Relocated City Hall to be inspected for code violations
MONESSEN -The state Department of Labor and Industry will conduct an inspection Thursday of a former bank annex building at 557 Donner Ave. that is now housing City Hall. The city headquarters were relocated to the donated building in late September after the city sold the former Mon Valley Health Center building at 1 Wendell Ramey Lane, where city business had been conducted.
The inspection is in response to a letter sent to K2 Engineering Inc. of Uniontown by mayoral candidate Matt Shorraw citing construction code violations. Shorraw won the Democratic nomination over Mayor Lou Mavrakis in the primary and has no Republican opponent in the Nov. 7 election. However, Mavrakis is running a write-in campaign.
In the letter, Shorraw stated the city never obtained a building permit, occupancy permit or zoning permit for the building. He also claimed the building doesn’t have adequate room for use as a municipal building; there is no safe egress; the building is not handicapped accessible; it does not have elevator access to the second floor; and parking is inadequate.
City solicitor Steve Toprani said the city has an occupancy permit. Mavrakis said if Shorraw was really a concerned citizen, he wouldn’t be costing the city thousands of dollars. “These inspections have cost us more than $5,000,” he said. “I am confident that this building will pass the inspection on Thursday with flying colors.”
Toprani said the state agency will issue a report of its findings in about two weeks.
In other business, council took steps to demolish two unsafe buildings. Council accepted a bid of $85,000 from Johnny Onisko for the emergency demolition of 548 and 544 Donner Ave.
About two weeks ago, Toprani and Mavrakis walked through the city inspecting buildings, which they said they do on a regular basis. When they inspected 548 Donner Ave., the roof had partially caved in, walls were in disrepair and the foundation was compromised.
“The mayor said if a big storm comes, this building is going to go down. It was like his words to God’s ears. The next day a storm blew through and the building suffered major damage,” said Toprani. The collapse heavily damaged the adjoining building at 544 Donner. While the city lists the address as 548 Donner, county records list it as 550 Donner, complicating efforts to find the owner.
The city’s tax information has the City of Monessen Redevelopment Authority as the owner of the property and Toprani said he is investigating who owns the property. City officials also have been contacting state and local officials for financial help with the demolition.