Point Park University has long referred to downtown Pittsburgh as an extension of its campus, and though construction near university grounds may be minimal, the cityscape around it is currently undergoing many integral changes.The North Shore Connector, an extension to the Port Authority’s light rail system is completed and will be placed in service on March 25. Two new stations on the North Shore, the Allegheny and the North Side Station, will be accessible and the line can be picked up at the Gateway Center station on Stanwix Street.According to Port Authority spokesman Jim Ritchie in a phone interview on Feb. 24, one of the biggest challenges of the North Shore Connector was building the underwater tunnel through the Allegheny River because the Port Authority has never built a tunnel that large.Richie also said that the current transportation funding crisis will affect the North Shore Connector just like the rest of the T service with future service reductions.Also nearby, construction has commenced on the new skyscraper that PNC announced in May 2011, which will be one of the “greenest” buildings in Pittsburgh and the world. The building is on schedule for a 2015 completion.According to a company press release, the new tower with 40 floors is being built on the southeast corner of Wood Street and Fifth Avenue. The building project is bringing 2,500 jobs to the Pittsburgh area and will hold about 300 underground parking spaces, street level retail and green rooftops.Furthermore, the PNC skyscraper will use a combination of natural lighting tower and will be certified platinum by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design – the highest level of energy efficiency. The project is expected to cost about $400 million.Moving uptown, after being in operation for around 50 years, the Civic Arena is currently entering the last stages of its demolition. The steel from the roof has been stripped and panels are being taken down in sections. Passersby can still see the remnants of the building, which was originally built for the Civic Light Opera and served as the venue in which the NHL Pittsburgh Penguins won three Stanley Cup Championships.Structural supports will be cut on individual panels, and then cut further for removal, as reported in a Jan. 28, 2012 story by AOL Sporting News.The final steps, targeted to be finished this spring, include cutting up the cantilever arm which enabled rotations before the roof was utilized to support the scoreboard.