January 5, 2016
McKeesport, Pa., was hard-hit by the departure of the steel industry that brought prosperity in decades past, decimated by a declining population, and plagued with unemployment. Through the commitment of local community leaders, though, the page is turning for McKeesport. The city is actively razing abandoned houses, and nonprofits are helping to bring affordable new home construction to McKeesport’s neighborhoods. Since 2005, McKeesport has been a member of FHLBank Pittsburgh’s Blueprint Communities initiative. Blueprint Communities aims to revitalize older communities and neighborhoods through leadership training, organizational capacity building and funding from program partners.