Disagreement over Mount Washington church demo holding up permit, a city leader said
PITTSBURGH —
The city of Pittsburgh has yet to issue a permit for the demolition of a burned church on Mount Washington amid a disagreement over when the demolition will occur, a city council member said.
“Right now, there’s a dispute between the Presbytery and the city about demoing it during the night or during the day,” Pittsburgh City Councilwoman Kim Salinetro told Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 Reporter Jordan Cioppa on Friday.
The former Grandview United Presbyterian Church, which is owned by Pittsburgh Presbytery, was badly damaged in a three-alarm fire on July 7.
The church closed in 2022 and had sat vacant ever since.
“The city wants it demoed during the day because that’s the safest route to go and the Presbytery wants it demoed at night,” Salinetro said.
According to Salinetro, the city’s law department sent a letter notifying the church that they will not allow nighttime demolition.
If the two parties cannot come to an agreement, the councilwoman said she anticipated the issue will go before a judge.
The Rev. Jessica McClure Archer, the general minister of Pittsburgh Presbytery, issued the following statement to Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 on Friday.
“Our understanding is that our contractor, Schaaf Excavating Contractors, has been working with city officials to address the requirements of the permitting process and has completed revisions as requested. We understand that the latest revision was completed today.
Schaaf is continuing to work as expeditiously as possible with city officials to obtain the necessary permit and ensure the demolition can proceed safely and in accordance with city requirements.”
A demolition order posted on the front of the building said the owner was required to demolish the church by July 20.
A portion of Grand View Road will remain closed until the church comes down, Salinetro said.
“It’s just not safe to open it up to cars because we don’t know if the building is going to come down any further,” Salinetro said.
A multi-unit condominium building could replace the church in the future. The proposed project was in the works before the fire happened.