-FAIRYWOOD-
By Alice Crow
With the help of $3.5 million in Commonwealth Financing Authority funding, a 25-acre parcel in Pittsburgh’s Fairywood neighborhood is set to become the home of two new 150,000-square-foot single-user warehouses.
Ferguson Enterprise LLC, a plumbing, HVAC and industrial product distributor, in June signed a lease for one of the warehouse spots. Construction is scheduled to begin at the site of the former Broadhead Manor public housing development located near Thornburg, Crafton and Ingram in October.
“This significant investment will help to transform an area of Fairywood that has been vacant for a long time and give it a new purpose,” State Rep. Dan Deasy said. The $3.5 million in funding toward the industrial park is comprised of a $1.4 million grant and a $2.1 million loan.
The Business in Our Sites grant and loan will be used by the Urban Redevelopment Authority
of Pittsburgh and the Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern PA to redevelop the Fairywood site which has been vacant since 2004.
By 1998, much of Broadhead Manor housing was demolished and what remained was damaged by the flooding of Chartiers Creek following Hurricane Ivan in 2004. A decision was then made to close what remained of the then privately managed housing development. The CFA funds earmarked for this new project will be used for demolition, earthwork, landscaping, ground improvements and other development needs.
"This project will be a catalyst for new investment and job opportunities in and around the southwestern part of our City,” said URA Executive Director Greg Filsram.
The project is expected to create 50 jobs in 2023 and 100-180 jobs within five years.