Progress Pennsylvania

Condo Project Intended To Give Lift To Pittston

Roy — Fri, 17 May 2013 17:44:58 +0000

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Luzerne County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

PITTSTON, PA — Shovels moved the first dirt Thursday for a 30-unit residential project along the Susquehanna River bank that most people agreed has been a decade-long labor of love.

The Riverfront Condominium, a residential building that for the past 10 years existed only on paper and in the imaginations of city officials and architects, promises to be the crowned star of Pittston, arguably the Wyoming Valley, it backers say.

“This is a long time coming,” Joe Chacke, Pittston Redevelopment Authority’s executive director, said.

The project’s original engineer, Alex Belavitz, whose firm is still the condominium’s official engineer after all these years, said public/private partnerships always bring obstacles. The $9 million construction uses $4 million in state grants — $1.5 million from a gaming tax grant and $2.5 million assigned by Gov. Tom Corbett.

Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority Advances Plan To Fund East Liberty Improvements

Roy — Thu, 09 May 2013 03:08:53 +0000

Locator map with the East Liberty neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania highlighted. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The city’s Urban Redevelopment Authority board is pushing ahead with a plan to divert a large portion of real estate and parking tax revenue from a host of projects in or near East Liberty to help fund road, pedestrian and other improvements in the area.

Board members will vote Thursday on a proposal to create an East Liberty Transit Revitalization Investment District in which 75 percent of the new real estate and parking tax revenue generated by development within half a mile of the East Liberty stop on the East Busway would be used for infrastructure improvements.

Also Thursday, the board is expected to vote on $500,000 in loans to help clear the way for Fifth Avenue Pub and Lofts, a proposed restaurant and apartment development across the street from Consol Energy Center. It would mark the first major private development to take place in that area since the arena opened in 2010.

The transit revitalization investment district in some ways works like a tax increment financing district, only it typically involves a broader area and is utilized for a host of projects, not just one.

Tionesta Market Village Plan Unveiled

Roy — Thu, 02 May 2013 04:31:21 +0000

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Forest County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Tionesta’s long-vacant downtown will be given a jump-start this spring with the creation of the Tionesta Market Village. The Forest County IDA and IDC have partnered up and completed plans to establish this addition to the main street on the southern of the two IDA-owned lots, now known as the “Gazebo Lot”. This site will become the home of several custom-built small scale retail buildings designed to look like 1800s store fronts, fronted by a wide walkway for shoppers and offering a variety of small retail establishments.

While the IDA owns the property, the IDC is funding this project and is now searching for new start-ups or small home-based businesses looking to move into a small retail space. This is an attempt to fill two needs: providing small, high-visibility retail space to small businesses and making use of the vacant property until a permanent development is established.

“Over the past couple of years there have been several individuals that have expressed an interest in starting a small business in downtown Tionesta.” says Dick Johnson, owner of Forest Hardware in Tionesta and Vice President of the Forest County IDC. “Two of the biggest drawbacks are the lack of available space and the cost of building new.” He hopes that the Market Village will give those people an “economically feasible way to get their new ventures up and running.”

IDC president, Farley Wright, says “The project is a unique, low-risk, high potential reward grass roots effort to increase the attraction and traffic to the community. It’s an opportunity, without relying on governmental funding, to assist local folks as well as benefit our community.” In answer to why this type of use for the property, he adds “Sometimes you can’t wait for others to provide the solutions; and while there may be detractors (nay-sayers) to the project, I know of no one that has presented a better idea. We can support the effort and contribute to its success, or we can deride it and it may fail…….but at least we are doing something.”

More Than 89 Acres Sold At Berks Park 78

Roy — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 02:51:38 +0000

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Berks County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

A Reno, Nev.-based real estate development company has purchased 89.22 acres in Berks Park 78 for $7.5 million, the Berks County Industrial Development Authority announced Tuesday.

Gene Preston, partner for the eastern region with Dermody Properties, said the company does not have a prospective tenant for Berks Park 78.

“That’s not atypical for us,” he said. “We are investors in real estate. We like to buy good land sites. This is an outstanding site, we are going to aggressively market the site and we feel fairly confident.”

Pennsylvania and the Berks Park location, in particular, provides strategic infrastructure to be able to move goods to the population base in the northeastern part of the country, Preston explained.

Business Park To Grow At Former Greater Pittsburgh International Airport Terminal

Roy — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 15:53:47 +0000

A new building is in the works at the Airside Business Park in Moon.

Allegheny County Airport Authority board members voted Thursday to lease about 4.5 acres of land at the former Greater Pittsburgh International Airport terminal to Airside Business Park LP, a partnership between the Elmhurst Group and the Erect Fund.

The action clears the way for the partnership to begin work on a 45,000- to 50,000-square-foot building at the site. It will be the first new building at the former airport terminal in six years.

“We’re excited about expanding Airside. It’s been a great success for us and the airport authority. We built it out much faster than we anticipated in the beginning,” said Bruce Longenecker, vice president of operations for Elmhurst.

Wynn Project Could Shake Up Philadelphia Waterfront

Roy — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 15:14:47 +0000

Map of Pennsylvania highlighting Philadelphia County (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Where North Beach Street twists and turns into Richmond Avenue in Fishtown, the old William Cramp & Sons shipyard has been the envy of developers and dreamers alike.

It’s 60 open acres of Delaware River waterfront, a vast blank canvas.

And the man with all the paintbrushes is Las Vegas resort-and-casino developer Steve Wynn.

Two weeks ago, Wynn finally released his plan for developing the site. Local reaction has run hot and cold.

Everyone agrees that the Wynn project could be a game-changer for the waterfront, finally giving purpose to land that has been idle since after World War II.

Developer Plans Apartments On First Avenue In Downtown Pittsburgh

Roy — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:38:52 +0000

A map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with its neighborhoods labeled. For use primarily in the list of Pittsburgh neighborhoods. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For the past several years, developer Todd Palcic has made his living developing condos and apartment buildings in Downtown’s cultural district. Now he’s taking his talents across town.

Last week, Mr. Palcic completed the purchase of the former Graphic Arts building at 422 First Ave., with plans to convert the eight-story, red-brick structure into apartments.

“I think there’s a need for apartments on that side of town,” he said Thursday.

Mr. Palcic paid $800,000 for the building and another $350,000 for an adjacent lot, which will provide parking for those who eventually will be living in the building. CBRE was the broker in the sale.

Proposed 33-Story Tower In Allentown Draws Mixed Reaction

Roy — Fri, 29 Mar 2013 15:06:12 +0000

English: City of Allentown from east side (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s hard to imagine: a tall, pencil-like building that would jut into the Allentown sky, permanently altering the city’s landscape.

Lehigh Valley Developer Bruce Loch’s proposal to transform a 4,000-square-foot grassy plot in the city’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone into a 33-story high-rise is so unusual it has spurred conversation across the region.

For many, it’s an exciting prospect — a sign that developers have faith in Allentown’s urban core. Others have questions about the proposal, such as how a footprint so small could support a structure that would eclipse the Lehigh Valley’s tallest buildings by at least 20 feet.

Amy Hawley, an Allentown commercial and industrial real estate broker, commended Loch for wanting to build downtown, but questioned whether local businesses are ready for such a radical change in floor plan.

New Market District Brand Unveiled Iin Downtown York

Roy — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:24:07 +0000

Elsie Smith has only called York home for a few years. But her short time here has been filled and fulfilled with the energy of downtown York.

Smith’s design was chosen by Downtown Inc as the new brand image of the Market District of downtown York.

After years of driving through York on her motorcycle, Smith was attracted to retire here by the architecture, industrial art focus and growing energy, she said.

Smith wanted to be in the middle of it all, so she bought a home on Market Street.

60 Projects Outlined By Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership

Roy — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 20:01:56 +0000

Several major developments in the Golden Triangle will get started or completed this year — part of a group of 60 projects in the pipeline totaling an estimated $2.2 billion in investment, according to the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.

Among the developments to get started this year is the Gardens at Market Square, a $95 million hotel, office and retail project to be built on Forbes Avenue near Market Square. Lucas Piatt, president and chief operating officer of Millcraft Investments, the developer, told those gathered for the PDP’s annual meeting this morning that Millcraft plans to break ground on the project in June.

The Gardens will feature 125,000 square feet of office space, 20,000 square feet of retail, a 335-car parking garage, and a 197-room Hilton Garden Inn. Burgatory, a hamburger haven, and Jackson’s Social Bar and Restaurant already have signed on as tenants, Mr. Piatt said.