BREAKING GROUND ON THE SITE WHERE CEDARWOOD HOMES WILL BE BUILT. IT’S A NEW COMMUNITY IN THE WEST END FOR SENIORS. (PHOTO BY J.L. MARTELLO)
Construction already has started on ‘Cedarwood Homes’
Affordable housing is a hot topic in Pittsburgh, maybe even hotter than the August temperatures.
However, before you can blink, there will be a development called Cedarwood Homes coming to the West End, sure to put a smile on seniors in their quest to remain housed in the city.
The New Pittsburgh Courier has learned that Cedarwood Homes will be built on the former Fairywood School site, at the corner of Broadhead Fording and Village Road. The housing community will have 46 total units, 39 of which will be affordable to residents with incomes up to 60 percent of the Area Median Income. Tryko Partners, the developer, estimates Cedarwood Homes’ construction will be complete by next year.
Tryko, based in New Jersey, acquired the multi-family community Emerald Gardens, which is next to the Cedarwood Homes site in 2007. Tryko said in a release that it “purchased the property when it was in financial distress and invested over $10 million to make improvements.”
Officials with the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh and the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh contributed $3 million to Cedarwood’s construction.
“If you want to stabilize a neighborhood, make it affordable,” Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey said at the groundbreaking event, June 22. “Everybody understands that. If you want to stabilize any part of this city, we have to make it affordable. Being over here on the West End, and to be able to see a project like this take off and the commitment that they’re (Tryko) making—I’m just thankful. This is just another way of saying we’re committed to affordability.”
The seniors ages 62 and up who will soon call Cedarwood home will also see walkable, park-like green spaces on the property, according to Tryko. The developer also said there will be a community building on-site to serve as a place for nutrition and exercise programs, financial literacy courses, health screenings and other support services.
Mayor Gainey has made it a priority to tackle the affordable housing crisis in Pittsburgh. But with anything in life, there are supporters and detractors to his strategies. The mayor is faced with the happiness of new housing in the city being developed, but a frown when he learns of how much of the apartments are priced at “market-rate,” a price that oftentimes prices out African Americans from living there.
Specifically for seniors, the city’s Housing Authority has 11 senior-only communities, but none in the West End. The Allegheny County Housing Authority has 16 senior-only communities, but none in the Western areas of the county. The West End has three senior apartments from private landlords; Elliott Heights (Steuben Street), Goodwill Plaza (Hillsboro Street), and Westlake Apartments (Crucible Street).
Tryko said it was awarded a 9 percent Low-Income Housing Tax Credit by the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency to help make Cedarwood Homes a reality. The HACP also provided $2.1 million in gap financing funding and 24 project-based Section 8 vouchers.
“We are excited to be taking the next step towards revitalizing Pittsburgh’s West End and the Fairywood neighborhood and providing its senior residents with quality housing and support,” said Isaac Sassoon, senior vice president at Tryko, in a statement provided to the Courier.
Theresa Kail-Smith, Pittsburgh City Council President, said seniors have always asked for more living options out West.
“I am excited to see the Cedarwood Homes development finally coming to fruition,” she said in a statement.
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