Jeannette whittles list of properties targeted for demolotion

John Gelsdorf was glad to hear Friday a rundown home on property he owns in Jeannette is slated for demolition.

He said he is “totally in favor, the place is a disaster and that’s being kind. It needs to come down.”

City officials agree.

Gelsdorf’s property at 901 Zimmerman St. was among 18 homes being considered for demolition during a hearing Friday held by city code enforcement officer Bill Whetzel. All of the homes are vacant and considered public nuisances because of years of property maintenance and code violations, he said.

Property owners were notified of the action and invited to Friday’s hearing. Five were in attendance. They were given options: allow the demolition or sign an agreement with the city that the property will be renovated in a specific time frame.

Anthony Rocco Jr. left the hearing considering whether it’s worth trying to repair 424 S. Fifth St. Both of the row houses on either side of his lot are in disrepair.

“I can’t fix the property, nobody’s going to want to live there,” he said.

Whetzel explained that the city hopes to demolish 422, 424 and 426 S. Fifth St. because all are public nuisances.

“We’re trying to get them in groups of three or more,” he said.

Rocco didn’t dispute that 424 S. Fifth St. is in bad shape, but still he keeps the grass mowed and property taxes paid. He attributed the poor condition to a fire in one of the neighboring units and a leaky roof affecting his property on the other side.

“I don’t want to sit there and cut grass for nothing,” he said.

Others whose property were subject to the hearing came to plead their cases to keep dilapidated homes standing.

Kenneth Jones, owner of 228 Chestnut St., claimed trees on city property have been causing damage to the home there. Improvements have been made to the interior, he said. City officials requested documentation of some of that work.

“We’ll be in touch with how I decide to move forward,” Whetzel said.

He also planned to make a decision later on whether to allow the owner of 23 S. 12th St. to start a renovation project there. No one was present at the hearing related to the other 13 parcels.

City officials have been working through a list of blighted properties and sending them along to Westmoreland County for consideration to be razed through two funding sources:

• $10.4 million in American Rescue Plan funding set aside for such work in Jeannette and six other communities.

• a county-wide demolition program which is funded by fees charged on mortgage and deed recordings.

In all of the instances, the land left behind would maintain the same ownership.

The following properties would be demolished through American Rescue Plan funding: 228 Chestnut St., 23 S. 12th Street, 28 1/2 S. 12th St., 210 S. Seventh St., 409 S. Fifth St., 415 S. Fifth St. and 424 S. Fifth St.

The following properties would be torn down through the county’s demolition fund: 9 E. Division St.; 120, 131, 214 and 225 Good St; 520 Gaskill Ave.; 625 and 638 Wylie Ave.; 901 Zimmerman Street and 1520 Harrison Ave.

The owner of 118 Good St., which was part of the hearing, plans to demolish the property on their own, Whetzel said.