City leaders pursue Penn Street site
Uniontown City Council took the first step Wednesday toward acquiring a condemned commercial property on Penn Street that would be used as a parking lot for an adjacent building that council is planning to convert into a new police station. Council unanimously approved the first reading of an ordinance that authorizes the city’s declaration of taking to acquire 43 E. Penn St. Jeffrey Dempsey of Uniontown is the property owner.
Council would have to approve the second reading at a future meeting to adopt the ordinance.
If the ordinance would be adopted, the city would file the declaration of taking in Fayette County Common Pleas Court.
Solicitor Daniel Webster said the declaration of taking is the first step in the eminent domain process. Eminent domain requires the city to pay the owner the fair market value of the property, he said.
The building, which once housed a flooring business, has been vacant for several years and has been condemned.
According to the Fayette County Assessment Office’s Web site, 43 E. Main St. is valued at $35,106. The .1-acre lot is valued at $20,130 and the two-story sided building at $14,979. The 2,781-square-foot building was constructed in 1930.
It would be demolished and the lot would be used as a parking lot for the building next door, 45-51 E. Penn St., which the city bought two years ago for $165,000 with the intention of converting it into a new police station.
The city is planning the needed renovations, but the work has not started.
In unrelated business, Stephen Gavorchik of Highland Avenue brought two complaints to council.
He asked that police more vigorously enforce the law prohibiting fireworks.
“Every year I go through a nightmare with fireworks,” Gavorchik said.
He said fireworks such as bottle rockets and roman candles are ignited throughout the neighborhood for several days before and after the Fourth of July.
He also asked council to clean up the older parking garage on South Street. He said the elevator wasn’t working recently, there is graffiti with obscenities and a swastika painted on the fourth floor and the steps are littered with trash.
Mayor James Sileo said he would have the problems corrected.
A Charles Street resident asked council to remove garbage from the rear area of Bailey Park and from along Jacquette Place, and to do a better job of blocking traffic from using Jacquette Place.
The city places roadblocks on the top of the hill on Jacquette Place to prevent traffic from coming down the hill to enter Bailey Park during baseball season. Councilman Joseph Giachetti said the roadblocks will be set up soon.
In other business, council tabled action on the lone bid submitted for resurfacing streets so the bid can be reviewed. Victor Paving of Carroll submitted the only bid, $87,080.