The town of Greenville could see dozens of new market-rate rental units built downtown in the coming years.
The Greenville Area Economic Development Corporation board will vote Friday on whether to move forward with a developer’s proposal to build an apartment building from 169 to 172 Main Street. Today, that stretch of land contains a vacant lot and two abandoned storefronts, which would be leveled for the construction.
The proposed development would be a four-story high rise offering approximately 40 apartments for rent. The units would be a combination of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom residences, with a target demographic of young professionals and graduate students.
“Bringing that new vibe, that new demographic, to Main Street to support the retail environment, I think will be positive,” said Rod Wilt, board member of the GAEDC and executive director of Penn Northwest Development Corporation. “There seems to be a lot of demand for this urban type of rental housing across Western Pennsylvania.”
Jasson Urey, Greenville’s town manager, is in support of the project.
“Greenville has not had economic development within the town for probably 30-plus years, and reuse of our downtown corridor is extremely important to us,” Urey said. “Most of our housing stock is houses that have been converted into apartments. We have limited apartment buildings or complexes, so there is a need for that.”
The anticipated cost of the project is from $10 million-$12 million, and Wilt said he is optimistic that state and federal programs will help shoulder some of that cost.
“There's a big push, both at the county level and the state level, for market-rate housing in communities like Greenville,” Wilt said. “I think we'll be at the forefront of the line when the application process starts, and we already have some ideas that we’re pursuing.”
“We’re hopeful that over the next year, we can put the financing together and start construction in early 2027,” he added.
Currently, none of the proposed apartments in the project would be subsidized affordable housing — instead, all rents would be market-rate. Urey said he believes adding more market-rate housing to Greenville would be “very beneficial.”
“We have a lot of subsidized housing in town. What we don't have is a lot of the market-rate housing,” Urey said. “Having a mix of both owner-occupied properties, rental properties [and] affordable housing is very important.”
Zoning laws require any development on the land to include commercial space on the first floor. Wilt said the developers would work with the town council to ensure the project is compliant with the zoning code, but didn’t have a firm answer on whether that would mean adding commercial space to the plan. Wilt also said the developers could be interested in integrating the current Greenville Municipal Water Authority building into their plan, if it becomes available due to its acquisition by Aqua Pennsylvania.
Urey said the proposed development is “just another one of those good things that is happening within our community.”
“A lot of people think that there's just not much going on in Greenville and this town is still headed south, but actually it's turning around, and this is proof of that,” Urey said.