By Bill Zlatos, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Jan. 27--The old Pittsburgh Opera Building, Downtown, soon could sing its swan song.

Common Pleas Judge Joseph James gave the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust permission Monday to tear down the building at the corner of Penn Avenue and Eighth Street, but said Washington, D.C.-based developer Concord Eastridge Inc. could seek damages from the nonprofit group to pay for demolition.

The building lies within the boundaries of RiverParc, a nearly half-billion-dollar, proposed development on six acres from Seventh Street to Ninth Street between Penn Avenue and Fort Duquesne Boulevard.

The building is part of a bigger lawsuit Concord Eastridge filed last year against the Trust. Concord Eastridge seeks at least $5.2 million for alleged breach of contract and negligent or intentional misrepresentation because of the Trust's failure to advance the project and sell parcels to the developer for $5.9 million.

The Trust planned a four-star hotel, shops, restaurants and 700 residential units, including townhouses and condominiums, but officials indefinitely delayed the project two years ago because of the sluggish economy.

The plan was to spend $400,000 to renovate the Opera Building as the marketing headquarters for RiverParc.

"That's definitely a loss to us if it's not there," said Susan Eastridge, CEO and founder of the development firm. "It will be more expensive to build a new marketing center."

Trust officials could not be reached for comment. In court documents, they said they want to demolish the building within months, or "as soon as is practical," for a parking lot.

The building has been vacant since 2008 when the Pittsburgh Opera moved into the renovated former George Westinghouse air brake factory in the Strip District.

Louise Sturgess, executive director of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, said the Opera Building was a Keystone Bank Building built in the 1960s or '70s. It is not in a city or National Register historic district, she said.

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