Community leaders, neighbors welcome latest round of blighted property removals in Westmoreland County

Community leaders and neighbors alike are lauding Westmoreland County officials after they approved funding to demolish six blighted structures as part of an ongoing effort to remove dilapidated structures.

County commissioners authorized spending up to $225,000 from a special fund created in 2017 to pay for the demolition projects. It’s replenished by an additional $15 fee assessed to mortgage and deed filings.

“We talk about change in Westmoreland County and opportunities for people to move here, and this is one of the tactics we have as county commissioners to remove eyesores from throughout the communities and bring in private entrepreneurs … who want to acquire pad-ready sites to put homes or do something different,” Commissioner Sean Kertes said.

Properties selected by the Westmoreland County Redevelopment Authority and targeted for demolition are:

• 105 E. Main St., West Newton.
• 608 Center St., Smithton.
• 401 N. Third St., Jeannette.
• 1359 State Route 981, Derry Township.
• 512 Seventh Ave., Sutersville.
• 304 Charles Ave., New Kensington.

New Kensington sought to demolish the house at 304 Charles Ave. after city council in January would not consent to its sale from the county’s unsold repository. The house has been abandoned for more than 20 years, city engineer Tony Males said.

A Tarentum contractor, Bryaunt Williams, owner of One Way Enterprise, said he intended to work on the house. But city officials cautioned him that other contractors have bought the house before only to walk away after realizing it would cost too much to repair.

Maria Pappas has lived next to 304 Charles Ave. for 13 years. She was thrilled to hear it will be torn down.

“It is such an ugly house,” she said. “That’s all I see from my kitchen windows.”

Pappas said animals including snakes, raccoons and cats have been in the house. Honeybees were once found inside a wall, she said.

“It’s a big, old house,” she said. “You can see the windows are bad.”

Brian Lawrence, the authority’s executive director, said that since 2019 the fund has paid $775,000 to demolish 25 properties in the county.

“We are determined to eliminate blight and build healthy and whole communities,” Lawrence said.

Three other properties targeted for removal last year are expected to be completed in 2023, while a fourth, on Clay Avenue in Jeannette, was removed from the demolition list. Lawrence said that property, previously damaged by fire, has since been identified by a developer for a potential rebuilding project that does not require the existing structure to be removed.

One parcel that will be torn down — 401 N. Third St., Jeannette — was purchased by the land bank at a judicial sale in 2022. City Fire Chief Bill Frye said code violations before the sale go back several years. There is roof and gutter damage, as well as rotted wood, and Frye said he is happy to see it be removed before it gets dangerous.

“It, unfortunately, is another one of those homes that” could become attractive to squatters and other nefarious activity if left abandoned, he said.

The property at 105 E. Main St. in West Newton is a former pizza shop that has been vacant for more than a decade, said Hallie Chatfield, senior project manager for the county’s redevelopment authority. Borough officials recently obtained a court order to declare the property a nuisance. According to county records, taxes have been delinquent since 2010 and total $28,017 in arrears.

“There are safety concerns,” Chatfield said.

Meanwhile the targeted demolition site at 608 Center St. in Smithton could be used for development. It’s a former feed mill and salt storage facility that is the site of a possible business expansion, officials said.

Blighted parcels at 1359 State Route 981 in Derry Township and at 512 Seventh St. in Sutersville are single-family homes.

These latest demolition projects are in addition to an effort announced last year that targets as many as 300 blighted buildings for removal. Commissioners allocated $10.4 million from the county’s American Rescue Plan funds for projects in seven Westmoreland County communities: Arnold, Greensburg, Jeannette, Monessen, New Kensington, Penn Borough and Vandergrift.

“Blight has been a priority for all three of us (commissioners). Obviously, it’s the first thing we did with ARP funds. It’s important for us to invest back into our downtown areas,” Commissioner Gina Cerilli Thrasher said.