Bakery Square expansion plans resume after zoning impasse

The Bakery Square logo in Pittsburgh’s East End looks over a parking lot that Walnut Capital wants to redevelop. (Photo by Eric Jankiewicz/PublicSource)After stalling in the fall amid affordable housing disputes, Walnut Capital appears poised to follow through on plans to add 14 acres to the East Liberty retail and commercial complex.“PublicSource is an independent nonprofit newsroom serving the Pittsburgh region. Sign up for our free newsletters.”by Eric Jankiewicz, PublicSource Stalled plans to expand Bakery Square are being revived in a new rezoning proposal that includes additional affordable rental units and 100 affordable for-sale houses in surrounding neighborhoods.On Thursday, the City Planning Commission reviewed plans from Shadyside-based Walnut Capital to expand the 20-acre Bakery Square residential and retail complex through a zoning change.The commissioners generally lauded the developer’s efforts — held up in the fall amid affordable housing concerns — to expand the special zoning district by 14 acres west along Penn Avenue at the site of a Trader Joe’s grocery store and surrounding retail cluster.The proposal, which requires a City Council bill amending the district, will return to the commission for a second briefing in two weeks. It must clinch buy-in from both bodies before plans can advance.In September,...