Jeannette officials hope to raze two fire-damaged buildings with the help of county demolition funding.

An application will be made to the county requesting money to demolish a Clay Avenue commercial building and a Good Street home, city clerk Nathan Bish said.

“Even if they don’t fund it all, it’s going to be substantially cheaper,” Bish said.

On Nov. 6., a two-story building near the intersection of Clay Avenue and South Fifth Street burned. The blaze started on the first floor. Fire Chief Bill Frye said investigators weren’t able to determine what caused it because of a partial collapse.

The building housed the business Computer Clinic and an apartment on the second floor. A large amount of electronic equipment was on the first floor. The property owner wasn’t insured, Bish said.

“It’s not only just an eyesore, but it’s risky,” he said.

With the prospects of development gaining along Clay Avenue, city officials want to get rid of the building and make the area more appealing, they said.

“It’s unfortunate the city has to step in. But if we don’t step in, that building’s going to be there a lot longer than it has to be, and it’s going to drag down all of Clay Avenue,” Bish said.

Sobel’s Obscure Brewery is renovating a building on Clay Avenue across from a recently finished amphitheater. Food truck events in that area drew large crowds over the summer, and officials have said there is interest in more buildings in the city’s main business district.

The Good Street property burned in 2016, Frye said. The two-story home was abandoned at some point afterward and has several broken windows and is in disrepair. It has been owned by Joshua Dean Roy of Pittsburgh since 2012, according to county records.

Bish said he hopes to work out a deal with Minh Truong of Jeannette, owner of the Clay Avenue property, so it can be transferred to the city’s redevelopment authority.

Municipalities can request from the county a maximum of $25,000 per application for blighted properties only.

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