Home Care In Millvale, PA

A vacant building in Millvale’s business district is being cleaned up for its new purpose as a green energy-powered community hub.

On Wednesday, Oct. 18, the Millvale Community Development Corporation (MCDC) hosted a groundbreaking celebration for 216 North Ave. Previously a studio space, 216 North Ave. will become a new home for MCDC operations, host space for up to six retailers and boast a built-in patio stage connected to the Grant Avenue Pocket Park.

The project also received about $90,000 for a 40-kilowatt solar array and an L2 electric vehicle charger through a Green Mountain Energy Sun Club grant.

Brian Wolovich, co-founder and president of the MCDC, says they use “groundbreaking” loosely, as the main structure of the building is still solid.

“We’re very excited to think how we can up the game of the performance of buildings at a community level,” Wolovich said at the event. “We’ve not done green certified buildings before. We’re really excited.”

Architects with evolveEA and engineers with Iams Consulting and Gateway Engineers have been charged with designing and executing the project.

The community development corporation is seeking a Zero Energy Certification from the International Living Future Institute. The certification is provided to structures that are in compliance with their standard that “100% of the building’s energy needs on a net annual basis must be supplied by on-site renewable energy. No combustion is allowed,” the Institute’s site reads.

As a founding member of the Millvale Ecodistrict, Wolovich says one of the community development corporation’s goals with the project is to contribute to equity and sustainability within the community.

“What that looks like in reality changes from project to project, but we consistently pursue projects in ways that strengthen the community through six quality of life lenses: equity, food, water, energy, air quality and mobility,” Wolovich wrote to NEXTpittsburgh ahead of the event. “Millvale has been identified by the state as an Environmental Justice community due to ongoing social and ecological challenges, and the Millvale Ecodistrict seeks to take these challenges on.”

Johnny Richardson, Sun Club program manager with Green Mountain Energy, says the project’s immense community backing increased Green Mountain’s desire to assist with the project. The last project Green Mountain Energy took on in Millvale was the Millvale Community Library — their funding allowed for the installation of solar panels in 2015.

“We knew [216 North Ave.] would be the perfect addition in lighting the path of the Triboro Ecodistrict,” Richardson says.

“For them to have the vision and find the necessary funding and means to do that — that’s impressive on its own.”

Although an official timeline for the project was not announced, the groundbreaking celebration marks the completion of the first of three phases for the initiative. The second phase will bring the remodeling of the building’s exterior and add power and lighting, and interior work will begin with the third phase.

Roman HladioChief Reporter

Roman wants to hear the stories created in Pittsburgh. When not reporting, he plays difficult video games that make him upset and attempts to make delicious meals out of mismatched leftovers.

Burgh’ers Brewing has just announced an expansion with a FOURTH location in downtown Millvale. They will be opening at 400 Grant Avenue.

This location will join the growing list of Burgh’ers Brewing locations around Pittsburgh: Zelienople, Lawrenceville, and soon to open High Line location.

We recently caught up with co-owner and head brewer Neil Glausier to learn more about the new space, and what’s in store for the future of Burgh’ers Brewing.

BIPA: What stage are you currently in with this space? Is there a timeline to open?

Neil: We have just closed on the property and funding, started the licensing, and our equipment is ordered. The demo on the building will start any day now. Our ETA to open is mid-2024.

Photos courtesy of Burgh’ers Brewing.

BIPA: Can you describe the space you are opening?

Neil: We will be opening in a 13,000+ sq/ft building originally built in 1941. it was most recently a PNC Bank, and before that the Bank of Millvale. We will own practically the whole block and have a revolving door at the main entrance on Grant Avenue.

The building has two floors, with a brewhouse, kitchen, and a taproom on the first floor, and a second-floor mezzanine with a bar, giant game room, and large taproom space. We are hoping to host many events here and add barroom games such as shuffleboard and pinball. There will be seating for 140 inside on both floors total, and 80 outside.

This location will be the Nexus of all production, distribution, and sales for Burghers Brewing. We bought a brand new Alpha brewhouse that we designed with them. It’s a 15 BBL decoction capable system, and we got six-15 BBL uni tanks, two brite tanks, and four horizontal lagering tanks. This location will also feature a brewery laboratory.

We will be serving off of 9 horizontal lagering tanks, which will service all lagers and one Kolsch. There will be 20 taps each (including 8 side pull taps) between the two bars upstairs and downstairs.

Outdoor we will have a 1,000 sq/ft deck with a large green space for dogs. There will be ample parking and street parking on two corners, and there will be handicapped access to both floors available.

BIPA: Will you release crowlers/cans there as well?

Neil: We will definitely be releasing cans, as we are expanding our canning capabilities with a larger and more efficient system.

BIPA: Will there be food offered?

Neil: Yes, we will have the full Burghers menu that people have come to know us for.

BIPA: Anything else our readers should know about Burghers Brewing and this new location?

Neil: We will also be refreshing our branding very soon, removing the apostrophe in our name: Burghers Brewing Company, and updating our logos. We will be launching the full rebrand soon with the launch of the Highline location.

To keep up with Burgh’ers Brewing’s growth, make sure to follow them on Facebook and Instagram.

A recent study posted by Untappd parent company Next Glass has revealed the top 25 fastest-growing breweries in the U.S. in two separate charts, and PA has six breweries on the list.

Next Glass ranked these breweries on growth, but also by the number of check-ins and percentage growth from 2020 to 2022. The report states the app’s data showed an increase in brewery check-ins between the same time period of 2020 to 2022. Each brewery on the list recorded a minimum of 500 check-ins each year.

You can see the below charts that Next Glass has released. These highlight the 25 Fastest Growing USA Breweries By Absolute Check-In Count Growth from 2020-2022, and also by Check-In Growth during the same period.

Two PA breweries have made this list based on Check-in Count Growth:

Iron Hill Brewery (Exton, PA), listed at #12, with a check-in count increase of 23,729.

Ever Grain Brewery Camp Hill, PA), listed at #14, with a check-in count increase of 22,359.

Four PA breweries have made this list based on Check-in Growth %:

Trace Brewing (Pittsburgh, PA), listed at #4, with a check-in count growth % of 1,083%.

Wrong Crowd Beer Company (West Chester, PA), listed at #5, with a check-in count growth % of 1,056%.

Big Dog Craft Brewery (Lancaster, PA), listed at #11, with a check-in count growth % of 797%.

Troubles End Brewing (Collegeville, PA), listed at #16, with a check-in count growth % of 692%.

How many of these have you visited so far?

MILLVALE, Pa. (KDKA) - The borough of Millvale finally has a grocery store back in its community.

Today the long-awaited Millvale Market opened to the public.

Not even the rain could stop the parade of people coming in and out of the newly opened Millvale Market here in Millvale.

At 10 a.m. on Sunday, the doors to the Millvale Market officially opened to the public.

This new grocery store and gathering place is a long time in coming for this community. Millvale hasn't had an official grocer in decades, and many we spoke with shared the same sentiment; they are happy to finally have a place to shop for fresh food in their town.

"So, everyone in Millvale's stoked. We have been underserved for so long. These are great people that recognized that and did it. It's going to be awesome," resident Michael Potoczny said.

"I'm just excited. I live down the street, and I am just excited to have a place where I can just go and grab a quick bite or something prepared. I am a working mom, and so sometimes, when it comes to dinner, everything's just kind of crazy. It will be good to have a place I can come and grab some made-to-order food," neighbor Nicole Connor added.

The market features locally sourced foods with fresh produce, frozen items, grab-and-go options, and even a coffee bar.

Owners Jen Saffron and Derek Dumont said they are overwhelmed by the public's support and are excited to bring locally sourced foods back into the community.

"We are here to share the abundance of what takes place right here in Pennsylvania. There are so many amazing farms, growers, producers, [and] retailers. And so really, what we are all about is positioning all that amazingly, delicious, beautiful food right here in Millvale. Really lifting the public health of the community. And offering a convenient, amazing way to feed your family."

Stop by the Millvale Market, now open six days a week at the intersection of Grant Avenue and North Avenue. And get something you need, or maybe something you really want.

Christopher DeRose

Chris DeRose is a reporter for KDKA-TV. He has been a reporter, producer, host and actor for over 15 years, starting his professional career in Chicago back in 2007.

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The national housing shortage is a difficult problem, but there are answers out there: Have you considered living in a nunnery?

The Sisters of St. Francis moved out of their beautiful 19th-century Mount Alvernia campus on a hilltop overlooking Millvale in 2018 to a senior living community in Wexford. A New York company bought the property in May 2019, hoping to turn it into a senior care facility. When the pandemic made that venture less attractive, the building was put back up for sale.

Pittsburgh’s Q Development bought the complex this May and is planning to create between 125 and 250 apartments. The 25-acre site houses six buildings, the largest of which was Mount Alvernia High School, an all-girls Catholic high school that closed in 2011.

In fact, notes from the last religion lesson are still on the chalkboard.

“I don’t know what we’re going to do with it, but we’re definitely going to save it,” says says Rick Belloli, a principal with Q Development.

The property contains three major historic buildings; the most compelling of which is the red-brick, 1897 Mother House, which had about 300 rooms for the nuns who lived there.

“And the Sisters of St. Francis just maintained it impeccably, over a century-plus,” says Belloli. “It’s in amazing condition, has amazing architectural features to it. There’s so much history and a sense of tranquility there.”

The space also includes a 6,200-square-foot chapel.

Q Development is one of Pittsburgh’s most experienced developers in transforming Pittsburgh’s legacy of historic buildings into places that contemporary users need (housing, in particular). The firm’s recent projects include the stately Homestead Masonic Hall Lofts and the trapezoidal red-brick warehouse (a former International Harvester showroom) in Allegheny West, the Allegheny Branch House Lofts.

This project has a lot of moving parts, from architectural planning to zoning review and applying for historic tax credits.

“We’ve been talking to the Sisters of St. Francis locally as well as out of Syracuse … just trying to understand and respect the history of the site,” says Belloli.

Millvale has seen an influx of businesses, shops and restaurants as prices across the river in Lawrenceville have skyrocketed.

The St. Francis site is a bit removed from the main business district, so Q Development is looking at ways to make better connections.

“We could apply for some trail grants that might connect down to the riverfront trail,” says Belloli. There are things that we know we want to do, but we don’t have any idea how to do them as yet. So we’ll be working with a planning consultant, just see how we can connect into the rest of the neighborhood infrastructure in a way that might not be readily obvious today.

“We’re just starting the architectural brainstorming process.”

Michael Machosky

Michael Machosky is a writer and journalist with 18 years of experience writing about everything from development news, food and film to art, travel, books and music. He lives in Greenfield with his wife, Shaunna, and 10-year old son.

There are plenty of places to grab a bite and a beer in Millvale, but when it comes to accessing fresh produce, residents have to go beyond the borough’s borders.

That’s about to change thanks to Jen Saffron and Derek Dumont.

Saffron, owner of Sprezzatura cafe, and Dumont, a former buyer for Harvie, an online program that connects consumers with local growers, are opening Millvale Market at 524 Grant Ave.

Located across the street from SLO Coast Taco Shop and Lucky Sign Spirits, the 1,900-square-foot space is expected to debut by early summer. Saffron and Dumont recently launched a GoFundMe campaign to support a point of sale system, refrigeration and contracting fees.

In addition to offering a small menu of soup, salads, sandwiches and coffee, the shelves and coolers will be stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables, grocery items and healthy packaged snacks. Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funds will be accepted.

“We certainly have the intention to work with as many local producers and farmers as possible,” Dumont says. “We are very conscious of the fact that local can sometimes mean ‘expensive’ for folks in a low- to moderate-income community. Millvale Market will be focused on affordability.”

The store will operate daily, adding to Millvale’s network of neighbors helping neighbors, which includes New Sun Rising, Millvale Community Library, Triboro Ecodistrict, North Hills Community Outreach and the local government.

Dumont, who ran a similar market concept in New Orleans before working for Harvie, says his retail experience and relationships with local farmers combined with Saffron’s culinary skills helped the plan come together.

Within two days, 139 lenders from around the world helped Saffron and Dumont secure a $15,000 loan from Kiva, a San Francisco-based, crowdsourced microlending platform that helps entrepreneurs by providing access to interest-free capital. Kiva Pittsburgh is one of 43 hubs the company has across the U.S.

More than 300 businesses in Southwestern Pennsylvania have received Kiva loans, including Sprezzatura in 2019. The eatery gives back in myriad ways, including via its Community Food Tuesday program, which donates meals to people in need, first responders and essential workers.

To mark its $2 million lending mark in the Steel City, Kiva Pittsburgh, a partnership between Kiva and Riverside Center for Innovation on the North Shore, is highlighting six of the local businesses it has assisted.

Millvale Market also received a $45,000 seed grant from the Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative, a statewide funding program through the PA Department of Community and Economic Development. The initiative’s mission is to establish access to fresh produce in underserved areas across the Commonwealth.

Saffron, co-host of the Facebook Live cooking show Saffron and Sass, plans to host fundraising events throughout the winter with Dumont.

In the meantime, you can get a taste of what Millvale Market will have to offer by visiting Sprezzatura, which is open Wednesday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. February happenings include a My Jazzy Valentine celebration on Feb. 12 and the AfroLovePgh: African Dances by Melissa Dubois event with music by Wax Grapes on Feb. 25.

“I think Covid has been a big teacher to all of us,” Saffron says. “For me, it’s been witnessing food insecurity here in Millvale. Having a small-town grocery, a neighborhood market you can walk to, increases quality of life. Food is fun and should be healthy and uplifting and enlivening.”

Kristy Locklin

Kristy Locklin is a North Hills-based writer. When she's not busy reporting, she enjoys watching horror movies and exploring Pittsburgh's craft beer scene.

MILLVALE, Pa. —

A fire broke out at Millvale Food & Energy Hub on Monday morning, bringing a response from several local fire companies.

Watch the breaking news report from Millvale: Click the video above.

The Millvale fire chief said crews were putting water on ion batteries in the basement while they awaited the arrival of a solar panel company at the scene on Sherman Street.

"It's a mission-based building. We have both 412 Food Rescue and a local caterer/cafe called Sprezzatura," owner Scott Wolovich said. "Their teams were here preparing foods to get out to folks in need and the fire started. Fortunately, they were able to call 911 and also get out of the building and everyone was safe."

Roads near the building were closed due to the fire, and a decontamination center was set up for firefighters who were working inside the building.

The Allegheny County fire marshal is investigating to determine the cause of the fire.

Pitt's Swanson School of Engineering professor, Prashant Kumta, explained to Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 the challenges that come with lithium-ion batteries and how they can result in fires.

“They can’t afford to have even one incident like this, but it seems like it’s happening quite often, like every week, you get one occurring somewhere…any type of temperature increase inside the battery, if it exceeds the ignition point of the electrolyte, you run this risk of the whole thing catching fire,” Kumta said.

Kumta said while it's hard to pinpoint what exactly causes a battery to get too hot, it does happen. He’s currently doing research to develop batteries that are much safer.

“I think the future of the lithium-ion battery is good. We are going to have safer lithium-ion batteries coming in,” Kumta said.

Kumta said companies are looking at additional safety measures, like temperature sensors inside of the batteries.

This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

MORE: Sources on scene of Millvale fire say ion batteries used for solar panels started the fire inside Millvale restaurant. Crews fighting the fire went through decontamination on scene. Source says waiting for solar panel company to arrive #WTAE pic.twitter.com/kh72MKniXE

— Marcie Cipriani (@MCipriani_WTAE) January 30, 2023

This content is imported from Twitter. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

UPDATE:Millville fire chief tells me crews continue to put water on ion batteries in the basement while they await arrival of the solar panel company. Building owner says several nonprofits work out of the building & some were inside, preparing food at the time of the fire #WTAE pic.twitter.com/AKSyb76y4E

— Marcie Cipriani (@MCipriani_WTAE) January 30, 2023

This is a developing story. Stay with Pittsburgh's Action News 4 for updates. Download the WTAE mobile app to stay connected with breaking news.

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Did you hear the buzz? CoNectar, a flora-to-table honey shop, is expected to take flight by August or September in Millvale.

Like worker bees, master beekeeper Christina Joy Neumann, along with her brother and sister-in-law Jon and Larissa Neumann, have been toiling away on the renovation project since mid-2019.

The 1,000-square-foot space at 411 Grant Ave. will feature a retail area, botanical art gallery, a bar and café seating. Customers can learn the mystery behind bees while enjoying drinks and small plates that complement the natural substance.

Built in the 1880s, the structure operated as a general store for generations but has required a lot of design strategy to bring it up to current code compliance. Until recently, the space was home to a diner called The Grub Hut. Christina Neumann says a friend humorously suggested renaming the place The Larvae Lounge.

All insect jokes aside, she finds the creatures fascinating.

In Pennsylvania alone, there are more than 400 species of bees. To craft honey, Neumann works with Apis mellifera, or honey bees. Her apiary, Apoidea, maintains 60 to 100 producing colonies tucked away in remote locations throughout the Greater Pittsburgh area, including her family’s five-generation homestead in Cherry City. Each hive produces an average of 40 to 80 pounds of honey per year.

To Neumann, high-quality honey is not a condiment but a “liquid sunlight” treasure.

Because the laborious crafting process is not well-understood by the general public, CoNectar will be a place where people can compare different honey products to better appreciate seasonal, floral and geographical variations.

The company already offers virtual tastings and custom-made boxes for weddings, showers and corporate team-building events.

Even for a pro, the world of bees is complex.

“I need multiple lifetimes to understand them,” says Neumann, who recently completed an advanced honey sommelier course in Bologna, Italy, with the Albo Nazionale degli Esperti in Analisi Sensoriale del Miele. (Italian National Register of Experts in the Sensory Analysis of Honey).

She studied architecture at Carnegie Mellon University, where a lot of her education was based around environmental sustainability. After studying honey bee building techniques with The Biomimicry Institute in 2003, she became obsessed with the power of honey bees as food producers.

In terms of beekeeping experience, Neumann has worked as a commercial beekeeper at the Rare Hawaiian Organic Honey Co. in Hawaii. She is a Cornell University Certified Master Beekeeper and has maintained a Certified Naturally Grown Apiary here in Pittsburgh since 2017. Certified Naturally Grown is the closest certification to USDA Organic that an urban apiary can achieve.

Although you can learn a lot about bees in books and journals, the vast majority of a beekeeper’s education takes place in the field, where factors including climate, flora, invasive pests and pathogens impact the honey yield. She keeps close records of all of these factors and will share the information with CoNectar patrons each time they try a spoonful.

Neumann has been harvesting the golden liquid since 2006, selling at local specialty stores such as Una Biologicals and City Grows in Lawrenceville and at love, Pittsburgh locations. Eleventh Hour Brewing Co. and Hop Farm Brewing Company have used her honey in some of their beers.

Kristy Locklin

Kristy Locklin is a North Hills-based writer. When she's not busy reporting, she enjoys watching horror movies and exploring Pittsburgh's craft beer scene.