by Rich Lord
Main streets in seven mostly-Black neighborhoods will be prioritized for investment in infrastructure and housing under an initiative unveiled with a show of political and community support, but without a specific commitment of funds.
The target streets are Larimer Avenue, Homewood Avenue, Centre Avenue in the Hill District, Irvine Street in Hazelwood, Warrington Avenue in the Hilltop, Chartiers Avenue in the western neighborhoods and Perrysville Avenue in the North Side. As officials took to the podium to praise the plan Thursday, easels holding maps of the “Avenues of Hope” repeatedly blew down in the breezes that crossed the dusty space that will soon become the Village Green in Larimer.
“The wind that you see blowing around is the wind of change,” said city Councilman Rev. Ricky Burgess, whose district includes Larimer and Homewood. “God is blowing his spirit into this place to show us the change that is going to come.”
Avenues of Hope involves starting with the development and community planning already occurring in some of those business districts, advancing it with neighborhood input, and mustering public funds like state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grants and low-income housing tax credits, plus private money, to improve infrastructure and develop affordable housing.
Its public unveiling included several nods to the difficult financial circumstances the city faces in the pandemic economy. The city is looking at a budget shortfall of around $80 million, said Councilman R. Daniel Lavelle, who represents the Hill District. Nonetheless, he pledged: “We’re going to put our money where our mouth is.”
Diamonte Walker, the deputy executive director of Pittsburgh’s Urban Redevelopment Authority, said the unveiling of the Avenues of Hope initiative comes at “a pivotal moment in our country, and a pivotal moment in our city” during a press conference in Larimer on Oct. 14, 2020. (Photo by Jay Manning/PublicSource)
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Develop PGH Bulletins: 7 streets, in Black neighborhoods, prioritized for redevelopment
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