The Allegheny County Housing Authority has walked away from its long-discussed plan to rebuild the former Hays Manor site in McKees Rocks as subsidized housing, shelving a proposal for roughly 50 affordable rental units. The site, which once held 14 barracks-style buildings containing 138 apartments, has already been cleared, and former tenants have been relocated. Housing officials say the project simply stopped penciling out as construction costs climbed and political resistance from some community members hardened.
As reported by WESA, Allegheny County Housing Authority Executive Director Richard Stephenson confirmed the authority has stopped pursuing the 50-unit rebuild and said he is committed to working with the borough and residents on what comes next. Stephenson told the station that ballooning construction costs, local opposition to low-income housing, and uncertainty about federal funding tied to the Choice Neighborhoods program helped push the project off the table.
Why the Plan Fell Apart
Behind the scenes, the deal unraveled on several fronts at once. Local leaders and residents clashed over how many units should be affordable versus market-rate, and hard construction costs kept ticking up. Without a major federal award to close the gap, the authority says it could not responsibly move ahead.
Community opposition also stopped the Allegheny County Housing Authority from filing a full Choice Neighborhoods application in 2024, PublicSource reported. That setback came even though the authority had secured a $450,000 Choice Neighborhoods planning grant in 2021 to prepare a larger bid, according to HUD. Without that bigger federal infusion, officials told reporters the math no longer worked as projected costs crept toward the tens of millions.
What It Means for Residents
By the time the plan stalled, the old Hays Manor buildings had already been demolished, and families had been relocated to other housing, with some of those tenants expecting to have a chance to return under the original proposal. Now that the rebuild is off, those return options are gone, at least on that site.
The Allegheny County Housing Authority says it remains committed to replacing all 138 units somewhere in Allegheny County and that many of the replacement units will likely be single-family homes, according to WESA. Advocates and residents have voiced growing frustration with the drawn-out process and the hole it has left in the borough’s already thin supply of affordable housing.
What’s Next for the Vacant Lot
While the housing plan has been shelved, the land itself is still very much in play. Borough Council President Archie Brinza has publicly floated the idea of commercial development on the site to help shore up the tax base. Local officials have been considering lot-consolidation and land-use steps that could smooth the way for new projects, West Hills Gazette reported.
Public meeting notices and planning materials show that the authority and borough worked through multiple approval stages and that developer teams such as Pennrose had been lined up before the plan stalled out. For now, the cleared parcel behind McKees Rocks Plaza sits idle while municipal and county officials debate whether to chase market-rate housing, commercial projects, or some kind of mixed-use combination.
Where the Money Would Have Come From
On paper, the financing strategy relied heavily on federal help. Officials had hoped to pair Choice Neighborhoods support with state and local grants to fund a larger rebuild. HUD’s Choice Neighborhoods program is designed to use federal dollars to attract private investment and broader neighborhood improvements, according to HUD.
Allegheny County Housing Authority board documents show the agency also explored state Main Street Matters money and other funding streams as part of a layered financing plan, including a resolution approving a DCED grant application for McKees Rocks (ACHA board agenda). Those records reflect the authority’s previous intent to create roughly 50 new units while stitching together multiple pots of funding.
Housing advocates argue that McKees Rocks still needs investment and new housing to counter decades of population loss, and county leaders say broader housing tools remain essential even as this specific project stalls out. Allegheny County’s recent “Housing for All” actions highlight that the borough’s fight over Hays Manor is just one piece of a larger regional struggle to build and preserve affordable units (Allegheny County).
