Larimer Consensus Group Announces 26 New Homes in Pittsburgh

Residents of Pittsburgh’s Larimer neighborhood will see 26 new homes constructed or renovated over the next two years. The projects aim to provide both affordable and market-rate housing options. Construction is led by East Liberty Development, Inc.

The Larimer Consensus Group, the city, and the Urban Redevelopment Authority launched this initiative in June. On Thursday, group members unveiled the plans at a recently rehabbed property on Mayflower Street. K. Chase Patterson, the group’s chairman, stated that the goal is to create a diverse community where residents can live, work, and pray.

Funding for the development includes $3.3 million from the Urban Redevelopment Authority and $1.8 million in Federal Home Loan Bank grants. The groups also secured nearly $1 million in state grants. Additionally, the developers expect $5.5 million in mortgage financing for prospective buyers.

Ted Melnyk, director of operations at East Liberty Development, noted that building a new home now costs approximately $500,000. Inflation and higher interest rates have made affordable housing more difficult to create than it was a decade ago. One renovated home at 157 Mayflower Street cost about $380,000 to finish. That unit will sell for $190,000, a price supported by the public grants.

Mayor Corey O’Connor described the project as a vision for mixing affordable, market-rate, and senior housing in a neighborhood where families previously lived. He pointed to vacant lots where residents once raised families and expressed the desire for them to do so again. The city plans to use state funds to prepare sites for builders, starting in Larimer, to lower development costs.

State Sen. Lindsey Williams, whose district includes the area, said she will push to refund the Whole Home Repairs program. This program helps existing residents fix up their properties. Williams emphasized the need to support the entire community, not just the new construction sites. A nearby house sold for $600,000 recently, roughly double the price of the next most expensive sale in the area.

The remaining properties for this phase are located on Mayflower, Meadow, Auburn, and Carver streets. Two of these will be rehabilitations, while the rest will be new builds. This follows a 2014 federal grant of $30 million that initially targeted mixed-income development in the area.