By Ron DaParma
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, September 8, 2008
A $300,000 grant is contributing to a revitalization of downtown Vandergrift.
Three properties in the 100 block of Grant Avenue in the heart of the Westmoreland County community’s business district are being restored with the help of the revolving loan fund grant provided in 2007 by the Allegheny Foundation, chaired by philanthropist Dick Scaife, owner of the Tribune-Review.
Expectations are that a bakery and yoga studio, five new apartments, a new community arts center and a small business incubator eventually will operate in the buildings, said Arthur P. Ziegler, president of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.
Among the reasons Landmarks is interested in Vandergrift, population 5,455, is that its six-block historic district was laid out in the late 1890s by renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, who designed New York’s Central Park.
The foundation and other partners in the Vandergrift Improvement Program plan to highlight progress made to date in leveraging those Allegheny Foundation funds at a news conference scheduled for today at Carino’s Restaurant, which recently opened downtown.
“Richard Scaife took a great interest in Vandergrift because of the uniqueness of the community and because of our long history of success with revolving funds,” Ziegler said.
“Vandergrift has a very good residential area, but the main street was suffering,” Ziegler said.
The local group was formed to try to do something about the situation three years ago, with initial state funding provided with the help of state Sen. Jim Ferlo, D-Highland Park, according to Ziegler. Ferlo then asked the Landmarks foundation to lead the effort.
The foundation oversees the community’s state-designated Main Street Program, which is focusing on building restoration, real estate development and financing. To date, the program has leveraged about $875,000 in public and private investment.
The hope is to mimic success in other neighborhoods where the Landmarks foundation has worked on other initiatives supported by the Allegheny Foundation, including Station Square, the Mexican War Streets and Manchester.
Proceeds from rentals and real estate sales that result from revolving fund grants are re-channeled for future investments.
The grant from the Allegheny Foundation was key to keeping the Vandergrift program moving, said Anthony Ferrante, president of the Vandergrift Historical Society.
“It takes a lot of money to revitalize a downtown that is 100 years old,” he said. “When you buy a building, the cost of the structure is negligible compared to the cost of renovation.”
Local leaders hope ongoing and future restoration projects will make the historic town a destination, he said.
“We know people go to the major malls for their regular shopping,” Ferrante said. “But when they are looking for unique items and they want to find unique stores, dining and entertainment, we want them to come to Victorian Vandergrift.”
Ron DaParma can be reached atrdaparma@tribweb.com or 412-320-7907
