Pittsburgh’s iconic Point State Park will be closed to major events next year while contractors for the state’s park bureau “put a shine” on it in advance of 2026 events such as the NFL Draft and the nation’s 250th birthday celebration.
State Parks Director John Hallas told a news conference Thursday that the $3.4 million worth of work will include improvements to the park’s major calling card, the fountain at the confluence of the Allegheny, Monongahela and Ohio rivers. There also will be landscaping improvements on the city side of the park, sidewalk repairs and new lighting, benches and drinking fountains.
“We’re really going to focus on putting a shine on the park,” said Jacob Weiland, who manages the park.
The 36-acre park will remain open for daily use, and key park features such as the Fort Pitt Museum and Fort Pitt Block House and the Great Allegheny Passage trail will be available throughout the work. But construction, which is expected to run for about a year beginning the third week of May, will prevent the park from hosting events such as Pittsburgh’s July 4 celebration and the end of the city’s annual Great Race.
Weiland said the bureau already has been in touch with event sponsors to let them know the area will not be available. The state expects those events to return in 2026, but the extravaganzas that year will be the NFL draft in April and the 250th anniversary of our nation’s birth that could draw hundreds of thousands of visitors.
The city, Pittsburgh Steelers and VisitPITTSBURGH are still planning how the city’s various venues will be used for the draft, which was awarded to the city in May. Point State Park is expected to be a key part of the program for the three-day event that is expected to have an economic impact of more than $120 million on the city.
The state also is still planning its bicentennial celebration, but Hallas said he expects a major event at the park since it was featured during the 200th celebration in 1976.
Weiland said the fountain, which turned 50 this summer, to be “a huge part” of the park improvements. Plans call for new controllers and lights to be installed to further highlight a spray that can reach 150 feet and caulking to seal leaks in the bowl.
The last major work in the park started about 20 years ago and involved $40 million worth of upgrades to replace trees and landscaping, rebuild walkways, outline the locations of forts Duquesne and Pitt in lights and redesign the Allegheny River wharf. It culminated with the reopening of the reconstructed fountain in June 2013.
Now, it’s time to refresh the park again.
“We want to be ready for the millions who will visit in 2026,” he said, adding he expects the park to be “better than ever before.”
Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.