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Second contract awarded for North North Gallatin Avenue work

By Steve Ferris 3 min read

The Uniontown Redevelopment Authority awarded a second contract for work on a planned North Gallatin Avenue area revitalization effort to a Pittsburgh firm, which received a contract from the authority last month. Board members voted unanimously Tuesday to award a $30,000 contract to Mullin and Lonergan Associates to certify that blighted conditions exist in the neighborhood.

Authority Director Mark Yauger said the state requires that certification in order for the authority to use eminent domain if it is necessary to acquire blighted properties for the revitalization effort.

He said he wants Mullin and Lonergan to perform the certification at the same time it conducts a planning study of the neighborhood for the state’s Elm Street revitalization program. Together, the study and certification will take three or four months to complete, Yauger said.

The authority awarded Mulling and Lonergan a $24,000 contract to perform the Elm Street planning study in June. The city received a state grant to pay for the study.

However, the authority has not secured the money to pay the firm for the certification so it is not known when the certification or the Elm Street study will start.

The Elm Street program targets residential neighborhoods that are within walking distances of downtowns. It involves demolishing blighted homes, streetscape improvements and building new single-family homes.

Yauger said the authority applied for a $10,000 grant to help pay for the certification and it could obtain some funding from Community Action of Fayette County.

“If all else fails,” Yauger said, the authority could reprogram Community Development Block Grant money to cover the cost. He said eminent domain is a necessary tool because some property owners simply refuse to fix dilapidated homes or turn them over to the city for demolition.

The county and local agencies are considering housing development plans in the neighborhood, but they won’t spend a dime unless the authority can use eminent domain, Yauger said.

As an example, he said an agency might want to build a new home on a lot, but there is a blighted house next door and the owner refuses to sell it or fix it. The authority could use eminent domain to buy the neglected home so the lot could be cleared or another new home could be built there.

“They won’t invest any money in the neighborhood unless we have eminent domain power. They won’t invest without protection,” Yauger said.

Responding to questions from board members, Yauger said eminent domain could be used to acquire commercial buildings as well as homes.

In unrelated business, the authority awarded a $17,120 contract to Jules and Cole Coal Co. to demolish three homes. They are located on Walnut, Lincoln and Coolspring streets.

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