Garfield Home Ownership

Over the past 25 years, the BGC has renovated or built more than 200 units of rental and owner-occupied housing in Garfield, Bloomfield, and Highland Park. The BGC is completing construction of eight new single-family homes in Garfield, and a second group of nine homes is planned for construction in 2008. By mid-2010, a total of 50 such houses will have been built over an eight-year period, in collaboration with our partner, Garfield Jubilee Association. For more information, contact Barbara Murphy at 412-665-5208.

In addition to its own housing developments, the BGC is advocating for affordable rental housing that will replace the Garfield Heights housing project. Construction is set to begin in summer 2008 for the first phase of new rental construction by a private developer, and discussions have begun on how a future phase of building can be incorporated with existing housing in the neighborhoods closer to Penn Avenue.

Penn Avenue Building for Sale Bloomfield-Garfield Corporation and Friendship Development Associates are actively accepting proposals from individuals or firms seeking to purchase and renovate 5106 Penn Avenue, a late Victorian building located in the heart of the Penn Avenue Arts District. Once home to Pap’s ‘N Us, a longtime neighborhood tavern, the building and business assets were recently sold to the BGC (see The Bulletin, August 2008). The three-story structure includes a first floor restaurant/bar area, complete with a full bar, a small kitchen area, and ample seating. Residential tenants have historically occupied the second and third floors. Complete details and an RFP are available for download here (105 KB PDF). The deadline for receipt of proposals is October 17, 2008.

Penn Avenue

Encouraging productive investment along Penn Avenue in Garfield is a primary mission of the BGC as we work closely with Friendship Development Associates (FDA), a city "Main Street Organization," offering assistance in financing, planning, zoning, and marketing issues.

The BGC collaborates with FDA on the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative (PAAI), an effort to encourage artists and art-related businesses to buy and locate on Penn Avenue. One of the PAAI's high-profile marketing events is “Unblurred,” which sets aside the first Friday evening of each month for a series of arts-related activities along Penn Avenue.

In addition, the BGC is leading other neighborhood organizations as we work with the city on the first phase of Penn Avenue infrastructure reinvestment. Design and engineering work for Phase One is just beginning; construction is scheduled to start in 2010. The project, extending from 34th Street in Lawrenceville to Negley Avenue in East Liberty, will will include new street surfacing, new sidewalks and treatments, new traffic control equipment, and improved lighting. A report on the March 11, 2008, public meeting that gave an overview of the project and solicited feedback from the community is available for download here (184 KB PDF).

Links