The South Side will get a new docking facility for as many as 17 recreational watercraft, courtesy of a $1.35 million grant from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl announced today.

The docking facility will run approximately four blocks, from the Hot Metal Bridge to 25th Street, with vehicle access where an extended 27th Street hits the Monongahela River. It will be part of a $10.5 million park, parts of which will be constructed this year.

Work on the docks will start next year, and they will be in use in 2011 or 2012.

They will allow boaters to tie up and enjoy the amenities and events at the South Side Works, said developer Damian Soffer, whose Soffer Organization spearheaded the revitalization of the former industrial property along the Monongahela. "There will be concerts. There will be regattas," he said.

The city's grant application went through a competitive process and a review at the highest levels of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, officials said.

Mr. Ravenstahl said the grant allows the continuation of his and the city's vision for better utilizing the riverfronts.

"We are in the process of developing a master plan that will be a blueprint" for the banks of all three rivers, he said. "It's one thing to have a blueprint. It's another thing to have the dollars and resources to implement the blueprint."

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.