Pittsburgh Mills owners fixing some potholes

Owners of the Pittsburgh Mills are fixing potholes along the mall’s Butler-Logan Road entrance.

Workers filled potholes Wednesday night and were scheduled to return Thursday night, said Bill Payne, Frazer’s building inspector.

During an Aug. 21 district court hearing to address hundreds of building code citations filed against the mall’s owners, Frazer police Officer Cole Berg said the township’s fire department no longer could use the Butler-Logan Road entrance to respond to incidents at the mall even though Frazer Volunteer Fire Department No. 2 is located less than a mile away.

Payne said he and other township officials received an email from the fire department the day before the hearing that said crews could no longer use the entrance.

“They would have to go through the Pittsburgh Mills Boulevard entrance, which would tack on more minutes. And they’d hit more red lights and traffic,” Payne said.

Aaron Scott, head of public safety and Frazer’s police chief, did not return a phone call seeking comment Thursday.

The Allegheny County District Attorney’s office also was informed of the email. Payne did not disclose who sent the email to the DA’s office.

Namdar Realty Group, which owns several companies that operate the mall, is facing summary criminal charges filed by the DA’s office for creating a public nuisance because of poor road conditions.

Representatives from Namdar, the township and the DA’s office met after the Aug. 21 hearing in which Namdar was ordered to address the issues within the week to avoid further public safety issues, Payne said.

A Namdar representative did not respond to request for comment Thursday.

Payne said the pothole patching is a positive sign that other violations on the property could be addressed. In addition to citations for the road conditions, the companies owned by Namdar have been cited for unsafe sidewalk conditions and issues like non-functioning doors in the mall building.

“You always have to have hope that they’ll correct the violations,” Payne said. “I hope they see the severity of the issues and they will resolve them.”

Payne said he is continuing to work with Namdar’s on-site team to see what’s being done about the other citations.

“Pothole filling is not a permanent fix,” Payne said. “The simple fact is that we need to be able to get emergency vehicles through that entrance.”