Bailey Park Development Takes Shape On Pittsburgh’s Mt. Washington

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

Bailey Park is so new, it had to be given a name.

“There is no sub-neighborhood here,” developer and architect Justin Cipriani says of the new one he is working on. “So that’s why we came up with Bailey Park.”

He is talking about a community of 11 homes and an apartment building on the fringe of Grandview Park right where Bailey Avenue and Beltzhoover Avenue meet.

He wants the area to be its own neighborhood so much that he is building a loop street around two of the homes and behind the other nine.

The street will meet city standards so all municipally provided functions — such as garbage collection and snow removal — can take place there.

Read more: http://triblive.com/business/realestate/5766786-74/park-says-homes#ixzz2xYrCLBwA
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Luzerne County Site Proposed For 1,000-Plus Homes Sold

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

A developer has purchased 1,623 acres in three municipalities that had been proposed as a site for more than 1,000 new homes.

The new developer — Deep Woods Lake LLC — plans to proceed with plans to construct around 1,042 homes on the land in Dennison, Butler and Foster townships, Wilkes-Barre Attorney Bruce Phillips said Friday.

Phillips’ firm — Wetzel Caverly Shea Phillips & Rodgers — is representing Deep Woods and also has represented the seller, Crystal Penn Ridge LLP, as it attempted to obtain development approval for the project, he said.

“I know the new owner wants to continue these plans, but I don’t know the timetable,” Phillips said.

Read more: http://timesleader.com/news/local-news/1179845/Site-proposed-for-1000-plus-homes-sold

West Bradford SPCA Land Sale Raises Objections

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

Accusations of high euthanasia rates and lack of management aren’t the only issues officials at the Chester County SPCA are facing these days.

The organization and especially board president Conrad Muhly are hearing the sharp sounds of criticism amid accusations of wrongdoing over a land deal that detractors say was fishy from the start.

Today, in the second installment of a two-part series, the Daily Local News looks into allegations that the nonprofit is acting improperly in selling land it received from the state of Pennsylvania in West Bradford to a developer who has ties to Muhly and, thus, the CCSPCA.  On Sunday, the Daily Local published complaints from former volunteers about practices at the shelter in West Goshen.

The shelter currently holds 20 acres of land that abut the 220-acre Embreeville State Hospital parcel that was purchased by Embreeville Redevelopment, LP.  The group currently has controversial plans of building more than 1,000 new homes and commercial development on that land.

Read more: http://www.dailylocal.com/general-news/20130915/west-bradford-spca-land-sale-raises-objections

Johnstown Fights Blight

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The City of Johnstown, Cambria County, is a post-industrial community just like Pottstown.  Steel was king along with heavy manufacturing.  Those days are gone and communities have fallen on hard times. 

When life hands you lemons, make lemonade.  Johnstown is doing just that.  In an effort to clean up their community and attract middle-income residents, Johnstown has started a program to buy blighted properties, demo them and redevelop the property with a prefabricated home.  These are 3 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom homes that are Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certified.  Meaning these homes are energy-efficient.

This program is a joint effort between the Cambria County Redevelopment Authority and the City of Johnstown.  Funding was obtained through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (federal).

They intend to transform the entire South Street neighborhood PLUS they are targeting business development and a business development strategy to bring in new business!

This initial project is only a small dent in Johnstown’s blighted housing stock; however, it’s one house at a time, one block at a time.  And that is just what Johnstown officials intend to do.