow and flourish for a whole new generation because it is the heart and soul of our community.”