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Health & Fitness

Living on the edge—Peebles Square

New affordable houses sprout in Peebles Square.

Only little bits of Wilkinsburg are in Regent Square, but many of us whose lives are in Regent Square officially live in Wilkinsburg. Developments in that borough can be very important to life in the East End.

So, it’s a really big deal when brand-new, from-the-ground-up houses are built there. Three new single-family detached homes just have hit the market along South Avenue in Wilkinsburg’s Peebles Square district. They’re attractive, contemporary, spacious and very reasonably priced.

I walked it off—it’s an easy stroll of 1,650 paces from the corner of South and Peebles to the front door of Dunning’s, just about a mile and just about 15 minutes.

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The three new two-story, three-bedroom homes complement five similar homes that were built along Peebles Street in 2010 and already are occupied. Completion of the new units will be accomplished within weeks.

As many as four additional houses may be built on the site, pending funding, for a potential total of 12. The assemblage of newly built houses fits in with a row of six gorgeous old Mission-style townhouses along the 100 block of Peebles that were renovated and sold in 2008. These start behind the doctor’s office on Penn Avenue and stretch along Peebles.

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The whole “district” is a housing deal that spans a century. The six formal, renovated townhouses were erected in 1910 and built with all the character and elegance of glass and wood that typified fine homes of that era. One hundred years later, construction of the new, free-standing homes on individual lots further along Peebles is rounding out the site.

Peebles Square—bounded by Peebles, South, Trenton and Ross—is a joint effort among ACTION Housing, Hosanna House and Allegheny County.

Previously, over the years, the row of townhouses in the 100 block had become a disgraceful wreck of its original splendor. Units were drastically run down or outright vandalized, many with crude plywood barriers shutting up the windows and doorways once hand-crafted by master tradesmen.

At the same time, the square of land where the new individual homes are located was for years a wild tangle of derelict houses, trash dumping and out-of-control vegetation. There, you could find the rusting carcasses of discarded kitchen appliances, water heaters and dozens of old tires heaped among the weeds, vines and vermin.

But what a change! When the newest houses are completed, 14 households will be enjoying fashionable homes with the newest, most efficient mechanical systems and a location that's hard to beat—handy to Penn and South Braddock avenues, public transportation, Frick Park, and numerous walkable shopping options like Walgreen's, the East End Food Co-op and Regent Square.

Financially, Peebles Square is a winner, too. The newly constructed single homes measure 1,500 square feet, with three bedrooms and two baths. The newest units are being offered at $99,900.

The adjacent townhouses—three bedrooms, two baths and 1,800 square feet of floor space—sold for approximately $85,000 in 2008.

Because of government sponsorship and participation in the development, buyers must meet income guidelines and also must live in the homes. Sales of the newest houses are being handled by Jennifer Cash Wade of Keller Williams Realty.

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