Category Archive: Neighborhood Development
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Downtown forum focuses on vacant, abandoned properties
By Justin Vellucci
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, September 25, 2007Where some curse the sight of vacant homes, boarded-up shops and weed-choked yards, Arthur P. Ziegler Jr. sings of opportunity.
On Monday, the president of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation spoke with about 620 elected leaders and development officials who gathered Downtown to help share and expand that vision during a two-day national conference on vacant and abandoned properties.“Vacant properties are a big problem in older cities and we look upon them, often, as a major resource for revitalization,” Ziegler said as he prepared to enter a session at the Omni William Penn Hotel. “We’re here to learn about what other cities are doing and what other solutions they’ve found.”
Participants’ name tags read like a who’s who of America’s post-industrial Rust Belt, with representatives attending from Cleveland, Buffalo, Detroit and Youngstown, Ohio, among others. But, each city’s take on dealing with blighted homes, population loss and neighborhood disinvestment seemed to unite them.
“This is really the place where the ‘do-ers’ in different communities can come together,” said Don Chen, executive director of Smart Growth America.
“If there’s one message, the one message is: ‘No one can solve this problem on their own,’ ” said Joseph Schilling, a Virginia Tech professor who served on the conference’s executive committee.But what, specifically, could Pittsburgh officials glean from the National Vacant Properties Campaign’s first national conference?
Chen and Schilling said they could learn to preserve neighborhoods and aging infrastructure by following the successful steps Philadelphia took in its Neighborhood Transformation Initiative.
Pittsburghers also could benefit, they said, from studying Youngstown, which aggressively tackled abandoned properties through its Youngstown 2010 plan. Or the city could look closely at Richmond, Va., which helped rebuild six targeted communities through its Neighborhoods In Bloom program.
Greater Pittsburgh has plenty to teach leaders from other communities, participants said. Several talked about development of former industrial and waterfront sites, while Chen praised Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s buyback of more than 11,000 tax liens as “very exciting.” Ravenstahl helped kick off the event with a welcome speech.
The excitement in Pittsburgh and its recent designation as “America’s Most Livable City” were actually part of the reason the conference came to town, said Jennifer Leonard, director of the National Vacant Properties Campaign.
“It’s a good showplace for cities similar to it,” Leonard said. “It’s a city with problems. But it’s also a city looking for solutions.”
Justin Vellucci can be reached at jvellucci@tribweb.com or 412-320-7847.
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Vandergrift Main Street Community Receives Award for Retail Promotion
September 24, 2007
The Vandergrift Improvement Program, Inc. (V.I.P.) received a “Townie Award” for the “Vandergrift Pet Photo Contest and Calendar” from Pennsylvania Downtown Center (PDC) at the PDC’s statewide annual conference in Bethlehem, PA, which was June 3-5, 2007.
The “Townie Awards” is an annual awards ceremony facilitated by PDC, which works with over 300 member communities from across the state, 77 of which are currently in the Main Street program. The “Townie Awards” is an opportunity for Main Street programs to submit their most successful revitalization projects implemented in their community.
The Vandergrift Pet Photo Contest and Calendar won “Best Retail Promotion” for that category competing against 77 other communities from across the Commonwealth. This is the 17th year that the “Townie Awards” have been implemented.
“The Townie Awards are very competitive”, says Suzanne Gagliardo, Western Coordinator for PDC, “I’m surprised and impressed that such a young Main Street community like Vandergrift and the V.I.P. won best out of the retail promotion category. They were up against many terrific retail promotions from other more established PA communities.”
The Vandergrift Pet Contest and Calendar was selected for the “Townie Award” as “Best Retail Promotion” for its creativity and successful implementation that brought over 4000 people into the commercial district over the course of two months to submit their pet photos and then to cast their vote for their favorite pet photo. This effort brought people into participating downtown businesses and helped to build awareness about the historic downtown. Sherry Jenks, who serves on the VIP Board and on the Promotions Committee, conceived the idea for this contest.
Shaun Yurcaba, the Vandergrift Main Street Manager from Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) realized that this retail promotion would be successful when “…people were coming into downtown that hadn’t been to Vandergrift in months or even years. We were pleased about the participation from the community and the amount of increased foot traffic into the downtown businesses.”
The V.I.P. will be facilitating the second annual Vandergrift Pet Contest and Calendar 2008 starting on Sept. 24. Submit your favorite pet photo to the V.I.P. office between Sept. 24-Oct. 5. Place your vote at participating businesses between Oct. 15-31. Winners and calendars will be announced at Light Up Night on November 23, 2007.
The V.I.P. organizes several events and retail promotions a year in an effort to bring people into the downtown and to help the area become more aware of what is offered by the local businesses. The V.I.P. President, David Truffa, is also a downtown Vandergrift business owner and one of many business owners who’s involved with the V.I.P., “We are an organization committed to revitalizing Vandergrift, and it’s events like this that do encourage people to visit downtown Vandergrift.”
Founded in 1987, the mission of Pennsylvania Downtown Center is to advance the sense of place, quality of life and economic vitality of Pennsylvania’s downtowns, traditional neighborhood business districts and nearby residential areas.
The Vandergrift Improvement Program, Inc. is a non-profit organization composed of local residents, businesses, local and state government officials. The V.I.P. is a designated Main Street community funded in part by the Department of Economic Development (DCED).
The V.I.P. on site Main Street Manager is Mrs. Shaun Yurcaba, of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF). The V.I.P. has selected PHLF to manage the main street revitalization efforts, working closely with the PHLF staff, specifically with Arthur Ziegler, President, and Eugene Matta.
The V.I.P. is dedicated to the protection, preservation and restoration of Vandergrift by using a four-point approach that focuses on organization, economic restructuring, promotion, and design of the central business corridor as well as the residential areas of Vandergrift.
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Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation Announces New Non-profit Corporation
Mark Bibro, Chair, announced today the formation by Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation (PHLF) of a new non-profit corporation to expand PHLF’s activities in neighborhood and urban revitalization. The Chief Executive Officer will be Howard B. Slaughter, Jr., and Arthur Ziegler will serve as president.
The new non-profit, Landmarks Community Capital Corporation (LCCC), will build a financial base by obtaining loans, grants, and investment capital and in turn will finance and develop projects that assist in the revitalization of urban centers, towns, and neighborhoods. The corporation may undertake the actual developments, and co-develop or lend funds to community development corporations and others that undertake such work. It will also work to support expansion of the regional employment base and energy conservation, green and sustainable goals, and assist rural and farm economic developments. LCCC will also contract with government and private agencies to define such projects and conduct feasibility studies for them.
Dr. Howard B. Slaughter, Jr., who resigned last week after eight years as the Director of the Pittsburgh Fannie Mae Community Business Center, will become one of Pittsburgh’s newest Chief Executive Officers. Dr. Slaughter will now serve as the CEO of the newly established company, Landmarks Community Capital Corporation. The company’s focus will be on providing equity, debt, short and intermediate term financing for housing and economic development activities in Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio, and West Virginia markets.
Slaughter will utilize his vast experience, which includes serving as the former Vice President of Dollar Bank’s Community Development group and past Director of Preservation Services of the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation. Brian Hudson, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, said,
“Howard’s new role as CEO of Landmarks Community Capital Corporation will benefit the State by ensuring that more capital is deployed in this market, which will have a significant impact in Pennsylvania. We are fortunate to have someone with Howard’s skills serving at the State level and as the CEO of LCCC.”
Arthur Ziegler said of Howard, “He has been deeply involved in community development financing from every perspective and we are certain he will lead our new non-profit to excellent results. He has been deeply involved in preservation nationally as the former PA Advisor to the National Trust for Historic Preservation.”
Slaughter said, “There is an opportunity in the market to provide appropriate financing for existing and new developments independently and in collaboration with other financial intermediaries and developers. Landmarks Community Capital Corporation will be a private-sector catalyst and a participator in financing housing, mixed-use, and commercial developments. It will also focus on public sector policy initiatives and work with legislators as well as utilize tools like the New Market Tax Credits to bring additional needed capital to the region.”
Brief background of Dr. Howard B. Slaughter, Jr.: He holds five earned degrees, including a Master’s Degree from Carnegie Mellon University in Public Management and his Doctorate in Information Systems and Communications from Robert Morris University. He also attended Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, completing the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government. He completed course work on Fundamentals of Real Estate Finance at Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Center for Real Estate. Slaughter is also a Fannie Mae Foundation Fellow and serves on the Board of the Urban League of Pittsburgh, and on the Board of the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, receiving a gubernatorial appointment from Governor Ed Rendell. He is also the Founder of the Financial Literacy Program of Pittsburgh at Robert Morris University. He will start his new job on October 15, 2007.
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Spinoff targets urban revitalization
By Ron DaParma
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Tuesday, September 18, 2007The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation is forming a new nonprofit corporation to expand its activities in neighborhood and urban revitalization.
Mark Bibro, chairman of the South Side-based preservationist organization, announced Monday the foundation had hired Howard B. Slaughter Jr., who recently left his job as director of Fannie Mae’s Pittsburgh Community Business Center, as the unit’s CEO.The new nonprofit — Landmarks Community Capital Inc. — will provide equity and debt financing for housing and economic development in Western Pennsylvania, eastern Ohio and West Virginia, said Arthur P. Ziegler Jr., the foundation’s president.
“This broadens the tools with which we can work,” said Ziegler, who also will serve as the new corporation’s president. “It enables us to tap the capital markets on a broader basis, and we can do more things within the very broad interpretation under which we operate for historic preservation.”
Cities and towns throughout Western Pennsylvania are historic, but restoring historic buildings isn’t the only way they can be revitalized, Ziegler said.
“You need new construction, you need new businesses on Main Street, or you may need new housing or new forms of green energy,” he said.
The idea of the new corporation is to raise funds through grants, loans and investments that the foundation can use for grants, loans and investments in such projects. Roles it can play include developer, co-developer or lender to community-development corporations and others that undertake such work.
It also hopes to contract with government and private agencies to define such projects and conduct feasibility studies for them, according to a news release. Goals include expanding regional employment, promoting energy conservation and assisting in rural and farm economic development.
“There is an opportunity in the market to provide appropriate financing for existing and new developments independently and in collaboration with other financial intermediaries and developers,” said Slaughter, 49. His appointment is effective Oct. 15.
Ron DaParma can be reached at rdaparma@tribweb.com or 412-320-7907.
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North Side gets behind Commons cause
By Bonnie Pfister
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Friday, September 14, 2007The North Side’s Allegheny Commons — designated as public grazing lands a year before George Washington became the nation’s first president — today celebrates a small but significant first step in a proposed $16 million revitalization guided by a master plan.
A four-acre parcel at the southwest corner of East Ohio Street and Cedar Avenue has undergone $400,000 of upgrades, part of a pilot project demonstrating improvements that could come for the 80-acre West Park.
“This is a way for us to take a section of the park and do a whole lot of improvements and see how it looks,” said Christina Schmidlapp, part-time development director of the project since 2004, working from the offices of the Northside Leadership Conference.
“It will be a living advertisement of what we want to do, and for us to see if it makes sense for us to make a park like they did in the 19th century.”
Located a quarter-mile from the Allegheny River across from Downtown, the green space was designated as public grazing lands, or commons, surrounding the borough of Allegheny in 1788, according to the Allegheny Commons Steering Committee. It was beautified as a park for Allegheny City in 1868, annexed to Pittsburgh 40 years later and incorporated into the city’s park system. Allegheny Commons is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places and is a city historic district.
Community groups in 1999 convened a public meeting to discuss upgrading the park, and by 2002 other stakeholders — including Allegheny General Hospital, the Aviary and the Children’s Museum — helped develop a master plan. Local businesses, including insurance company Babb Inc., the Steelers and Citizens Bank, helped to fund the salary of Schmidlapp, who will move into a money-raising mode. Alida Baker will become project director.
Money for the improvement has come from the Richard King Mellon Foundation and The Buhl Foundation, and the city Public Works Department, which provided $200,000 and labor to rebuild walking paths and upgrade lighting. The planting of 70 trees and other landscape care in the park was paid for by the Laurel Foundation, the Allegheny Foundation and the Garden Club of Allegheny County.
Walking through the park on a brilliant September afternoon, Tonia Davis said Thursday she has noticed the improvement in the five years since she moved to East Allegheny Commons. The park is better maintained and has become a gathering spot for children’s parties.
“It’s a beautiful place,” said Davis, a home health worker and part-time Wendy’s restaurant staffer. “When I moved here, it was nothing but drugs, drugs, drugs, drugs. I didn’t want to come out of my house. I’m proud to live here now.”
A ceremony is scheduled in the park at 4 p.m. today. The master plan can be found at www.pittsburghnorthside.com.
Bonnie Pfister can be reached at bpfister@tribweb.com or 412-320-7886.
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New apartments will be geared to middle income
By Jeremy Boren
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, September 13, 2007The first newly built Downtown apartments with rents geared toward middle-income people will be in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Cultural District, where city planners hope to attract artists and others living on a budget.
Trek Development will put 60 apartments in the Century Building on Seventh Street with prices for studio, and one- and two-bedroom apartments from $450 to $1,250 a month, said Trek CEO William Gatti, who joined Mayor Luke Ravenstahl and Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato to announce plans Wednesday for the 100-year-old building.
“They’ll be the most affordable new units that are coming available Downtown,” said Patricia Burk, vice president of housing and economic development for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.
New housing below market price is uncommon Downtown, which counts most of its lower rents in aging high-rise mammoths such as the Mid-Town Towers and The Roosevelt.
Ravenstahl said residential development Downtown has focused on building pricey lofts and condos, but people with middle incomes should be able to live in the city’s center, as well.
“Sure, we want individuals who can purchase the million-dollar condos, but we need to have that mix,” Ravenstahl said. “We need to have that diversity of young and old, rich and middle-income people.”
High-end housing Downtown has demonstrated some success. For example, the owners of Piatt Place in the former Lazarus/Macy’s Building, have sold 35 percent of the building’s 65 condos at prices ranging from $350,000 to $1 million.
Onorato said as more people move in, more businesses and amenities will come to Downtown.
“This is the place in the next decade or two where activity is going to be going,” Onorato said. “This truly is the center of southwest Pennsylvania.”
Gatti said the $16 million in planned renovations would not have been possible without $515,155 in affordable housing tax credits that the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency approved Tuesday. The rents aren’t high enough to justify the debt Trek would accrue.
Gatti said the building will target “the style-conscious urban dweller on a budget.”
Trek will receive $3.2 million from the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, $2.3 million from the Urban Redevelopment Authority, $2.3 million in historic tax credits, $2.3 million from the private Strategic Investment Fund and $750,000 from Allegheny County Economic Development.
That makes about $11.4 million in public and private assistance.
“Affordable housing options for artists and workers in the Cultural District and Downtown in general play an important role in the ongoing growth of the district as a residential neighborhood,” said Pittsburgh Cultural Trust President Kevin McMahon.
The building will have nine studios, 12 two-bedroom apartments and 39 one-bedroom apartments. Construction is expected to begin in spring.
Tenants will be able to move in by early 2009, Gatti said.
Jeremy Boren can be reached at jboren@tribweb.com or 412-765-2312.
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Tax credits lower costs of living Downtown
Thursday, September 13, 2007
By Mark Belko,
Pittsburgh Post-GazettePeople who want to live Downtown but can’t afford the expensive condominiums or steep rents that now dominate the market finally may have an option.
It’s a 100-year-old building on Seventh Street in the heart of Pittsburgh’s Cultural District.
A plan to convert the 12-story Century Building into affordable apartments cleared a key hurdle this week when the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency awarded $515,155 in federal tax credits for the project.
The approval, announced at a news conference yesterday, will enable Trek Development Group to press ahead with the construction of 60 upper-floor apartments, including single-room studios and one- and two-bedroom lofts.
Rents will range from $550 to $1,150 a month, depending on income level, in a Downtown market where studio rents currently are $868 to $909 a month and two bedrooms go for $1,035 to $2,002 a month, based on whether there’s one or two bathrooms.
Mayor Luke Ravenstahl said the $16 million Century Building project has been a priority for him since he got into office a year ago because of its potential to attract a broader mix of people into the Downtown residential scene.
“Downtown Pittsburgh is on its way back. It’s revitalizing, and it’s because of projects like this that we’re going to be able to look at a significantly different Downtown, in my opinion, in the years to come,” he said.
Until now the residential surge Downtown has been fueled in large part by luxury condominiums with price tags starting at roughly $230,000. Many units are selling for $300,000 or more, with a few topping $1 million.
Apartment rents at the Encore on 7th high-rise a few doors down from the Century Building are $1,400 to $3,275 a month.
While housing has helped to boost the fortunes of the Downtown district, it has been out of the reach of many people because of the price.
At the same time, Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership research has found a “tremendous demand” for a middle range that includes young professional housing and work-force housing, said Patty Burk, vice president of housing and economic development.
“Delivering this building will be the first step in meeting that demand and helping Downtown be for everyone,” she said.
Part of the problem in providing more affordable housing in downtowns, here and elsewhere, is the high cost of construction, which leads developers to focus on the high end to turn a profit. Lower pricing typically requires some form of subsidy.
For example, Washington County-based Millcraft Industries, another developer seeking to bring more affordable housing Downtown, sought federal historic tax credits to help make the numbers work. It is converting part of the old G.C. Murphy store into 46 loft apartments, with rents to range from about $775 for a 620-square-foot studio to $1,875 for a 1,500-square-foot penthouse.
William J. Gatti Jr., president of Trek Development Group, said the $515,155 in affordable tax credits was “vital” to the conversion of the upper floors of the Century Building into housing. He said the project could not have gone forward without them.
“The price point that we’re attempting to make units available for would not be enough to amortize the debt necessary to develop the building and to carry the cost. So we absolutely need the tax credits to make it work,” he said.
Trek plans to target young professionals, artists and middle-income renters. It plans to offer 12 single-room studios, 12 two-bedroom units and 36 one-bedroom units.
“It is fitting that exactly 100 years after its original construction we are announcing the rebirth of the Century Building as Downtown Pittsburgh’s first truly affordable residential loft community,” Mr. Gatti said.
Trek intends to pursue an environmentally friendly LEED certification for the building, which also will include a green roof and geothermal heating and cooling. There also will be a roof deck with city and Allegheny River views, an equipped exercise room, a community club room and a business center.
Apartment amenities include garbage disposals, dishwashers, and washer and dryer hook-ups.
Besides the PHFA tax credits, project funding includes nearly $3.2 million from the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, $2.3 million in loans from the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority, $2.3 million in historic tax credits, $2.3 million in loans from the Strategic Investment Fund and $750,000 in loans from the county’s economic development department.
Trek already has been doing preliminary demolition work within the building. Construction should be in full bloom next year, with apartments ready for occupancy in early 2009.
The Century Building conversion is considered another key addition to the thriving Cultural District. It’s expected to complement the Cultural Trust’s half-billion-dollar RiverParc project, the first phase of which involves the construction of some 700 units of housing on the Allegheny River at Eighth Street, at a cost of $90 million.
Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato said Downtown will be “the place for the next decade or two where activity” will be growing. He said the county is committed to making sure the Golden Triangle, as the hub of the region, continues to move forward.
“We’re on a roll. You can easily fall off that roll if you don’t pay attention to what we have here and the assets that we have. So Downtown Pittsburgh’s going to remain a focus for the next several years for all of us involved here,” he said.
First published on September 13, 2007 at 12:00 am
Mark Belko can be reached at mbelko@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1262. -
Allegheny County Designates PHLF to Spearhead Main Street’s Program
Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato announced at a press conference in Swissvale yesterday the initiation of a large-scale Allegheny County Main Streets program. Four pilot communities will be involved: Swissvale, Elizabeth, Tarentum, and Stowe. Landmarks has been designated to operate the program in conjunction with the Allegheny County Department of Economic Development.
Landmarks has selected Town Center Associates of Beaver County to serve as sub-consultant with responsibility for communications with local officials and property and business owners, development of a website and a newsletter, and conduct demographic research.
Landmarks will analyze the historic buildings, prepare recommendations for restoration, develop a real estate strategy for improving retail offerings, conduct market research, assist the County with major facade grant and low-interest loan programs, all designed to help revitalize these Main Street communities.
Funding is coming from Allegheny County and private foundations in Pittsburgh.
Landmarks will field a team of staff members with a variety of experience that will be useful for a comprehensive program, including market research, real estate financial analyses, design, graphics, planned giving, construction and real estate development.
Work begins immediately.