Pitt Likely Spending $14.5 Million on Cardiac Hill Project

There will likely be some changes coming to the most famous hill on the Pitt campus in Oakland.

According to a report by Bill Schackner of the Tribune-Review, the University is prepared to spend $14.5 million to improve the accessibility of Cardiac Hill on the Pitt campus.

Schackner further reported that the project is called the “Panther Overlook,” and will include two acres of steep hillside between Utterback Drive and O’Hara Street. It’s part of an effort to create easier pathways between the upper and lower campuses.

The project is expected to be completed by spring 2026 and includes social areas, seating and infrastructure improvements.

The project still needs city review and approval.

There are limited details on exactly how the hillsides will be developed, but Schackner reported that renderings suggest ascending hillside sidewalks with tables and chairs, a small amphitheater and other spots where people will be able to pause. The design, which is bicycle friendly, is supposed to support easier vertical climbs.

Schackner added that the project will complete landscaping and pathways surrounding active building projects and create vertical and lateral connections to new facilities and DeSoto Street.

“We hope the Overlook will be a tranquil place where students, staff and visitors can stroll after their day’s work is done, reconnect with nature, and seeing, hearing and feeling nothing of the bustle of Oakland,” Mark Barnett, senior project manager at Pitt, said in the article.

The project bears watching as more information is released and the city approval is officially granted.