Dear Duquesne University faculty and staff colleagues,
I write with additional news regarding our ongoing efforts related to parking at Duquesne. As I noted previously, the University has been making moves to expand parking options.
New Future Parking Space
I’m pleased to share that the University has reached an agreement to sell select Fifth Avenue properties that you may recall we acquired in summer 2025. We have sold those properties to the Pittsburgh Parking Authority.
Combined with other acquired non-Duquesne owned properties, the Parking Authority intends to construct a parking garage, which is expected to open in fall 2028. As part of the conditions of the sale, the University will have a long-term agreement that will provide parking access for Duquesne permit holders through an arrangement similar to our current partnership at the Chatham Center Garage. Importantly, we negotiated the agreement to include overnight parking capabilities, a feature specifically included to meet the needs of our campus community.
This development will help expand future parking capacity for our campus community.
Mid- to Long-Term Planning a Key Component
The thoughtful planning we did last year has led to this transaction: a long-term partnership designed to create additional parking resources for the University while supporting continued development in Uptown Pittsburgh. We’re pleased to see that vision moving forward and I’m grateful to the many Duquesne professionals who worked to make it happen.
The development is particularly valuable because activity is growing along the Forbes Avenue corridor. With the presence of the Nasuti College of Osteopathic Medicine, the addition of McGinley Hall, and the new Health Sciences facility we’re breaking ground on in just a few weeks, the center of gravity of campus continues to extend toward Forbes Avenue. Adding capacity in this garage, occupying most of the block on Fifth Avenue between Logan Street and Stevenson Street, means that Duquesne students, faculty and staff who work in those areas (and additionally in the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse) will have more convenient parking access to that part of campus.
As with the Chatham Center Garage, the new facility will include security measures and regular patrols.
Looking Ahead and Communication
The Parking Authority plans to start construction in spring 2027. Until then, the University will continue to use the surface parking lot on Fifth Avenue as long as possible through the fall 2026 semester.
While the garage remains two years away, this agreement is a mid-term step to build flexibility and capacity to meet future parking needs as our campus grows. We have other components that make up a broader, long-term approach to supporting the University's continued development and to enhancing the experience of those who learn, work and live here.
I will talk in more detail about things we are considering during my State of the University address at our Convocation scheduled for September 2. Part of planning is imagining that to which we aspire, and there are some ideas that the University has been thinking about and I plan to provide you some insight about what possibilities we see. I look forward to that and remain appreciative of everything you do at this great University.
Sincerely,
David J. Dausey, Ph.D., Ed.D.
President
Duquesne University