Monongahela house has resident hot
MONONGAHELA – Resident Chad DeSantis addressed Monongahela Council at Wednesday’s meeting about the blighted condition of a burned-out house in the city.
The property at 1135 Lawton St., which was destroyed by a fire July 26, 2015, that took the life of James Huffstickler, is still in disrepair and needs attention.
The high grass has become an eyesore and hazard to the neighborhood, DeSantis said. The planned sale of the property fell through, and it is now owned by an out-of-state relative of Huffstickler.
“We have been in contact with the owner. He was up here a few weeks ago and plans to return in August,” Monongahela police Chief Brian Tempest said. Solicitor Seth Tongchinsub said the city has the option to maintain the property and file a lien against it to recover the maintenance costs.
“I don’t think that is a good idea,” Councilman Tom Caudill said. “We would be doing all of this work and we wouldn’t recoup any of the money.”
DeSantis said he is willing to mow the grass in the front and if he had access to a tractor, which is on the property, he would also cut the back lawn. Tempest said he would contact DeSantis and the property owner to see if a solution can be found until the property owner can come back later this summer.
In other news, council approved a motion to advertise commercial and residential garbage collection, which includes a provision for electronic waste pickup for 2017. Caudill said the city has separate companies picking up commercial and residential trash.
“It isn’t working out the way we thought it would. I think one company would be better,” he said.
Big’s Sanitation of Belle Vernon is the current residential collector and Advanced Disposal of McClellandtown is the city’s commercial trash collector.
Mayor Bob Kepics suggested having a one-time electronic collection site in the city at a fee of $5 per item to help offset the cost of the container. Caudill suggested contacting Big’s Sanitation to see if a provision to pick up electronic devices for a small fee paid by individual households could be included in the present contract. Council postponed any decision until next month’s meeting.
Council approved a bid in the amount of $95,773 from Russell Standard in Mars for FiberMat, a high-end tar-and-chipping substance. It was the only bid.
“There are only a few places that offer this substance and it is a busy season,” Councilman Ken Kulak said.
The substance is more cost-effective than paving, is tougher than regular tar and chipping, and helps to prolong the life of a road. It has been used in Newell, Southpointe and Pittsburgh.
Streets to be included in this project are Grant. Meade and Lawrence and First and Third avenues.