Pittsburgh Symphony Tries To Sell Concert Hall

Strapped for cash, the Pittsburgh Symphony is trying to sell its home – Heiz Hall – for $40 million. “That amount would erase the symphony’s pending deficit and revive its falling endowment, which has dropped from $132 million in 2000 to $90 million. The plunge is due to the stock market and a 6.5 percent annual draw that goes into the symphony’s budget. The symphony, which has owned Heinz Hall for 32 years, wants the new owner to lease the structure back to it at a very nominal rate. Sources said that token gesture called for $1 annual rent. The problem is finding a buyer.”