Other Highlights
Our Downtown Green Building Walking Tour gives you just a taste of what our region has to offer. Check out other important highlights below!
Other Buildings You Won’t Want to Miss
If you plan to venture away from Downtown, there are plenty more green buildings you can see as you explore our city and region! Here are some you must visit if time allows.
Enjoy Nature through the Greenest Buildings in the World
The Pittsburgh region offers dozens of ways to enjoy nature, even right in the middle of the city! Here are two examples of buildings that demonstrate their commitment to nature through their buildings.
Frick Environmental Center
2005 Beechwood Blvd., Pittsburgh PA 15217 (Squirrel Hill)
The Frick Environmental Center (FEC) serves as the gateway to one of our city’s many beloved parks. The first free and public building to achieve the Living Building Challenge, the FEC produces more (clean) energy on-site than it uses thanks to a high-performance building envelope, passive heating and cooling, super-efficient systems, and a large solar array. Locally sourced black locust exterior cladding helps the structure – which is also LEED Platinum certified – blend in with the beautiful park that surrounds it. A closed-loop water system allows captured rainwater to serve the building’s non-potable water needs, and distinctive features like a Rain Veil and Rain Ravine make Frick Park a fun place to explore even on Pittsburgh’s rainy days.
Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
1 Schenley Drive, Pittsburgh PA 15213 (Oakland)
Explore Phipps and you’ll not only find yourself walking through the boundless beauties of nature but also a living legacy of early leadership in green building. The Phipps Welcome Center was the first LEED-certified welcome center in a public garden and from then on, all building projects on campus (everything ranging from renovations to new construction) continued to raise the bar for healthy and high-performing spaces. The Phipps Center for Sustainable Landscapes is one of the most decorated green buildings in the world, being first to achieve seven of the highest green building certifications: Living Building Challenge, LEED Platinum, WELL Building Platinum, Zero Energy Certification, Sustainable SITES Platinum, FITWEL 3 Star, and BREEAM Outstanding In-Use.
Explore our Sustainable Cultural Institutions
When you explore museums and other cultural highlights in Pittsburgh, you will nearly always find that you are doing so in a high-performance building. Here are just a few examples:
MuseumLab
Allegheny Square E Suite 101, Pittsburgh, PA 15212 (North Side)
MuseumLab is the newest building completed by the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and represents amazing dedication to healthy and sustainable historic preservation. The building was originally constructed as the first Carnegie Free Library in the country but later sat vacant and dilapidated. The Children’s Museum renovated the structure, preserving and uncovering much of the original architecture like archways, columns, and mosaic floors. A thoughtful process resulted in this space reducing energy use by more than 80% while also prioritizing inclusive design so everyone can enjoy a visit to the museum.
Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh
(Various Locations)
The Carnegie Museums are all property partners in the Pittsburgh 2030 District and working towards 50% reductions in energy and water use by 2030. Each branch takes great care to reduce their own impacts, collaborate on sustainability with other museums around the country, and raise awareness among building visitors. One example is the Carnegie Science Center, whose new PPG Science Pavilion is LEED Gold certified and includes roof-top solar panels and rain gardens.
National Aviary
700 Arch St, Pittsburgh, PA 15212 (North Side)
America’s only independent indoor nonprofit attraction dedicated to just birds, the National Aviary is home to over 150 species of 500 birds from all over the world. Located next to the North Side’s Lake Elizabeth, the Aviary just completed construction on a new LEED-Gold certified Garden Room event space. While there, visitors can delight in the Aviary’s Rose Garden while also exploring the naturally-ventilated and bird-friendly design of the venue’s newest sustainable space.
Gain Insights into the Past and Future at Hazelwood Green
Hazelwood Green is a massive brownfield redevelopment of an old industrial site along the Monongahela River. Owned and guided by members of Pittsburgh’s philanthropic community, this site aims to be a model for transformative redevelopment that prioritizes sustainability, equity, and inclusive economic opportunity. Two key properties on the site – Mill 19 and the Roundhouse – have been renovated and are in-use. Mill 19 is now home to the largest single-sloped solar array in North America, and the Roundhouse incorporated local artists and makers throughout the space. Both structures offer a glimpse into our region’s history and our future, serving as innovation hubs and gathering spaces.
