The last major hurdle blocking the redevelopment of a controversial McKees Rocks public housing project has been cleared.
The borough council on Tuesday night approved a lot consolidation plan for the Hays Manor project contingent upon the borough’s vacating a portion of Pine Alley.
The approval opens the door for a public-private partnership featuring the Allegheny County Housing Authority, Pennrose LLC and Falbo Group LLC to develop a 50-unit rental community on what once held 138 units spread out over 14 buildings constructed in the early 1940s.
Christian Dambly, a Pennrose spokesman, said Pennrose still needs to draft and execute a developers agreement with the borough before construction can begin but that a building permit application would be submitted to the borough in the coming weeks.
In addition, the lot consolidation plan that the borough council approved Tuesday night needs to be sent to the county recorder of deeds.
Once those things are done, the project can move forward. A project overview stated that once full funding is in place, construction is expected to start in the spring and be completed within 14 months.
In addition to the 10 residential buildings that will include a mix of townhouses and stacked flats, the property will feature a 3,200-square-foot community building. It also will feature up to 34 off-street parking spaces and 10 to 12 spaces along Pine Alley.
Critics of the project, such as Aaron Stubna, say McKees Rocks already has its share of public housing and didn’t need another project.
“I’m completely against rebuilding Hays Manor,” said Stubna, who owns the Parkway Theater in neighboring Stowe Township. “We’re oversaturated with projects.”
According to the county Housing Authority website, three ACHA family communities – Meyers Ridge phases I and II, Pleasant Ridge phases I and II, and Uansa Village – are located in McKees Rocks, as is Ohioview Tower, described as efficiency/one-bedroom high-rise apartments.
The total number of units listed for those four projects is just under 300, although there is no listing for the number of units in Meyers Ridge phase II. Nearly 200 of those units are either two-, three- or four-bedroom units.
Stubna said the fact that the new Hays Manor will feature less than half the units as its predecessor – which was razed starting in late 2024 – is of no consolation to him.
“I don’t want to see any of it,” he said.
One of Stubna’s main concerns is that the county Housing Authority, which will manage the new Hays Manor after it’s built, will not take proper care of the property.
Rich Stephenson, the county Housing Authority executive director, was not available for comment Thursday. But last year just prior to the project going to the borough Zoning Hearing Board for two variance requests, Stephenson acknowledged that some public housing units had not been well-maintained.
However, he said that fair market rents would be paid at the new Hays Manor, and that those amounts would increase based on inflation, providing ample funding to maintain the property.
“All public housing is new at one time, but if rents don’t increase with inflation, they fall into disrepair,” Stephenson said at the time. “That will never happen with these properties.”
Stubna isn’t so sure.
“They say it’s going to be different,” Stubna said, referring to the county Housing Authority. “It’s not going to be different.”
The Rev. James Hogan, an outspoken critic of the project, agreed.
“As much as I hate it, the track record is plain as day – wherever the ACHA builds, violent crime, shoplifting and robberies go up,” he said.
Stubna said other parts of Pittsburgh have seen redevelopment occur in a positive way, and the same thing could happen in McKees Rocks if it was done differently
“You don’t have to go far to see what’s working in other towns,” he said. “We’re sitting on a gold mine here but we have people here who don’t know what they’re doing. To allow this to come back and be rebuilt, I’m not happy at all.”
McKees Rocks Mayor David Flick did not oppose the project, but he wouldn’t go so far as to say he believes the new Hays Manor will be a plus for the community.
“It’s up to the controlling authority,” he said. “There is still a lot of trust to be earned. But if I see more of the same from the Housing Authority, I’ll be the first person to carry the torch and say, no, this is not how it’s going to be.
“There are certain things we knew that used to happen that won’t happen again.”
Flick referred to the development having 50 units as opposed to the 138 that once occupied the Housing Authority-owned property as “addition by subtraction.”
“We knocked 85 units off the table,” he said.
Now that the redevelopment project has been approved, Flick said, it’s important to treat those who end up living there the same as any other renters in the borough.
“I do not want anyone who comes to live in the borough to feel like they’ve been sentenced to some Housing Authority enclave where no one wants them,” he said.
“I’m ready to meet everyone who comes and lives (there) with an open heart and clear eyes.”
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