Plum Council votes to demolish 2 houses following hearings
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Plum Council has voted to tear down two houses the borough’s engineer has declared dangerous, while giving the owner of a third home more time to repair it.
During hearings Monday, council voted to tear down houses at 7906 Saltsburg Road and 488 New Texas Road.
Council voted to give John Vorous, owner of 247 Francis Road, four months to work on his house. That comes after council had given Vorous six months to bring the property into compliance after a hearing in August.
While Kevin Fields, the borough’s building inspector and code enforcement officer, and borough engineer Harold McCutcheon said Vorous’ property remains unsafe, Vorous and his son, Brandon, argued they have been making progress. Brandon Vorous said he moved back to the area from Texas in December to help.
Neighbor Rick Tamburri offered himself as a character witness for John Vorous, saying he has known him for more than 30 years.
Tamburri said he has seen Vorous trying to work in poor weather conditions. Tamburri said he and other neighbors will try to help.
“He’s a good neighbor,” Tamburri said. “He’ll do anything for anybody.”
The house at 7906 Saltsburg Road is abandoned, said Bob Zunich, an attorney for the borough who conducted the hearings. No one from the public spoke regarding it. Its listed owners are Karen and Ronald Burnside.
David Mason Jr., the owner of 488 New Texas Road, was represented by attorney Timothy J. Kidd, who said he would appeal council’s decision to tear down Mason’s house to Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. If an appeal is filed, that would stall efforts to tear down the home.
Kidd said it was premature for council to hold a hearing on Mason’s house. Kidd said Mason, who has not lived in the house for five years, did not receive a letter about the house’s condition that the borough sent by regular mail in 2018, and only in mid-January received a letter the borough sent by certified mail in late December.
While conceding that the house has deficiencies, Kidd argued the borough needs to detail them and give Mason an opportunity to correct them.
Over Kidd’s objection, council held a hearing on Mason’s house, voted to demolish it and did not entertain his request to reconsider.
Fields noted many problems with the property. They included the driveway being blocked by fallen trees, broken and open windows, failing gutters and damage to the foundation. The inside of the house is packed with combustible materials, he said.
Two neighbors, Carly Evelyn Dutrow and Janet Pierce, spoke during the hearing.
Dutrow said she is worried that rotten trees on the property could fall and damage power lines to her home or vehicles in her driveway. She said the house is a breeding ground for rodents, requiring them to call an exterminator yearly, and is dangerous for children.
Pierce said she is concerned about black mold growing inside the house. A resident there since 1981, she said she has not seen people at the house since 2010.
Demolitions completed
Four houses previously declared unsafe have been torn down, Assistant Borough Manager David Soboslay said.
Those houses were at 122 Siple St., 708 Unity-Center Road, 264 McKim Drive and 826 Garlow Blvd.
Council in November accepted a $35,000 bid from Cherep Construction for the work. The company had submitted the lowest of eight bids, Soboslay said.