Marketing Downtown Living In Pittsburgh

"A building boom is expected to add almost 300 condominiums to the Golden Triangle in the next two years. But it comes with a price.

None of the new units will go for less than $200,000, which could put the cost of new housing Downtown out of reach for the highly sought-after young professional demographic.

Even Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, who at 26 earns $96,511 a year, thinks he's priced out of the market."

"That second phase of the revitalization -- making it affordable to live Downtown -- may cost taxpayers who only visit or work there.

'The way to do that is to subsidize,' said Patty Burk, vice president of housing and economic development for the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership. Taxpayers will have to cover '20 to 30 percent of the costs for working professionals and college grads,' she said.

But it's a thought that doesn't sit well with some city residents who already feel overtaxed."