URA board passes on talks with Garfield developer, approves other housing proposals
by Rich Lord
In a meeting focused largely on affordable housing, the Urban Redevelopment Authority board approved resolutions to aid development plans in three parts of the city, but passed on a proposal to negotiate the sale of 11 vacant lots in Garfield to a home builder.
Module Design Inc. wants to buy publicly owned lots on Garfield’s Rosetta Street and Broad Street, to build around a dozen townhouses, including three or four priced for sale to modest-income buyers.
URA staff asked the board to approve a six-month period of exclusive negotiations between the agency and Module, during which no other offers for the property would be entertained.
The homes that once occupied the 5100 block of Rosetta have been torn down and the area has become “a dumping site” said Richard Snipe, a deputy director of the URA-affiliated Pittsburgh Housing Development Corp. He said successful redevelopment by Module could be duplicated elsewhere, especially in Garfield, where the median home sale price is now around $225,000.
URA Deputy Executive Director Diamonte Walker noted that developers have been targeting Garfield properties via conservatorship. Selling properties to a developer like Module gives the URA the ability to ensure that some of the new housing is affordable, she said.
Questioned by the board, Module CEO Brian Gaudio said that he sold one new home elsewhere in Garfield for $395,000, and another “affordable” unit for $183,000, though other public assistance pushed that buyer’s cost down around $130,000.
Board member Lindsay Powell said the development could entail millions of dollars in public financing. “Obviously, high-quality housing is a lot of money,” she said, especially in light of recent increases in construction costs. “It does have a very steep price tag to do very few units.”
Sam Williamson, the board’s chairman, urged staff to ensure that it did not sell lots at bargain prices only to see them turned into market-rate homes. “If we can use the land sale prices to potentially get more of them at below market rates, I think that would be better for the neighborhood,” he said.
No board member seconded a motion to approve the exclusive negotiations, so the motion died.
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Develop PGH Bulletins: Plan for both pricey and affordable homes in Garfield gives URA pause
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