Growth for some communities could intensify with Amazon HQ2

11 Investigates growth in some areas that haven't seen any in a while.

For decades, Sharpsburg's biggest selling point was that it's part of the Fox Chapel School District, but borough leaders believe they're in the early stages of a renaissance, one that could change drastically with the addition of Amazon's HQ2.

"The bar top was actually made by a blacksmith who occupies the church across the street,” said Gary Olden, owner of Hitchhiker Brewing.

When Olden decided to open a second location for his brewery, he unexpectedly landed in the old Fort Pitt Brewing building in Sharpsburg last summer.

"The relevance of an old brewery becoming a brewery again was really interesting for myself and the rest of the staff,” Olden said.

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Across the street, Deep Local went looking for a bigger space to expand its marketing and engineering firm. It moved in last December.

"We wanted to make sure that we're ahead of the curve and get into an area with really high growth potential. Sharpsburg is one of those areas we saw,” Jordan Moskal, director of operations at Deep Local.

They're success stories for a community that hasn't seen many over the last three decades, and if Amazon selects Pittsburgh for its second headquarters, more could be on the horizon.

"It's fun to watch it grow and we've been planning this for a while,” said Sharpsburg Mayor Matt Rudzki.

Rudzki took Channel 11 on a tour of his community, which continues to change.

He says rapid growth is new to the borough and could intensify with Amazon's arrival.

"For my entire life, Sharpsburg's struggle was always how do we spur growth and create growth. Now we're trying to find meaningful ways to control that growth and manage that growth,” Rudzki.

Eight miles away, Braddock Mayor John Fetterman is taking a different approach.

"We always want to be a willing and open partner to whomever wants to invest in the area,” Fetterman said.

Like much of the Monongahela Valley, Braddock has been slow to rebound from the collapse of the steel industry.

But Amazon creates a unique opportunity to jump-start that recovery.

"If Amazon comes to Pittsburgh it's going to present a series of challenges. When you're dealing with the kind of challenges out here in the valley, you want to err on the side of economic development."

It's a decision that could transform two very different communities -- creating the growth they long desired, but putting lifelong residents at risk.

"If Amazon comes the growth will continue. I just believe the growth will be much faster than we can manage it. At the end of the day, it's making sure you take care of the residents that have been here their entire lives,” Rudzki said.

Cox Media Group