Amphitheater construction in Jeannette nearing completion

An amphitheater under construction in Jeannette is nearing completion.

Mandy Zalich, director of Westmoreland Community Action, said the project should be done in the next couple of months. The amphitheater will be managed by Jeannette officials.

“Hopefully, it’ll be a way for the city to generate funds to support” the facility and other community projects, Zalich said.

The amphitheater is being built on a city-owned lot at Clay Avenue and Fifth Street, across the street from a building where a microbrewery plans to open this year. The lot once was home to a vacant three-story building that was destroyed by fire nearly four years ago.

The city purchased two properties after an April 23, 2016, fire and partial collapse left the buildings unsafe. One building housed a duck-pin bowling alley and dollar store. The other building was home to a tax preparation service, hair parlor and motorcycle club. The city paid for demolition and remediation.

Work on the amphitheater began last year and should be wrapping up soon with structural elements, such as siding, moulding and landscaping, Zalich said. It may be available for use later this summer.

The new space will have a few parking spots behind the stage, Zalich said. The nearly $300,000 project is funded through the Neighborhood Partnership Program and Neighborhood Assistance Program. Both programs enable local companies to donate a portion of their state taxes for use in community projects through the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

The Westmoreland County Land Bank sold last year the former Gillespie Building across Clay Avenue to Sobel’s Obscure Brewing of Hempfield for $40,000, according to county records. The family-owned brewery is renovating the building and expects to have a tap room, an on-site brewery, live entertainment and weekend food trucks.