The City of Pittsburgh is working with the Fineview, Perry Hilltop, Charles Street Valley, and California-Kirkbride communities, the Tenant Council of Allegheny Dwellings, and the Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh to create a Choice Neighborhood Plan that will guide the future of Allegheny Dwellings and its connection to the neighborhoods around it.

It is a planning process that engages residents and key stakeholders in looking at where future Allegheny Dwellings homes will be built, what services will be provided for residents, and how the broader community can be improved to support all neighbors.

Once adopted by the Planning Commission, the Allegheny Dwellings Choice Neighborhood Plan will become City policy and guide public and private investments in the area. New land use regulations, transportation, and infrastructure improvements, and public programs may be recommended in the plan. The Plan will be used to attract funding the implement the plan. In the meantime, there is funding for Early Action Activities. Early Action Activities are special projects residents identify, such as rehabbing a building for a special purpose, turning a vacant lot into a garden.

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Through this planning process, the Allegheny Choice Neighborhood needs assessment surveys, Task Force meetings, and community meetings have been crucial in identifying issues and opportunities within the community. These activities put residents in the driver seat ensuring every resident can thrive, residents are connected to the surrounding community and resources, and the replacement housing is integrated better into the area.

These three areas of focus as well as initial ideas for goals and strategies will continue to evolve as we continuously receive input from community members and partners over the next few months with ongoing engagement and conversations within the Task Force groups.

Re-establish community connections and trust to foster a safe, family-friendly neighborhood, where residents are active parts of their community and thrive as individuals.

This Choice Neighborhood is rich in resident-led community groups and a network of mission-driven organizations and foundations working together to improve opportunities and outcomes for residents. The One Northside partnership led by Buhl Foundation is one example of how partnerships are in place and actively engaged in improving the everyday lives of residents – from increasing quality housing options to improving education opportunities, offering career paths for young people, supporting integrative health care and relationship-based policy and partnerships. We’ve heard from residents the need for community places, where connections with neighbors can be made to the benefit of the individual and families. While many resources exist, its often difficult for families to make the connections and to determine where to start without building trust and offering comprehensive, wrap-around services and mental health and wellness support.

Integrate Allegheny Dwellings in the surrounding community and invest in safe, quality, affordable housing.

Through the needs assessment, many residents of Allegheny Dwellings and the surrounding neighborhoods told us that would like to buy their own homes in the future, and over 80% of households at Allegheny Dwellings like the idea of mixed-income housing and community. We know from the Finevew and Perry Hilltop Five-Year Affordable Housing Plan and our study of current housing affordability and community need that the housing market within this Choice Neighborhood is changing quickly, for-sale homes are becoming too expensive for current residents to afford and there is a significant percentage of residents in the neighborhood that are currently cost-burdened, particularly renters who are spending more than 30% of income on housing costs. Investment is needed in all types of affordable housing, from the redevelopment of Allegheny Dwelling to programs to support current homeowners and future homeowners with maintenance and home repairs, to opportunities for residents to live in energy-efficient, high-quality housing, as well as to invest in and modernize older housing stock.

Create a green, connected, well-served, livable neighborhood where residents have convenient access to rich opportunities and resources to meet their daily needs.

We heard from residents the challenges of using public transportation for daily needs, like getting to work, dropping off kids at childcare and pre-school locations, and shopping for groceries or doing laundry. Within the CNI planning area, about 54% of residents are driving to work, compared to 24% who are taking public transportation. We also know that one of the unique aspects of the area and other neighborhoods on the Northside – the hilltop communities and sweeping views of downtown and the surrounding region – also means that those elevation changes make it difficult to walk or bike and effectively separate communities and places that would be otherwise easily accessed. Trails and stairs, where in good condition, provide community valuable community assets, and the potential to improve and increase access to nearby parks, retail, and services.