Future of Pitt's Home Stadium Under Consideration
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers and Pitt Panthers share a home stadium on Pittsburgh's North Shore but that could change with their current contract as leases of Acrisure Stadium nearing expiration.
Steelers owner Art Rooney II said that the franchise is currently assessing the long-term viability of Acrisure Stadium, which has housed both his team and Pitt football since the completion of construction 22 years ago and hopes it can continue to serve that purpose into the future.
"We are going through a stadium assessment at this point. Really looking at what it's going to take to be in this stadium for the next 10, 20 years, whatever it's going to be," Rooney said. "It's a process, and we've hired some consultants to help us look at it. We like the stadium. It's a great facility. And with the right kinds of improvements, can continue to be our home for a long time."
Rooney joked that adding a dome to the home of the Steelers and Panthers isn't under consideration but there are some upgrades they'll need to make to keep pace with other facilities around the league.
As of about 13 months ago, Pitt athletic director Heather Lyke said she had "not had any specific conversations" about the Panthers' future at Acrsiure Stadium and has not addressed the matter since.
Pitt and the Steelers rent the stadium through a joint operation called the PSSI Stadium Corporation and agreed to pay a total of $75 million dollars to the Allegheny County Sports and Exhibition Authority in three equal payments when they signed the lease in 2001. There are still 12 years left on the lease. As of December 2022, the Steelers can choose to extend the existing lease in up to four five-year increments.
“We’d love to and we assume we will extend the lease at some point,” Rooney said in July of 2022. “We haven’t quite gotten to that point yet. ... At some point, we’ll get into those discussions down the road. … I certainly hope that we’re here for longer than that."
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