Downtown New Kensington undergoing revitalization

NEW KENSINGTON, Pa. (KDKA) --- Plans are in the works to redevelop downtown New Kensington.

The company Olde Towne Overhaul is investing in businesses that want to come to the area.

"We even do a graduated program so you aren't burdened with a high amount of rent," said Michelle Thom, the operations manager for Olde Towne Overhaul.

Olde Town Overhaul has been using a model to redevelop Fifth Avenue where as your business grows, so does the rent. 

Thom's lived in the area for 15 years.

"We have a lot of energy and so our main businesses were running really well and we just decided New Kensington, the price was right for the buildings at the time," Thom said. 

Olde Towne Overhaul is a private developer that is a part of the corridor of innovation launched by the city in 2020 to transform not just downtown but the entire city.  In that time frame, more than 100 new businesses have opened.

Thom said their main goal is to fill up the commercial space. Once that's done, the next step will be renovating the apartment units above them.

"People have a reason to come down here when they live here. They have restaurants to go to, entertainment, bars, you know, shopping -- they have everything that they would need. And they don't really need to go anywhere else," Thom said. 

Olde Towne Overhaul has a 10-year plan focused on downtown.  

"We're very proud of what's going on in New Kensington. But we're looking forward and we're keeping our heads down and working really, really hard at this. And we are -- we're all rowing in the same direction," said Mayor Tom Guzzo.