Edgewater at Oakmont

Edgewater is Proud to Support Riverview Relay for Life!

EQA Landmark Communities — Tue, 15 May 2012 17:12:40 +0000

By Heidi Dezayas via Plum-Oakmont Patch

The 12th-annual Riverview Relay for Life will be held at Riverside Park Saturday and Sunday.

Relay for Life is the American Cancer Society’s primary fundraising program with proceeds supporting cancer research, education and patient services. It is a community-based fun-filled event, designed to celebrate survivorship and remember lost loved ones.

Riverview Relay for Life is a 24-hour fundraising event at Riverside Park in Oakmont that includes team activities, live music, food concessions, raffles and games while team members take turns walking or running around the track.

It begins Saturday at 9:40 a.m. and ends Sunday at 9:30 a.m. At the Relay, the teams camp out at the park and have a representative on the track at all times because “cancer never sleeps,” according to the cancer society.

The Relay begins with a survivors lap in which cancer survivors walk the track to celebrate their victories over the disease. In the evening, there will be a luminaria ceremony where candles are lit inside bags with the names of people who have been affected by cancer—close to 1,000 luminary candles will light the track. Cancer survivors are invited to attend the survivorship celebration at the Riverview Relay for Life.

For more information on getting involved with the 2012 Riverview Relay for Life, contact Barbara Kutilek at 412-828-8593 or riverviewrfl@verizon.net or go to www.relayforlife.org/pariverview.

Excitement builds for Edgewater at Oakmont development

EQA Landmark Communities — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 19:18:34 +0000

By Jodi Weigand, VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH
Monday, March 12, 2012

Homes at the $100 million Edgewater at Oakmont housing development have been selling quickly, putting it on pace to be completed two years earlier than expected.

The 34-acre development on the Allegheny River, located near Oakmont’s border with Verona, is being built on the site of the former Edgewater Steel plant, which closed 10 years ago.

Murrysville development firm Kacin Companies received a $7.7 million loan in 2008 to clean up contaminated soil on the property.

“I’ve watched the entire development rise from the ashes,” said Oakmont Mayor Robert Fescemyer, who lives five blocks away from the development on College Avenue and drives through about once a week to check the progress. “That’s probably our last bastion; we have no other property we can expand on.”

The site is to include as many as 240 homes in a combination of condos, town homes and single-family homes — all with customizable floor plans — as well as an apartment building. Retail and office properties also are planned. The homes are built to be energy-efficient; Kacin participates in the LEED — Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design — via the U.S. Green Building Council.

About one quarter of the homes have been completed, are under construction or are under contract, said Jason Corna, broker for Edgewater Realty.

A dozen homes sold this year and 43 were closed on in 2011. Of the 14 riverfront properties, just three remain unsold, Corna said.

So far, 11 detached homes, 18 town homes and two “paired” homes are completed or are in the final stages of construction.

Those who have bought homes range in age from 21 to 85 and hail from California, Arizona and Boston and from throughout the Pittsburgh region.

“It’s exactly what we wanted,” said Ann Galm, 53. She and her husband Randy moved from Penn Township, Westmoreland County, into their new home in December. “We had been looking (for a home) here for two years.”

Blends with community

Galm said what attracted them to Edgewater, where homes purchased this year have sold for between $412,000 and $611,000, was that it is in walking distance of Oakmont’s shops, restaurants and walking trail and an easy drive to the city of Pittsburgh and other suburbs.

“It’s a place where you can be active,” she said.

Edgewater was designed as an extension of Oakmont by continuing the streets and neighborhood feel with tree-lined streets, sidewalks, alleyways and on-street parking.

“We put a lot of effort and time into fitting it into the community,” Corna said.

A commercial area will be located along Allegheny Avenue, which Kacin extended into the development. It’s slated to include a grocery store, bank, coffee shop and two restaurants.

Bruce Jamison, Oakmont borough manager, said residents who live near the development are happy with the change.

“There were some complaints during cleanup and demolition of the site, but then they put up with Edgewater for all those years,” he said. “It’s a nice change to a property that was considered blighted.”

Edgewater Exceeded Expectations in 2011

EQA Landmark Communities — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 17:31:54 +0000

2011 was an extremely amazing and exciting year for Edgewater at Oakmont. Edgewater closed the year with 43 contracts to build and a handful of additional homesite deposits. We thank everyone for their support and look foward to an exciting 2012.

We currently have models available to view by appointment. To tour the models and receive additional information call Jason Corna at 412-877-1055.

Edgewater Model Home Photos

EQA Landmark Communities — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:43:56 +0000

Contact Jason for a tour.

412-877-1055 or jcorna@kacin.com

Pittsburgh Real Estate Remains at the Head of the Pack!

EQA Landmark Communities — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 15:55:55 +0000

Harrisburg/Carlisle and Pittsburgh are projected to be 2 of the Top 5 Housing Markets in 2012

Santa Ana, Calif. – October 7, 2011 – Veros Real Estate Solutions (Veros), an industry leader in enterprise risk management and collateral valuation services, has announced the real estate market forecast for the 12-month period ending September 1, 2012.

VeroFORECAST, Veros’ real estate market forecast product, shows that once again Bismarck, North Dakota leads the housing market for strongest home appreciation, followed by Honolulu, Hawaii and Fargo, North Dakota. These areas of North Dakota are showing strength due to a notably low unemployment rate at 3.5 percent, a growing economy and population fueled by an oil boom and strong demand for agriculture. Honolulu attributes its strength to an unemployment rate of 5.7 percent, its lowest housing supply in the past five years and a high rate of affordability.

Nationally, the Veros Future HPI continues to show stability in its quarterly results, holding fairly constant at -1.7% from the 2Q 2011 projection (-1.5%) indicating slight depreciation over the next 12 months. With no significant drags on HPI and few markets showing strong appreciation, a very slow recovery for housing prices is anticipated.

Unemployment and housing supply continue to be key discriminators between the top and bottom 10 housing markets.

Projected Five Strongest Markets*

Bismarck, ND 5.6%

Honolulu, HI 2.9%

Fargo, ND-MN 2.0%

Harrisburg/Carlisle, PA 1.9%

Pittsburgh, PA 1.9%

Projected Five Weakest Markets*

Bakersfield, CA -5.5%

Reno/Sparks, NV -5.1%

Deltona/Daytona Beach/Ormond Beach, FL -5.1%

Las Vegas/Paradise, NV -5.0%

Fresno, CA -4.8%

Despite recent fluctuations in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq, Veros’ 12-month forecast indicates that there will not be a return to double-digit declines of the recent past in the housing market. VeroFORECAST indicates a maximum of five percent appreciation for growing housing markets and five to six percent decline for weaker markets.

The most strength in housing markets can be found in the Great Plains, including North and South Dakota, Texas, Wyoming, Nebraska, Louisiana and Iowa. Pittsburgh, Washington D.C. and Boston remain as the strongest big city markets, with visible strength being seen returning to the Denver housing market. Additionally, regions in Alaska and Hawaii continue to maintain a strong housing market due to affordability, lower interest rates and unemployment, as well as an increasing population.

The nation’s weakest housing markets are being found in Nevada, inland areas of California, Washington and Oregon, accounting for seven out of the bottom 10 housing markets. While some markets in Florida and Arizona are still pointedly weak, they have experienced improvements in markets such as Miami, Tampa and Fort Myers.

According to Eric Fox, vice president of statistical and economic modeling for Veros, some of the hardest hit markets during the downturn are continuing to show some surprising strengths, although they are not out of negative territory. For example, Miami is forecast to see a slight one to two percent depreciation versus the 10 percent depreciation of the recent past. “Overall, the recovery in the housing market is limited to just a few markets and is taking a long time to occur. The encouraging news is that many markets are no longer expected to be rapidly declining,” he said.

*Markets demonstrated are for residential real estate in major metro areas (typically greater than 250,000 residents) among single-family homes in the median price tier.

Article Source: http://www.veros.com/newsroom/market-forecast.aspx

November Edgewater Homes Under Construction / Photo Gallery

EQA Landmark Communities — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 18:27:19 +0000

Edgewater at Oakmont has been Awarded with a 2011 Commonwealth Award!

EQA Landmark Communities — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 19:11:23 +0000

Edgewater at Oakmont was recently presented with a 2011 Commonwealth Award. The award was specifically given in the category of “Building a More Perfect Pennsylvania”. The designation was awarded on behalf of 10thousand Friends of Pennsylvania.

10thousand Friends of Pennsylvania is an organization that prides itself on leadership in the arena of smart growth within the commonwealth. The mission, vision, goals, and values of 10thousand Friends of Pennsylvania are as follows:

Mission

10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania is the leading statewide voice for great places to live and work. They work with citizens, organizations and public officials to create land use, infrastructure and governance policies and practices that protect our resources and strengthen our economy.

Vision

10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania envisions a Commonwealth in which its citizens have a great variety of high quality places in which to live and work; where natural resources are respected and used wisely; where the infrastructure is strong, safe and supports sensible development; where the built environment is planned for maximum convenience, attractiveness, sustainability and economic competitiveness; where governments work together to allocate and share resources and deliver public services effectively, equitably and efficiently; where residents value their communities, find opportunity, and share the benefits of Pennsylvania’s commitment to competitiveness through strategic investment and sustainable growth.

Goals

10,000 Friends is a results-driven organization, pursuing four major goals:

A more prosperous, competitive and sustainable economy
A state government that adopts policies that support sound planning, strategic investment, resource conservation and sensible growth
Local governments that embrace sound planning, balanced development and efficient and effective service delivery
MakingPennsylvaniathe place of choice to live and work

Values

fact based
balanced and bipartisan
positive and constructive in thought and action
pro-growth and pro-environment
pledged to collaboration

The judging body for the 2011 Commonwealth Awards agreed that Edgewater at Oakmont epitomized the ideals of their mission, vision, goals, and values. Kacin Companies and EQA Landmark Communities made community and environmental responsibility top priorities in the planning and execution of Edgewater. 10thousand Friends of Pennsylvania saw this commitment to excellence and recognized the Edgewater team with this glowing award.

For More Information on Edgewater at Oakmont Visit: www.liveatedgewater.com

For More Information on 10thousand Friends of Pennsylvania Visit: http://10000friends.org/

Lower Burrell-to-Pittsburgh rail service draws private funding

EQA Landmark Communities — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 15:56:58 +0000

By Michael Aubele, VALLEY NEWS DISPATCH
Saturday, October 1, 2011

About the writer

Michael Aubele is a Valley News Dispatch staff writer and can be reached at 724-226-4673 or via e-mail.

A proposed commuter rail service connecting Lower Burrell and Pittsburgh has attracted private funding to cover half its estimated $350 million cost, a project consultant said.

Cleveland-based First Service Commercial Loans Inc. will supply the financing with the expectation that government funds account for the remainder, said Robert Ardolino, president of Urban Innovations, the Pittsburgh-based consulting agency that is coordinating the project.

Efforts to confirm the information with First Service were unsuccessful. A company official didn’t return calls for comment.

“It’s going to happen this time,” Ardolino said.

The project has been in the works for more than a decade, having gone through several studies and as recently as May 2010 attracting a similar private-equity commitment from an unnamed firm in Georgia.

Asked what happened to the deal with the lender in Georgia, Ardolino said, “We got a better proposal from this other firm. The way (First Service) wants to give us the money is better than the way the other folks wanted to give us the money.”

As for the government match, Ardolino said he’s confident the majority will come through the Federal Transit Administration’s New Start grant program. Ardolino claims that the government’s commitment could come within a year.

A transit administration official said an application for project funding hasn’t been submitted.

“The FTA’s role in this process is just now getting started,” said Richard Carbo, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Jason Altmire, D-McCandless. “The next step in this process will be the effort to secure the federal match.”

Altmire, who long has been a project supporter, said he was excited by the news that private financing presented itself and pledged to see the project through “to the end.”

“This project is a culmination of years of work between the public and private sectors to improve transportation in Western Pennsylvania and create good-paying jobs,” he said. “Congestion on our crumbling infrastructure and fuel costs have been a burden on this area, and this new commuter rail will ignite our local economy.”

The line would operate on tracks along the Allegheny River owned by Allegheny Valley Railroad Co., which runs freight service at night to 19 local companies. That freight service would continue at night after commuter service ends.

Projected stops along the way in Valley communities would include Arnold, New Kensington and Oakmont.

“This is a game-changer for those people who live in the Alle-Kiski Valley because it will provide an alternative to vehicles on the highway,” said Russell Peterson, CEO of Carload Express Inc., the railroad’s parent company. He suggested the commuter rail will remove half the rush-hour congestion on the Route 28 corridor.

“This is an idea that has had tremendous grassroots support,” Peterson said. “Financing a project of this size has gotten more challenging, although the public-private partnership concept has really given this momentum.”

Peterson and Ardolino said plans are to extend the line into the Braeburn section of Lower Burrell and run it to Steel Plaza or the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh.

They acknowledged that a challenge exists in extending the tracks from their current endpoint in the Strip District because the proposal will have to cross environmental, financial and political hurdles.

Ardolino said the overall project should reach its construction phase in early 2013.

In terms of economic impact, Ardolino believes the project will generate more than $750 million in development along the line and create more than 1,000 jobs.

“It will be mixed-use,” he said. “We’ll see housing, retail, commercial and some industrial development. And, hopefully, we’ll generate some more freight customers for (Allegheny Valley Railroad.)”

State Rep. Frank Dermody, D-Oakmont, who also has been a longtime project proponent, said, “This is great news.”

He, too, is confident the project will “attract usage” and as a result reduce traffic and create jobs.

“This is a good project,” he said. “The studies we’ve done show that it works.”

HGTV Comes to Edgewater at Oakmont!

EQA Landmark Communities — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 15:59:04 +0000

HGTV to visit Edgewater!

Model Home Open House With HGTV
Sunday, Sept. 11th at Edgewater at Oakmont
From 12:00 – 3:15 p.m.

You can experience the HGTV Interior Design Competition “Showhouse Showdown”. The first 100 visitors have the opportunity to VOTE on the winning design! EVERYONE who attends will have the opportunity to be part of the show and join in the festivities!

HGTV’s new “Showhouse Showdown” features two nearly identical model homes customized by two distinct professional interior designers in a competition for the best interior design. This is not just adding some paint or furniture – it’s designing every aspect of the home from beginning to end! You’ve never seen anything like this before!

Edgewater Celebrates a First!

EQA Landmark Communities — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 20:54:30 +0000

Edgewater would like to welcome our first homeowner. This past weekend the first homeowner in Edgewater moved in. In the coming weeks and months we will be happily welcoming many more neighbors. With strong sales and growing excitement the Edgewater neighborhhood is growing leaps and bounds. Our buyers are extremely excited about Edgewater and making Oakmont home!