Almost exactly one year after breaking ground in Upper Lawrenceville, the Mews on Butler development consisting of 67 townhomes across from the neighborhood SHOP ‘n SAVE is adding new homeowners at a rapid pace.
In an email to NEXTpittsburgh, Richard Sunseri, a developer with PPM Realty and the listing agent for the project, said the company sold out the first phase of 16 units by the end of 2018. And they’ve already sold 6 of the second 16-unit phase, which just went on the market at the beginning of January.
“We are very happy with the progress,” says Sunseri.
The project will consist of a townhouse-style condominium community that runs between 55th and 56th Streets on Butler Street. Two groups of townhomes (called the Hanlon and the Gregory, after the property’s original owners) will offer units with 1,850 to 2,650 square feet of living space, two-car garages and other amenities. Home prices start at $400,000.
Noelle Conover, a long-time Mt. Lebanon resident and co-founder of Matt’s Maker Space, bought one of the units in phase 1. Speaking to NEXTpittsburgh, she said she was attracted by both the design of the apartments and the wealth of cultural options on Butler Street.
“There is a big art and maker movement in Lawrenceville,” she said. “We want to get involved.”
When the project began, the site — which had served as storage for everything from movie theater equipment to vehicles after Hanlon-Gregory shut down in the 1970s — was a huge vacant lot. It was one of the few remaining open parcels in Lawrenceville which has seen a building boom over the last decade.
The name “mews” is a British reference to groupings of carriage houses clustered together. Common areas between the units will feature benches and bike racks in the European style, creating a mini-neighborhood.
The townhomes, which are being designed by Indovina Associates Architects, will also feature LED recessed lighting and 92 percent high-efficiency HVAC systems.
Curious readers and engineering lovers can check out a live feed of the construction site here.