Pittsburgh Review

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey recently announced that the City was awarded $56.8 million in funds through the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) that will improve city parks and recreation centers, expand affordable housing and improve infrastructure.

The community development grants will benefit 54 projects in Pittsburgh with a variety of dollar amounts for each, a recent press release from the mayor’s office said. Gainey called this an “important and critical investment” for the future of Pittsburgh.

“These funds will help us improve our parks and rec centers, expand affordable housing, and will help bring affordable healthcare into new areas of our city,” Gainey said in the release. “We recently went to Harrisburg to let our partners at the State know what we need for our city, and now we have $56 million in grant funds for critical projects. We are very thankful to the governor, state Senators Lindsay Williams, Wayne Fontana, and Jay Costa, state Representative Dan Deasy, as well as Pittsburgh City Council President Theresa Kail-Smith, and Pittsburgh City Councilmen Ricky Burgess, Daniel Lavelle, and Bruce Kraus who all played an influential role in helping us secure this vital funding.”

The release highlighted several key projects being awarded funding, starting with the Community Kitchen Pittsburgh property acquisition and renovations for $1,350,000. This plan is to purchase the building and renovations of the third floor. The first floor will be open to retail and café space. Other work includes work on the walls, underlayment and flooring, building two bathrooms, adding a sprinkler and work with plumbing, HVAC, lighting and electricity.

The Centre Avenue project involving Avenues of Hope site preparation and development. This project was awarded $1 million for site preparation, engineering, rehabilitation of dilapidated structures for community development and construction of mixed-use structures.

Pittsburgh Warrington Recreation Center is also receiving $1 million to renovate the three-story building and update the site to meet building codes. It will increase ADA accessibility and protect the health, safety and welfare of the public by installing new HVAC, plumbing, electricity, fire safety and data/security systems.

The Hilltop Community Center Phase II received $1 million to construct a new multi-purpose building with underneath parking. The site will have space for a market, classroom and office, wellness and fitness space, bathrooms and a common area. There are two vacant structures on the property that will be demolished as well.

PCHA Homewood Medical Complex will receive $750,000 for a new medical center and office building on a surface parking lot adjacent to the facility. Specifically addressed will be site utilities, stormwater management, site improvements and building core/shell. The new center will have physician offices, treatment rooms, administrative offices and a pharmacy. 

Centre-Heldman was awarded $500,000 to split the 40,000-square-foot grocery store in the Centre Heldman Plaza into two retail spaces. One will remain a grocery store and the other will be for community and entrepreneurial programming.

Pittsburgh Sheraden Park rehabilitation will receive $500,000 for improvements to the rest area and parking building, grill area, hiking trails, children’s discovery garden, a dog park, wilderness education area, ADA-accessible community garden and an apiary. Funds will also go toward site preparation, grading, landscaping, signage, stair repair, pedestrian lighting and safety improvements.