Demolition continues on former Aspinwall church

Demolition of a former Methodist Church in Aspinwall continues with a mix of brick-by-brick removal by hand and heavy machine work.

The razing of the house of worship and daycare at 400 Center Ave. has been going on for weeks.

The interior was gutted and asbestos removed prior to the machines arriving on Aug. 25.

A gate and caution tape were set up around the perimeter and wooden panels were placed by a nearby home to mitigate potential damage.

The demolition, which is expected to be complete sometime in early September, is part of a plan by Fox Chapel area developer Tony Pompeo Jr., founder of Amena Properties. He plans to build five townhomes on the site.

Pompeo said the cleanup of the area after the structures are knocked down is expected to take a few weeks.

An advertisement error caused the postponement of a zoning hearing board meeting regarding the transformation of a former Aspinwall church site into five townhomes.

The panel was to hear testimony and take public comments on several variance requests on Aug. 20.

No construction will take place until there is a zoning hearing board meeting to address variance requests, as well as borough permit approvals. It is unclear when the proposed development would be shovel-ready.