January 20, 2026
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The Brith Sholom House, a senior affordable housing complex in the Wynnefield Heights neighborhood of West Philadelphia, will undergo a $96 million renovation after years of neglect and deterioration, city officials said. Work on the building will be supported by a $50 million loan from a coalition of building trades unions.
The Philadelphia Building and Construction Trades Council will loan $50 million to the Philadelphia Housing Authority to help pay for the renovation of the dilapidated Brith Sholom House in West Philadelphia. The project will allow hundreds of low-income seniors to return to the decades-old property after years of organizing to improve conditions.
Mayor Cherelle Parker unveiled the public-private partnership Tuesday morning at a news conference joined by Ryan Boyer, business manager of the Philadelphia Building Trades, and PHA CEO Kelvin Jeremiah. Parker described the funding model to redevelop the 336-unit complex as a first for the city and said it is part of her $2 billion H.O.M.E initiative, which aims to create or preserve 30,000 housing units in neighborhoods across Philadelphia.
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"There was no blueprint for anything like this," Parker said of the arrangement with the coalition of building trades unions.
The loan to PHA, fully guaranteed by the city, will be repaid over 15 years at an interest rate of 4.5%, officials said.
The 12-story Brith Sholom House, built in 1955 at 3939 Conshohocken Ave., underwent decades of neglect that left many of its tenants in dangerous and unsanitary conditions. The former owners of the building, father and son Aron and Chaim Puretz, are serving time in federal prison for mortgage fraud related to dozens of troubled affordable housing properties across 21 states.
PHA bought Brith Sholom out of receivership for $24 million in September 2024, vowing to restore the building's common areas and repair badly damaged units. More than 100 seniors have since been temporarily relocated to allow the renovation to move forward.
During an inspection of the building, Jeremiah said he was so shocked by the way residents there had been living that he had second thoughts about buying it.
"The conditions were just deplorable, from insect and rodent infestation to leaking sewage," Jeremiah said Tuesday, adding the building is in need of a "gut rehab."
Boyer's coalition worked with Parker, PHA and other elected officials to structure a loan for the project, which will create hundreds of union jobs.
"We're changing lives here," Boyer said. "This isn't an investment for the Building Trades. This is a downpayment on our city's future."
PHA estimates the total project at Brith Sholom will cost $96 million. The renovated one- and two-bedroom units will be available to people over 55 with low and fixed incomes. The complex also will have a new health care center. Work is expected to start late this year with a timeline for completion in 2028.
City Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr., whose district covers the Wynnefield Heights neighborhood where Brith Sholom is located, said many of the building's residents lived there without lights and air conditioning. Jones recalled being horrified during an evacuation several years ago. Brith Sholom residents — many of them with physical limitations — had to make their way out of the property using the flashlights on their cellphones.
"People who are veterans, people who are disabled should not be in the fourth quarter of their life that way," Jones said.
Brith Sholom is one of numerous private apartment buildings PHA has purchased over the past two years, acquiring more than 4,000 units in neighborhoods across the city. The agency, which receives most of its funding from the federal government, says the strategy is more cost-effective than new construction and offers a quicker path to expanding public housing options.
Parker has called PHA's plan to add 20,000 affordable units in Philadelphia in the coming years a "perfect accompaniment" to her H.O.M.E. initiative, which is being supported by $800 million in bonds. She said PHA's plans go above and beyond the 30,000 units her administration is striving to deliver. The city's first-year budget for the plan — about $277 million — still needs City Council's approval after months of negotiations over how the money will be prioritized.
Parker said talks with council members will pick up this week with the city's first legislative session of the year on Thursday.
City Council President Kenyatta Johnson spoke favorably about the public-private partnership at Brith Sholom. He encouraged more collaboration between the Philadelphia Building Trades and the city.
"For me, this is the type of work that helps individuals, those most in need, which is our seniors who deserve the opportunity to live out the twilight of their lives in dignity," Johnson said.
