[3] In the early 1970s a site on the opposite side of downtown Pittsburgh was considered for a modern convention center, on the shores of the Monongahela River.

The architect, Viñoly, began the design with a goal in mind of achieving the status of a "green" building.

Historians credit him with among other behind-the-scenes labors, leading a compromise at the 1944 National Democratic Convention that eventually made Harry Truman president.

As well as healing a divided national convention of 1960 that resulted in the John F. Kennedy/Lyndon B. Johnson ticket, it is for these reasons as well as his work in the state and the city that he was dubbed "kingmaker" by party leaders.

[9][10] On February 12, 2002, less than two weeks before the scheduled opening of the new center,[11] a 165-ton truss that was under construction collapsed, killing one and injuring two workers.

The building remained closed until investigations by the contractors were completed on March 9, the fault was repaired, and the convention center reopened.

Both the Megabus intercity service and the local Port Authority of Allegheny County buses also stop at the center.