Steelers to build community field, youth recreation complex at Hazelwood Green

The Pittsburgh Steelers announced plans Thursday to build a new community field and youth recreation complex at the Hazelwood Green site in Pittsburgh.

The Steelers Charities will operate the complex, which will be branded with the NFL team’s logo.

Kids will participate in youth football, clinics with current and former Steelers players and coaches, flag football and soccer games. The Steelers plan to renovate a 10,000-square-foot building on the site, which will be used for indoor sports and recreation so the site can be used all year.

The Steelers in a news release said the complex could grow to include food and beverage concessions and enhancements to the main field so that high school sports could use it.

Construction is expected to begin next year. The complex is expected to open in 2025.

“We are excited to be part of this special project which will provide the young athletes of our region access to a state-of-the-art facility at Hazelwood Green,” said Dan Rooney, director of business development and strategy for the Steelers. “Not only will the field be utilized for various clinics and games in the community, but the Steelers plan to use the field for community programming and player-led initiatives.”

New York-based Tishman Speyer, which serves as the master developer of the 178-acre Hazelwood Green site, will develop the complex on the Steelers’ behalf.

Tim Smith, founder and CEO of Hazelwood-based Center of Life, said the community empowerment organization was pleased to see the Steelers launching such an initiative in the community after partnering with the team for other initiatives.

“The Pittsburgh Steelers have been great community partners, but now they’ll be partners in the community,” Smith said.

The Steelers organization said the project aims to address the city’s shortage of youth-centric sports and recreation destinations and will aim to serve youth from Hazelwood and across the region.

“It’s exciting that they (the Steelers) want Hazelwood to be their home,” said Sonya Tilghman, executive director of Hazelwood Initiative Inc. “But not only will this facility provide a place for Steelers-sponsored programs and events, the facility will be a resource for community organizations’ programming as well.”

The Richard King Mellon Foundation awarded a $10 million grant to Steelers Charities, the team’s charitable arm, to fund the new community field’s construction.

“This new community field will become a destination to advance the health and well-being and future economic mobility of youth in Hazelwood and across our region,” Sam Reiman, director of the Richard King Mellon Foundation, said. “And it is yet another compelling demonstration of the unique potential of Hazelwood Green to attract nationally respected organizations to work together to create a new model of community and economic development to benefit the people of Hazelwood and our region.”

The field is set to be built at the site’s southeast entrance on Hazelwood Avenue between Gloster Street and Tecumseh Street.

“This field will help children across the city and provide opportunities for them to learn and have a healthy future,” Mayor Ed Gainey said.

City Councilwoman Barb Warwick said there’s a “huge demand” for more athletic fields in the city, “and youth football is particularly important here in Hazelwood.”