WHAT’S UP WITH WALNUT?

On one side of Shadyside’s Walnut Street, longtime fixture e.b. Pepper has shut its doors, a big sign in the window announcing that the owner is retiring after 37 years.

Across the street, a large storefront in the Mineo Building that housed Shadyside Market & Deli, which closed in 2021, sits empty. A short walk away, another spot, once home to the Athleta women’s clothing store, is vacant as well.

And right next to it, the Gap turned out the lights for good just three weeks ago, ending its long run on Walnut.

They are among six vacancies blemishing the well-known street, which for decades has flourished as one of the premier shopping destinations in Pittsburgh and the region, with its eccentric blend of nationals and locals, high-end and blue collar, trendy and quirky.

But given the vacancies and recent departures, some are wondering whether the fashionable thoroughfare in the heart of one of the city’s most prestigious neighborhoods is losing some of its mojo.

With the loss of retailers like Pottery Barn and Williams Sonoma, “there’s been a slow decline,” said Melanie Querry, a longtime Shadyside resident who believes the city should consider making Walnut pedestrian only.

Yet others will tell you that what Walnut is experiencing right now is no different than what it has faced at times in its long past.

“Walnut Street has gone through so many changes over the decade and it’s just going through another one,” said Amanda Blair, owner of Kards Unlimited, a Walnut Street staple since 1968.

Questions about the street’s future arose anew after the abrupt March 24 closing of the Gap after a quarter of a century on Walnut.

Dan Meyer, the store’s full-time lead manager, said the Gap received notice from landlord Ross Development Co. in early March that its lease would not be renewed. That was after the store thought it had signed a deal to stay for another year, he said.

“It was pretty sudden,” he explained. “It seems like they waited until the last minute to let us know.”

While the clothing retailer has faced financial challenges across its national network over the last year, Mr. Meyer said that “as far as we can tell, we weren’t going to be shut down by the Gap itself.”

He suspects that the Gap was outbid by someone else for its space at 5436 Walnut, which features three floors, two of which were being used by the retailer.

Word along Walnut is that the ever-busy Apple store, now at 5508 Walnut, is taking over the Gap space.

A manager at the Apple store said she had no comment, other than to say there had been no announcement about any change of address by the store.

Neither representatives for Ross Development nor Kossman Development Co., which owns the building where Apple now is located, could be reached for comment.

Mr. Meyer said the Athleta store, which is owned by Gap, closed in January after its rent was adjusted amid decreased traffic. He, for one, feels that Walnut has suffered with the closures.

“Retail has definitely declined on the street,” he said.

Even with the vacancies, Walnut Street is nowhere near a boarded-up wasteland.

It’s still populated by the likes of J. Jill, Henne Jewelers, Kendra Scott, Apple, Patagonia, Four Winds Gallery, L’Occitane, Prantl’s Bakery, Lululemon, Sephora, Banana Republic, Mercurio’s restaurant, Cappy’s Cafe, Kards Unlimited and Apricot Lane Boutique.

For some, the vacancies and recent changes are not particularly unusual.

“We regularly see changes like this. People come and go,” said John Henne, owner of Henne Jewelers at 5501 Walnut.

The jeweler is bullish enough on the street that it recently doubled the size of its store, to 14,000 square feet from 7,000 square. It has been at the spot since 2003 and on Walnut for 29 years. In all, it has been in business for 137 years.

Mr. Henne, who is vice president of the Shadyside Chamber of Commerce, bristled at the suggestion that the neighborhood’s most prominent shopping district was dying amid the rise in e-commerce and post-pandemic fallout that has left many business districts in disarray.

“Walnut Street is evolving like it always does,” he said. “If I were moving to Pittsburgh with my business, this is the exact spot I would want to put my business, at the corner of Walnut and Bellefonte Street.”

Mr. Henne stated that the street continues to be a regional draw, with visitors coming from West Virginia, eastern Ohio and Westmoreland County.

While the vacancies have garnered attention, one positive development is that Starbucks is making a move from Copeland Street off Walnut to the corner of Walnut and South Negley Avenue.

“I would take that as a good sign,” Mr. Henne said. “I think that is an improvement in location. Any company who wants to improve its location in the area is a big believer in the area.”

In addition, Paris Baguette, a South Korean-based bakery, will be moving into the former Williams Sonoma location at 5514 Walnut.

Retail broker Herky Pollock, who has known the street since 1979, when he sold hot dogs from a sidewalk cart at age 15, views the vacancies and the recent closings as more of a “changing of the guard” than a sign of distress.

“Walnut Street is anything but dying. If anything, the future looks very, very bright with the new tenants coming onto the street,” he said.

Mr. Pollock is marketing the space at 5528 Walnut that was occupied by the Acorn restaurant, which closed last summer. He said he is talking to “several interested parties” about the space after a couple of deals fell through at the last minute.

He insisted that all the street needs to regain its full stride is “one or two new good restaurants that will add evening and weekend vitality.” He said he knows of three or four tenants set to arrive on Walnut to fill the vacancies.

Walnut Street, he argued, is no different than “any other shopping center or regional mall where some older tenants go out and are replaced by newer, fresher, more vital tenants.

It’s not unusual, he said, for a top mall like Ross Park to have several vacancies at one time.

“When stores like the Gap and Athleta close in regional malls, as they shutter stores all over the U.S., it largely goes without notice. However, when it happens on main streets like Walnut, in the heart of cities, it falls under a very different level of scrutiny,” he said.

At the E.B. Pepper location, building owner Walnut Capital is actively seeking another tenant, president Todd Reidbord said. At one point, the company thought it had a replacement lined up to lease the space but the prospect changed its mind.

Walnut Capital owns a number of buildings along Walnut. While Mr. Reidbord acknowledged the retail environment is changing significantly, he said Walnut remains one of “the premier shopping streets in the city.”

But he also emphasized that the city must continue to invest in public infrastructure, including sidewalks and the street itself, if it is to continue to attract good retailers and good restaurants.

“I don’t think it’s dying by any means. But I do think it needs some reinvestment,” he said.

Another who believes change is needed is Ms. Querry. She contends that converting Walnut to pedestrian only would make it more of a destination. She noted that the street is sometimes shut down for events like the annual arts festival.

“We need a change,” she said, adding that without it, “the same thing is going to keep happening.”

Over the years, as the street has evolved, Walnut Street has generated its share of angst from locals and others who love its appeal.

One of the never-ending debates has involved the retail mix — with some residents bemoaning the growth of national chains at the expense of local businesses.

That tension may have reached its zenith in 2000, when a former city councilman proposed new design standards for Walnut after some people complained about the “malling” of the street after Pottery Barn, Banana Republic and the Gap opened large stores.

Wrangling about the retail mix is still in play these days, with some seeing the recent vacancies as an opportunity to bring more local businesses back to the street.

One is Dani Gundlach, who has lived in Shadyside for 25 years and who works for Piatt Sotheby’s International Realty. She doesn’t feel as if some of the national retailers that left were much of a draw.

“I think the neighborhood likes to support local businesses, so this is a great opportunity for this shift to take place so that we can revert back to what always has made Shadyside a destination — having small specialty boutiques lining Walnut Street,” she said.

As retailers like Steel City, a local apparel shop, have moved in, “I feel like we’re getting back to our roots of providing a small boutique experience ... that you really don’t get to experience when you go to a mall,” she said.

Ms. Blair, the Kards Unlimited owner and one of the locals, has a different take on the national chains.

“I think it’s great to have big names draw people in,” she said. “Once they’re here, they take a walk and see the small businesses.”

This is by no means the first time hand-wringing has taken place about changes happening on the street.

In 1994, a Post-Gazette columnist lamented the loss of the Hollywood Social Club. Back in the 1990s, big draws included restaurants like The Balcony, known for its cutting-edge jazz, and Hotlicks, both housed in the same building.

They closed and gave way to trendy retailer Pottery Barn, which itself shuttered its Walnut Street store in early 2011. At other times, Walnut boasted names like Ann Taylor, Laura Ashley, J. Crew and Victoria’s Secret.

Despite the current angst, some see change as healthy.

“That’s what makes Walnut Street unique. It’s not stagnant. It’s always going to be fresh,” Ms. Blair said.

Mr. Henne is confident enough about the future of the street that he expects his sons to be operating the jewelry business at the same corner for another half century.

The day he’ll start to worry is when people stop complaining about not being able to find a place to park on the street.

“When it’s hard to park, that means there are a lot of people here,” he said. “I’ll be concerned when people say, ‘Boy, I was able to get a parking space right outside your store.’ ”

And while Ms. Querry has seen some decline in Walnut in recent years, she’s still optimistic about its future.

“Something we lose sight of is that Walnut Street will always be a destination,” she said. “Any business that goes in there will do well because of that.”

Jason M. Kirin, who has written a book on the history of Shadyside called “From Farmland to Cardshop,” remembers when the likes of Lemon Tree Shop, the Music Emporium and Call Me Mister dotted Walnut.

In the book’s afterword, Mr. Kirin, who is Ms. Blair’s husband, took a philosophical approach to the changes that have taken place on the street over the years.

“Walnut St. has always reflected the human experience. An experience best described as seasonal. Clinging to spring or fall will not impede the peak arrivals of summer and winter. But upon their arrival, we would not be prepared. Being sticky with the past ensures anxiety of the present and dread of the future,” he wrote. “So we too must change.”

Mark Belko: mbelko@post-gazette.com