Pittsburgh Hospital Getting 4-Year, Major Multimillion Dollar Makeover

PITTSBURGH, PA — A Pittsburgh hospital is about to undergo expensive cosmetic surgery.

The 22-story Allegheny General Hospital on the North Side is about to undergo a $36 million exterior restoration to extend the life of the 90-year-old building and preserve its original architecture.

Next month, contractors will erect scaffolding that will surround the tower in phases throughout the four-year project.

According to the hospital, the restoration work will encompass an overhaul of the masonry façade, ornamental terra cotta and the replacement or restoration of the building’s more than 800 windows. Approximately 60,000 square feet of roof will be repaired or replaced at multiple elevations.

The project will not be short-term. It will not be completed until 2030. Hospital officials said that hospital operations and patient care will not be impacted during the work.

“This project is critical to ensuring the hospital’s South Tower remains a cornerstone of our clinical campus and home to many offices and clinics that support our exceptional caregivers and help us deliver remarkable health experiences to those who receive our services,” AGH president Dr. Imran Qadeer said in a statement on the hospital website.

The Hospital opened as a 50-bed facility in 1885 in two adjoining homes on the city's North Side. The original hospital was replaced by a seven-story, 400-bed facility in 1904.

After an increased demand for its services, the hospital's South Tower was built in 1936. It was one of the nation's first high-rise hospitals.

Further expansion included an East Wing, which opened in 1960, followed by the Snyder Pavilion – the hospital’s current inpatient structure – in 1981, and the North West Wing – which currently houses the hospital’s trauma unit, emergency department and LifeFlight base, which opened in 1995.

More recently, the Allegheny Health Network Cancer Institute at AGH, which serves as the network’s central hub for cancer care, opened in 2020.

The hospital and South Tower also are featured as the backdrop for the Emmy Award-winning HBO Max medical drama "The Pitt."