Develop PGH Bulletins updates you on the Pittsburgh region’s economy, including close coverage of the Urban Redevelopment Authority, City Planning Commission and other important agencies.
by Rich Lord
Last month, the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh [HACP] pledged to be more aggressive and innovative in its efforts to spur affordable housing.
At its first meeting of 2021, HACP’s board provided an early example by increasing its investment in the pending conversion of the former Congregation B’Nai Israel synagogue, in Garfield, into housing.
The stately synagogue, on North Negley Avenue, was most recently an Urban League of Pittsburgh charter school, and is to be converted by a team of developers reportedly including Downtown-based Ralph A. Falbo Inc. and Boston-based Beacon Development. Earlier reports show plans for 45 rental units, and the HACP board resolution indicates that 38 are to be affordable for lower-income households.
The HACP board added to an earlier agreement to invest in the development, bringing its total to $1,095,000, up from $870,000. The new total will support construction of 13 apartments that will be reserved for households earning less than half of the area’s median income.
HACP Chief Development Officer Monique Pierre said investing in private development allows the authority to create more affordable housing “for a cost of $84,000 per unit, which is a fraction of what typically is invested in affordable housing these days.” The authority has, in recent years, spent as much as $400,000 per new affordable apartment.
There was no discussion of the construction timetable at the board’s meeting, conducted virtually. The board approved the investment unanimously.
Skyline Terrace, a mixed-income housing complex financed by the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh, and constructed for around $400,000 per apartment. (Photo by Jay Manning/PublicSource)
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