A changing landscape for Ambridge, where growth meets preservation

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

In the historic log cabin he works out of in Ambridge, semi-retired real estate agent Steve Roberts can be found hosting a potluck dinner or community meeting — or even the occasional scotch tasting — while focused more on the town’s present than past.

The former resident of Pittsburgh’s Mexican War Streets sees plenty of potential for a Beaver County community that has struggled to find its footing since the decline of heavy industry. But he draws a contrast between what he’d like to see of Ambridge’s future and what longtime residents have experienced in places such as the North Side and Lawrenceville.

“It’d be nice to do it in a way that doesn’t displace people, that keeps people involved,” said Mr. Roberts, 67, chairman of the Ambridge Downtown Development Committee. “And this is a really connected community.”

Mr. Roberts, who bought the cabin in the 1800s historic district three years ago, said he believes Ambridge is ripe for other newcomers, considering the number of empty storefronts along its main strip on Merchant Street.

Mr. Roberts envisions artists and other entrepreneurs moving in — working downstairs and living upstairs in the early 20th-century buildings with high ceilings and large skylights. Such properties might sell for $65,000 in Ambridge, he said, while going for at least 10 times that amount just five miles away in Sewickley.

Mr. Roberts isn’t the only one putting his heart into Ambridge, despite demographics indicating some of the town’s challenges.

The population of less than 7,000 is just one-third of what it was in 1930, and its median household income is about $20,000 less annually than the average for the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Such changes are in large part because of the 1983 shutdown of the community’s longtime employment anchor, American Bridge Co.

But residents like Felicia