First tenants begin moving into New Kensington's Pioneer Apartments

Erik Williams was expected to be among the first five tenants to move into New Kensington’s new, $18.2 million Pioneer Apartments on Thursday afternoon.

“I just want to get in my apartment, period. It’s time for a change,” said Williams, who has lived at the nearby Arnold Towers for the past nine years.

Williams, 41, got a sneak peak at his apartment Thursday morning while workers were still putting finishing touches on the building. Williams, who is legally blind following a 2008 stroke, will be living there with his service dog, a black Labrador retriever mix named Polka.

His first-floor apartment has several features to help people with disabilities. In the kitchen, the area under the sink is open so those in wheelchairs can use it, and controls on the stove are at the front. Shelves in closets throughout are lower.

In the bathroom, where the sink is similar to the kitchen and there are grab bars for the toilet, Williams took note of the wheel-in shower with a built-in seat.

“I like that,” he said. “This is perfect.”

Pioneer Apartments was built by Wesley Family Services on a former city parking lot on Fourth Avenue.

Construction of Pioneer started in June 2019. Its opening was delayed by the covid-19 pandemic as work stopped in the third week of March and did not resume until May 4.

The four-story building has 36 apartments, plus office space for Wesley Family Services. The agency is expected to move into the building in mid-November, said Stephen Christian-Michaels, CEO of Family Services of Western Pennsylvania, part of Wesley Family Services.

In addition to the five people expected to move in Thursday, another seven tenants are expected to move in next week. Another 11 possible tenants are going through the application process, said Shelley Umphress, a regional manager with the property management firm NDC Asset Management.