URA taps N.Y. firm to redevelop industrial property
A New York real estate investment firm will be the latest developer to take a shot at revitalizing a sprawling former industrial site in Lawrenceville.
The Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority announced at its board meeting Thursday that it is working with Golden East Investors to redevelop the 14.2-acre property that once housed a steel fabrication plant.
Golden East was selected as a result of a request for proposals that the URA issued last November for the purchase or redevelopment of the site.
The authority intends to issue a “hold from market” for the land so that it can engage in “collective good faith discussions with particular attention to community benefits considerations and continued due diligence toward a potential redevelopment proposal” with the firm, said Lilly Freedman, manager of development projects.
Golden East plans to invest $20 million in the property along the Allegheny River. It is considering a proposal for a 200,000-square-foot warehouse that would feature light industrial and flex space. Other elements include a public park, a 15,000- square- foot community space and parking.
Jake Mansher, a Golden East principal, said one of the goals of the project is to move some of the industrial and manufacturing uses from other parts of Lawrenceville to the 62nd Street site.
“We look forward to working with the URA and the community to hopefully redevelop this site,” he said.
The firm, he added, “will take into consideration some of the community’s thoughts and desires when it comes to a community facility, a public open space, and access to the riverfront.”
Golden East isn’t new to Pittsburgh. Mr. Mansher said it has been involved in the city for 10 years. Two years ago, it purchased a 985,000-square-foot complex on the North Side that was once part of H.J. Heinz Company manufacturing facilities.
The firm has been working to convert that property, which
covers nearly 20 acres into a mixed-use development featuring multi-family, retail and life science uses.
Mr. Mansher said Golden East has been working with the URA on the Lawrenceville site at 62nd and Butler streets for several months.
The authority acquired the property from Tippins International Inc. in 2008 for $2 million, plus costs, with hopes of developing it for light industry, manufacturing, or distribution.
But such redevelopment has been slow in coming. At one point, the URA had a deal to sell the land to Paragon Foods as part of an expansion before the company dropped the plan.
As Mr. Mansher indicated, one of the URA’s current priorities is to relocate the neighborhood’s heavy industry and warehouses from residential areas to the site, according to the RFP.
The URA stated in the document that it has spent more than $4 million on site remediation and preparation. As of last October, it was appraised at $5.1 million.
Also Thursday, the URA board approved nearly $2.1 million in OWN-Pittsburgh construction grants for the development or rehab of 13 affordable for-sale homes in different parts of the city, including East Hills, Hazelwood, Garfield, Perry Hilltop, East Liberty, Larimer, and the Hill District.
The homes are available to households at or below 80% of the area median income.
Board members also gave the go- ahead for $ 860,000 in loans for Western Manor, a troubled Hill District apartment complex for seniors that is being taken over by the Allegheny County Housing Authority.
“This is unique for us ... to actually venture into the city of Pittsburgh but we’re very excited about it,” said Richard Stephenson, the authority’s chief financial officer. “Our mission as a housing authority is to preserve and add to affordable housing in Allegheny County no matter where it is.”
Mr. Stephenson said only six of Western Manor’s 32 apartments are occupied.
The only 26, he noted, can be brought online quickly to house low-income residents or to help with homeless issues.
The URA also announced Thursday that it will be issuing a request for proposals in June to renovate Broad Street Plaza in East Liberty. The plaza is one of the last remnants of an East Liberty pedestrian mall built in the 1960s, according to the authority.
Objectives of the RFP are expected to include creating an improved and safe public space with trees and landscaping, providing programmable and flexible space for multiple events, crafting more pedestrian friendly space, and providing permanent and flexible seating.