Springdale boiler demolition lawsuit heads to Pa. Supreme Court

Though the power plant boiler that towered over Springdale for decades was toppled months ago, the legal battle over its demolition continues, this time in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

In September 2023, several Springdale residents got an emergency injunction to halt the planned implosion of the power plant’s boiler building, which was initially granted by Allegheny County Judge John T. McVay Jr. after a monthslong trial.

After two years of appeals, the case was accepted by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court this week.

Demolition crews pulled the boiler building down by conventional means in March.

The boiler might be gone, but, according to John Kane, an attorney representing the Springdale residents who requested the injunction, the courts still have to decide two fundamental legal questions: Was Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas the proper venue to halt the implosion? And did McVay have sufficient evidence to issue the injunction?

The Supreme Court could decide one or both of those queries, Kane said. If the high court agrees that addressing the implosion in court was appropriate, it could either offer a ruling on the second question or kick that decision back to the state’s Superior Court.

In November, a panel of Pennsylvania Superior Court judges answered “no” to the first question.

The appellate court ruled McVay should not have intervened and the residents should have gone through channels at the state Department of Environmental Protection or the Allegheny County Health Department to stop the demolition of the boiler building.

With only a short window before the implosion was set to take place, Kane said, his clients’ sole option was to head to court.

The 16 residents who filed for the injunction alleged that the June 2023 implosion of the former power plant’s smokestacks caused harm to them, their properties and the community. An implosion of the boiler house would have caused additional harm to the community, they claimed.

The suit was filed against several companies: Charah Solutions Inc. is the Louisville-based environmental remediation group that bought the site in 2022 to raze the plant and redevelop the property. Grant Mackay Co. served as a contractor tasked with overseeing the demolition of the smokestacks and boiler. In turn, Grant Mackay contracted with Controlled Demolition Inc. to perform the implosions. Moon-based Civil And Environmental Consultants Inc., which was involved in planning for the implosion, also is named in the suit.

In addition to the ongoing injunction battle, the same 16 Springdale residents are involved in a separate lawsuit against those same firms for alleged damages and health concerns related to the smokestack implosions.

Kane said a victory in the injunction battle could bolster the damages suit.

That’s because lawyers would not have to relitigate basic facts of the case that were established by the county court in 2023 when the injunction was granted.

Also at stake is a $50,000 cash bond the plaintiffs were required to post prior to the injunction hearings. Kane’s law firm — Savinis, Kane & Gallucci — fronted the cost for its clients, he said. If the Supreme Court overturns the Superior Court’s ruling, the firm would recoup its money.

Otherwise, the bond would be given to the defendants, and Kane’s firm would recoup its $50,000 from any money collected from a settlement or judgement in the residents’ separate damages lawsuit.

The fact that the Supreme Court accepted the case, Kane said, bodes well for his position. He said he and his clients are “very hopeful” headed into the next stages of the process.

“Will it give them back their homes? No. But it will give them a measure of justice,” Kane said.

A Springdale councilman, Joe Kern, is one of the 16 residents involved in the suit.

Even though the boiler implosion is no longer a concern for him and his neighbors, Kern said he’s hoping the Supreme Court will vindicate their actions.

“We did everything we should have done,” Kern said.

Plus, he said, the court has the opportunity to set new guidelines for residents throughout the state in similar situations.

Julie Brennan, an attorney representing Grant Mackay, and Charah President Scott Reschly declined TribLive requests for comment.

Other attorneys representing Charah, Controlled Demolition Inc. and Civil and Environmental Consultants Inc. did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Briefs for the two sides are due Sept. 29.