Pittsburgh Land Bank approves five property transfers, including Uptown Seneca sale to Epic Development

The Pittsburgh Land Bank on July 11 approved five property transactions intended to return vacant and city- or URA-owned lots to reuse, including the conveyance of 2 and 3 Seneca Street in Uptown to Epic Development for $20,000 and the transfer of two parcels in the Hill District and Larimer to private buyers and neighborhood groups.

Board members cited the goal of moving properties out of long-term vacancy and into rehabilitation or community stewardship. Michael McAllister, owner of Epic Development, told the board he plans to convert 2 and 3 Seneca into “two new owner-occupied units” and said he expects the project to bring “active and engaged owners into the Uptown neighborhood as early as next spring.” Mikaela Sheckler, real estate and development program manager at Uptown Partners of Pittsburgh, said Epic’s proposal had unanimous support from the group’s real estate committee and urged the land bank to transfer the properties to McAllister through the land bank process.

The board also approved the land bank’s June financial…