Pittsburgh Cultural Trust

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Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is both a nonprofit arts agency as well as a real estate and economic development catalyst to affect the development of Downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by creating an arts and entertainment district—the Cultural District.

The organization was inspired by the vision of H. J. Heinz II, known as Jack Heinz. Jack and others, including his son, United States Senator from Pennsylvania John Heinz, and William Rea, began with Pittsburgh's first renovated former movie palace, the opulent Heinz Hall, (which was built as the former Loew's Penn Theater), reopening after a complete restoration in 1971 as a new home for the Pittsburgh Symphony. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust was formed in 1984 to realize Jack's vision of an entire cultural district for blocks of the Penn-Liberty Avenue corridor, which then was a blighted area.

The Trust's first major project was the restoration of another former opulent movie palace, the Stanley Theater. The Stanley Theater was designed by the firm of Hoffman & Henon and opened on February 27, 1928. After a $43 million dollar restoration returning it to its original spendor, it reopened in 1987 as the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts, and is currently able to host about 2,885 people.

The Byham Theater, a landmark building at 101 Sixth Street in Downtown Pittsburgh, was another theater venue restoration project. Built in 1903, the then called Gayety Theater was a stage and Vaudeville house, and it featured stars such as Ethel Barrymore, Gertrude Lawrence, and Helen Hayes. It was renamed The Fulton in the 1930s when it became a full-time movie theater. In 1990, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust bought the theater and refurbished the Fulton as part of its plan for the Cultural District. The Byham family of Pittsburgh made a major naming gift for a 1995 renovation, and it has been the Byham Theater since.

Today the 14-square block area has been transformed from a red-light district with only two cultural facilities—Heinz Hall and the Convention Center—to a dynamic art zone with over fourteen arts venues, including Future Tenant, the Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, public parks and plazas, and new commercial development. It applied a holistic approach to urban redevelopment: streetscaping programs, facade restorations, new cultural facilities, public open spaces, and art projects.

PCT's first President & CEO, selected by Jack Heinz, was Carol Brown, who managed the organization from 1986 until 2000. J. Kevin McMahon is the second and current President & CEO.

The Trust's annual operating budget was nearly $50 million in 2006.