Construction of affordable housing in Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood to begin next year
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A Shadyside developer is partnering with the city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority, Pittsburgh Housing Development Corp. and Larimer Consensus Group to build 10 affordable homes in Larimer.
Construction will begin on the first two in the first quarter of 2022. Officials hope to have families living in them by the end of the summer, PHDC Deputy Executive Director Richard Snipe said.
Walnut Capital worked with the Larimer community to form a master plan for the neighborhood, said Gregg Perelman, Walnut Capital’s founder and CEO. Through the process, he said, they discovered that the community wanted affordable housing.
“It’s not just about making a buck,” he said. “It’s about making a difference.”
Mayor Bill Peduto spoke about bringing affordable housing initiatives to the city’s Larimer neighborhood. pic.twitter.com/RK1jxCRtGq
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The planned homes on Mayflower, Auburn and Carver streets will be the first for-sale affordable homes built as part of the Transit Revitalization Investment District and the first in Larimer in about 30 years, Perelman said. The East Liberty TRID Phase II allows for a portion of real estate taxes generated by Bakery Square, Walnut Capital’s flagship project in the East End, to be used to help finance several projects. The Larimer project is expected to cost about $1 million.
Perelman also proposed a project that would link the heart of Larimer with Bakery Square through a bridge connection from Hamilton Avenue. A federal grant would allow them to make that goal a reality, he said.
“They said they would work with Larimer to make a partnership with the Larimer Consensus Group so they could help rebuild Larimer,” state Rep. Ed Gainey, the Democratic nominee for mayor, said of Walnut Capital. “That meant a lot to me. That meant a lot because it meant that you (were) willing to empower the Larimer Consensus Group and really help their development and help them grow.”
Both of the first two houses to be built through this initiative will have three bedrooms and two and a half bathrooms — and they’ll be affordable to households at or below 80% of the Area Median Income, officials said. The median income in Pittsburgh is $59,400, making 80% of the median income $47,500.
The price range on the homes depends on the amount of subsidy and the buyer’s debt-to-income ratio, URA officials said. Once construction begins, officials will release more information about pricing and applications.
“We are estimating the sale price to be in the $225,000 range with about $90,000 in deferred mortgages based on current interest rates,” said Gigi Saladna, communications manager for the URA.
To qualify for affordable housing, people must also be first-time homebuyers and have a mortgage pre-qualification from a lender, Snipe said.
The URA is anticipating great demand for the affordable housing units.
“Over the next few months, we will be working with our community partner (Larimer Consensus Group) to put in place a fair and transparent process for the selection of the buyers,” Saladna said.
TKA Architects — owned by Joseph Serrao, who was raised in Larimer and whose family has been in the neighborhood since his grandfather moved there in 1927 — is in the design phase.
Homeownership is the “prime way” to pass generational wealth, Snipe said.
“Nothing is more satisfying than seeing the face of a first-time homeowner” who had previously believed they may never be able to afford home ownership, he said.
Mayor Bill Peduto said he wondered why local leaders couldn’t help revitalize housing in the neighborhood early in his administration.
“The problem is there wasn’t value,” he said. “Even if we were able to provide 100% funding, there weren’t people who were willing to buy. It really required the value to come from within the community itself. And that required a commitment from the people who lived in the neighborhood. Fortunately, Larimer had people who were willing to put in the equity.”
Now, he said, “there is a line of people who want to move into this community.”