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PHFA Awards $1.16 Million in Tax Credits for Larimer/East Liberty Phase I

February 21, 2014

The Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA) Board recently awarded $1.16 million in tax credit allocation to Allies & Ross Management and Development Corporation (the development arm of the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh) and McCormack Baron Salazar, Inc. for the Larimer/East Liberty Phase I development. This allocation will provide tax credit equity in the amount of roughly $11 million toward this initiative.

“This is the first significant housing development to occur in Larimer in generations,” said Mayor William Peduto. “I am thrilled the PHFA has endorsed this project as their largest investment in Allegheny County for this round of tax credits, and I look forward to continuing discussions with HUD and other federal representatives toward a favorable outcome for our request for Choice Neighborhoods Initiative funding.”

Larimer/East Liberty Phase I is a critical component of the Vision to Action Plan that has been developed and adopted for the Larimer/East Liberty neighborhood in Pittsburgh. The collaborative effort of the City of Pittsburgh, the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP), the Urban Redevelopment Authority and community stakeholders seeks to revitalize the neighborhood through a comprehensive plan that includes strategies to address housing issues as well as the broader challenges facing the neighborhood, while supporting the families living in the neighborhood. The HACP and its development partners submitted a FY 2013 Choice Neighborhoods Initiative Implementation Grant application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that, if awarded, will provide additional funding to help implement the Vision to Action Plan and future phases of development activity in Larimer/ East Liberty.

“This tax credit award is an important step forward in the process of creating vibrant, sustainable affordable housing in Larimer/ East Liberty in accordance with the community’s Vision to Action Plan,” HACP Executive Director Caster D. Binion said.

Located at the intersection of East Liberty Boulevard and Larimer Avenue, Larimer/East Liberty Phase I will transform a key entrance to the neighborhood, replace a distressed public housing site in the neighborhood with a new mixed-income community, and create opportunities for businesses to begin returning to the neighborhood through the inclusion of innovative live/work units. Larimer/East Liberty Phase I also supports the community’s goals of creating green and sustainable mixed-income housing.

Larimer/East Liberty Phase I includes 81 residential apartments and four live/work units that are affordable to households with a range of incomes. Project Based Housing Choice Voucher subsidies will be available for one-third of the units, one-third of the units will be affordable to households earning 

60 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI) and one-third will be market rate units which are unrestricted by income. Ten units will be fully accessible. The total cost for Phase I housing development is estimated at $22.4 million. The four live/work units located on the first floor of a mixed-use building at East Liberty Boulevard and Larimer Avenue are designed to be used as retail or office space, a combination of commercial and residential space, or as residential space. These units will support the return of business activity to Larimer Avenue, while the unique and flexible design makes it possible for them to be used as residences if commercial uses are not immediately feasible.