Not so long ago, the stretch of Penn Avenue that runs through Garfield bustled with activity. More than 50 retail businesses offered local residents everything from baked goods and clothes to a cold beer.

	Bill Wade, Post-Gazette 5018 Penn Ave. was renovated with a grant from the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative. Click photo for larger image. Open house An open house will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. next Sunday at 5018 Penn Ave., Garfield. For more information or to set up a private viewing, call 412-363-7341.

But by the time artist Sigrid Shafagh came looking in 1998, this city neighborhood named after President James Garfield had fallen on hard times. With nearby mills long closed, the only businesses that flourished were illegal ones, including drug trafficking and prostitution.

Shafagh was living in Highland Park but looking for inexpensive live-work studio space in an urban environment. So with the guts of a pioneer, she took the plunge.

She received a low-interest loan and grant from the Penn Avenue Arts Initiative, a collaborative between Friendship Development Associates and the Bloomfield-Garfield Corp. that helps artists purchase buildings and start studios and businesses. For less than $30,000, she and her husband, Youness, an engineer, bought this century-old three-story row house in the 5000 block of Penn Avenue and got to work.

"Everyone said, where are you going?" recalls Shafagh, a painter who works in acrylic, mixed media and hand-built ceramics. "But I could see such a great potential."

Seven years later, the row house -- painted a pale celadon green with ivory trim -- stands as a shining example of what's possible when someone invests time and energy in an old house. It's also for sale. The Shafaghs, who are moving to Canada, are selling it themselves for $159,000.

Built in 1910 by a father for his two daughters, the row house had been chopped into two run-down apartments when the couple purchased it in 1998. Today, it's once again a single-family home with a distinct Victorian air, thanks to soaring 14-foot ceilings, several original fireplaces and working pocket doors. The color scheme, however, reflects the eye of an artist, with all the walls painted a warm sunflower-yellow.

Bill Wade, Post-Gazette The back door opens onto a cozy garden and patio. Click photo for larger image.

One of the first things you notice about the house is its funky wrought-iron fence and gate made by iron artist E.J. Gottlieb. The swirly wrought-iron doors and window bars are equally artistic and were handmade by Horizon Galleries, which is located across the street.

A pair of modern abstract portraits by Shafagh gives the front porch a playful punch of color. The colorful stained-glass panels that decorate the interior front door were crafted by another local artist, Dan Cush.

Like most row houses, the house is only one room plus a hallway wide, with most of the space running from front to back. In all, the house is four rooms deep.

The couple turned the first floor into a spacious studio/classroom area, with a kiln in the rear kitchen. They ended up living on the second floor and renting an apartment on the third floor.

Two large "entertaining salons" divided by an original pocket door lie to the left of the front door. The front room is set up as a living room and features painted wood floors and a fireplace flanked by built-in bookcases. The second room, where Shafagh taught art classes, has another marble fireplace and a large storage closet crowned by a transom. Wood shutters on the windows add to the cozy feel.

The dining room boasts a painted tin ceiling and a carved wooden fireplace with a mirrored overmantel and a ceramic tile surround. There's also a built-in china closet to the right of the fireplace.

The sunlit kitchen now has the cluttered, hodgepodge look of a busy artist's studio. But it's fairly large and has a wonderful built-in pantry that takes up much of one wall. Adding even more charm are an exposed brick wall (painted bright red) and original tin ceiling. Off to the side, there's a small full bath with mint green tile work.

The back door opens onto a small covered porch that gives way to a cozy garden filled with peonies, daylilies, rhododendron, rhubarb and strawberries. There's also a small concrete patio area landscaped with peach trees, raspberries and hemlocks. A new wooden privacy fence provides a shield from prying eyes on Penn Avenue.

The second floor holds two bedrooms, a formal dining room with walls the color of a ripe pear and a full bath. There's also a full kitchen with white-painted wood cabinets and tomato-red walls.

The house has a new roof and security system, new furnace and water heaters and comes with all new appliances, including a washer, dryer and stove.

Another artist would feel particularly at home here. Since 1999, the arts initiative has provided roughly $130,000 in grants and loans to artists, generating $6.4 million in additional investment. To date, more than 30 artists, arts businesses and arts organizations now call the Penn Avenue corridor home, including The Pittsburgh Glass Center, Garfield Artworks and Dance Alloy.

"We're trying to create a community around a place," says Jeffrey Dorsey, the arts initiative's arts district manager.