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State preservationists urge Monessen to save landmark building

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An old photo of the Monessen Savings & Trust Building from the collection of Greater Monessen Historical Society

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Monessen City Hall 

MONESSEN – The state Historic Preservation Office and another group made a last-ditch effort this week in asking the mayor of Monessen to save a downtown landmark building from demolition, to no avail.

The state preservation office and Preservation Pennsylvania issued the plea to save the former Monessen Savings & Trust Building in a letter penned Monday to Mayor Lou Mavrakis. They also asked him to join a project designed to study the economic benefits of preservation in post-industrial towns such as Monessen.

“We feel as though this building would be an ideal candidate for rehabilitation and we urge you to consider additional options for the property outside of demolition,” Andrea L. MacDonald, deputy state preservation officer for the state Historical and Museum Commission, and Mindy G. Crawford, executive director of Preservation Pennsylvania, stated in the letter.

However, Monessen Council Tuesday voted 4-0 to turn the city-owned building at 500 Donner Ave. over to a Pittsburgh company under an agreement that calls for its demolition to be completed within two months.

“It’s a done deal,” Mavrakis said earlier Tuesday. “That building is not going to be saved.”

The building will be conveyed to the sole bidder, On Site Rep of Pittsburgh, the same firm that showed interest last year in purchasing the Monessen Municipal Complex at 1 Wendell Ramey Lane. Instead, On Site bought the vacant Eastgate II building across the street from the complex, and it plans to bring in South Hills Pain and Rehabilitation Associates as a tenant, company representative David Lamb said.

Lamb is to pay the $1,000 closing cost to take possession of 500 Donner Ave., foot the bill for its demolition and have the property redeveloped in five years or it reverts back to the city for $1, Lamb said.

Matt Shorraw, who is running against Mavrakis in the spring primary, proposed purchasing the building from the city and turning it into a music school, with a cafe on the first floor. He said he turned the effort over to others to keep it separate from his campaign. Shorraw did not attend the council meeting. In an email, he questioned whether or not the city followed the proper competitive bid process to dispose of the building.

The ornate three-story building was constructed in the early 1900s in the Beaux Arts style, using steel forged in Monessen and limestone from a quarry in nearby Webster. It has been vacant for many years, having last been used as the Health Mart drug store.

Mavrakis said the structure was condemned in 2012, and it has become a public safety concern as vegetation is growing on the side of the structure and its interior has become home to pigeons.

“It’s an eyesore,” he said.

In other business, council accepted the donation of the Community Bank Annex in the 500 block of Donner Avenue to be used as City Hall, as the existing municipal building has been sold to a developer.

One large room in the annex will be designated as the Community Bank Innovation Center where local businesses and residents can meet and share ideas, said Pat G. O’Brien, the bank’s senior vice president and chief operations officer.

Council instructed the city solicitor Gary Matta to draw up the agreement to accept the donation.

Council did not reveal when the move to the annex would take place.

The donation also included two adjoining vacant lots where the city can expand the annex, O’Brien said.

Council also heard a presentation by Carl Ritenour of 3 R’s of Connellsville briefly outlining his company’s plan to demolish six structures in the area of Sixth Street and Knox Avenue and build an apartment complex on the property. Ritenour said he needs to negotiate a purchase price with the city’s redevelopment authority before the project can move forward.

Council also will hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. May 10 in council chambers to hear an update on the city’s involvement in the state’s Early Intervention Program that began last year to prevent the cash-strapped municipality from becoming financially distressed.

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