Mold discovery prompts Monessen officials to move city hall
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Monessen officials have voted to relocate the city’s offices after mold was discovered inside a city hall wall and other locations throughout the building, according to Mayor Matt Shorraw.
On Aug. 27, Monessen Council voted 4-1 at a special meeting to move city operations from 557 Donner Ave. to the former Community Bank building at Sixth Street and Donner. Community Bank donated the building to the city last year.
Shorraw said a recent roof leak at city hall caused some wallpaper to peel back, revealing what appeared to be mold.
After having samples tested by Latrobe-based U.S. Micro-Solutions, Shorraw said the building’s eastern wall was full of mold spores and would need to be removed and replaced.
“We made this assessment in-house based on several factors,” Shorraw said. “The structural wall is made of terra cotta block.
“The exterior of that block is coated in concrete, which was not properly tied in to the roof and flashing.”
U.S. Micro-Solutions consultant Herb Layman’s report showed aspergillus/penicillium mold spores at levels of more than 200,000 per cubic meter in the wall cavity of the building’s main meeting room. Typical levels are closer to 2,000 per cubic meter.
Layman’s report recommends that structural issues on the building’s outside be addressed before any remediation or restoration work takes place.
“I think moving is the best option for the future of city government,” Shorraw said. “Documents from 2017 show that the current building was in bad shape when it was acquired, and the problems with the building weren’t sufficiently addressed. We think the mold may have been an issue for a while.”
Monessen Councilman Anthony Orzechowski cast the lone vote against relocating city operations.
He said that while his main concern is for the health of city employees, he also would like to know the plan.
“I asked for an assessment: Did we get a contractor in there, did we get bids, what’s it going to cost?” Orzechowski said. “You just aren’t going to move into the building across the courtyard and start working. We don’t even know the state of that building.”
Mayor Shorraw said the new building needs phones, internet and offices set up, as well as the creation of a council chamber.
He said the city does not have estimates for the cost of either remediating the mold or moving into the new building.
Orzechowski said that lack of detail is what prompted his “no” vote.
“My dissenting vote was because, as always, there’s no plan,” he said. “If you find mold at your house, you’d get a contractor in, seal it off, remediate it. You wouldn’t just put a for-sale sign in your yard and be gone.”
Shorraw said he is hopeful the city can find a buyer for the current city hall.
“The employees’ health is first and foremost,” Orzechowski said. “But even if we move, what happens to the building? Do we sell it? Who would buy it with mold in it? In my mind, these are practical questions that should be asked.”
A timeline for moving into the new building was not immediately available.