Scranton developer on defense over fence erected at downtown parking lot

SCRANTON — A downtown developer is on defense over a fence he installed without city Historic Architecture Review Board approval at a parking lot at the former Plotkin shoe store site at 301-303 Penn Ave.

Don Mammano recently erected the fence when he paved the lot and striped it for permit parking and parking for his commercial properties across the street; but only belatedly submitted an application for the fence to HARB, which rejected it last month, according to legislation on the dispute pending before Scranton City Council and information presented Tuesday during a council hearing on the matter.

A parking lot and fence owned by Don Mammano at 301-303 Penn Ave. in Scranton on Friday, Dec. 5, 2025. (JIM LOCKWOOD / STAFF PHOTO)

HARB is an advisory body and its denials take the form of recommendations against certificates of appropriateness for applications. Such adverse HARB recommendations go to council as legislation for council to uphold or overturn.

After introducing on Nov. 25 such a resolution from the Cognetti administration to uphold HARB’s rejection of the fence, council tabled the legislation pending a council hearing on it. At that hearing held this past Tuesday, Mammano and his attorney, Patrick Lavelle, defended the installation of the fence and claimed HARB never informed Mammano about its meeting held in November about the fence, according to an Electric City Television simulcast and video of council’s hearing on Tuesday posted on YouTube.

The resolution will come up for an adoption vote by council at its meeting this coming Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall.

Plotkin past

For over 120 years, the property was the site of the former J.G. Plotkin & Son Shoe Co. that was destroyed by fire Dec. 19, 2020.

The fire-ravaged building then sat condemned and vacant for over two years. In March 2023, Mammano bought the fire-damaged eyesore and intended to renovate it, but it was too far gone and had to be demolished. The property sat as a gravel lot for some time.

In February of 2024, the city Zoning Board approved a variance for Mammano to use the vacant Plotkin lot for parking. At that time, he intended to construct a building at the site but was not ready to do so, and in the meantime he wanted to use the gravel lot as a parking lot for him and his employees and tenants in that area.

But In March of 2024, the city sued the Zoning Board to overturn that variance, claiming the Zoning Board erred because a new parking lot was not permitted in the Downtown Mixed Use District, where “No lands shall be converted to the principal use of public parking.”

Mammano joined that lawsuit as an intervenor impacted by the outcome. Negotiations ensued and the lawsuit was settled and formally discontinued in July of 2025.

Meanwhile in May, a company of Rob Friedman, whose hospitality group owns numerous venues in Luzerne County, purchased The 16th Ward restaurant/bar and its building at 306 Penn Ave., and leased the first floor and basement of the neighboring GAR Building at 300-304 Penn Ave., which Mammano owns and which is right next door to The 16th Ward. Renovations of the first floor of the GAR Building ensued and currently continue for Friedman’s establishment going in there.

Current dispute

Mammano paved the former Plotkin lot for parking for Friedman’s establishments across the street, he told council during its public hearing Tuesday.

Other details about the fence dispute aired during the council included:

Mammano said his zoning variance allowing a parking lot required that he also erect a fence. He got a building permit from the city for the parking lot work but did not know he needed to first go before HARB for approval of the fence. Both the paving and fence were done at the same time. “When I filed to get the building permit I was notified I had to go before HARB (for the fence). Unfortunately, it was the day they were putting the fence up. I spoke to the city, (and) they said you do have to apply to HARB and whatever their decision is, you’re stuck with it.”

The city issued a stop-work order on the fence. Mammano had it’s installation completed anyway because he thought the variance approval and building permit for the paving of the lot also included a fence. He asked if he should apply for a separate permit for the fence and was told yes, and that’s when he learned he would have to go before HARB for the fence.

“When I spoke to city on that, I still felt that it wasn’t necessary to go before HARB, because the way I read the HARB ordinance,” it deals with buildings and facades – not fences, Mammano said. “There’s no building there. They said we have to go to HARB anyway. I said OK, but the guys were doing the fence after they did the parking lot, and they were there to do it. And I said can we just do it (install the fence), pull the permit for it, knowing that it’s got to go HARB, and they’ll give me the final blessing. And then I think that upsetted HARB” and that’s why they denied it.

With the fence erected, he applied to HARB for its review and paid a $150 application fee. He claimed HARB never told him it would hear his fence application at a meeting in November, and thus he did not attend that meeting to advocate for his position. “We don’t think they should have had a hearing without us being there,” Lavelle said. Mammano added, “For whatever reason, I was never even invited for my own application and they denied it. And I think their letter was a little extreme as to why they denied it.”

HARB denial

According to HARB’s recommendation letter to council dated Nov. 18 that underlies the resolution, HARB’s denial was based upon “incomplete and inaccurate application materials,” including a lack of a survey, site plan or measured drawings. “Furthermore, the applicant installed a fence prior to receiving approval, and the fence as built does not match the design submitted for review. HARB is required by city ordinance to review accurate drawings and specifications prior to installation, and the lack of such materials is grounds for denial.”

Other reasons for HARB’s denial included: the corner of Penn Avenue and Linden Street is a defining intersection in that area of the downtown and the former Plotkin site is a “noticeable void in an otherwise, architecturally rich and active block;” the fence does not adequately screen the parking lot or leave any room for vegetation as a tool for softening and buffering the visual impact of a surface parking lot; and fence installed without HARB approval was a “missed opportunity to reinforce a significant urban corner using well-established principles of urban design.”

Mammano noted the parking lot is associated with his major investments in that area of Penn Avenue and Linden Street.

“I’m bringing in Rob Friedman across the street and making a tremendous investment in that corner. Part of my deal with him coming to that location was to provide parking across the street,” Mammano said. “I went before the Zoning Board, I got the approval to make it a parking lot. One of their conditions was to put a fence up, which has been done.”

Councilman Bill King asked if the fence that was installed matched the one in the application, that had pickets with individual pointed tops. Mammano said no, because the style depicted in the application was not available at the time of installation and the style erected has a flat horizontal bar along the top of the fence. The fence that was installed also is identical to other fences downtown at a nearby jewelry store and a church, Mammano said.

“So when we talk about being consistent with the neighborhood, it’s the exact fence” as at the other two locations in the downtown district, Mammano said. “It’s an $18,000 fence. It was the most expensive fence I could have put on the property … it’s a significant improvement from what was there before.”

Council did not take action Tuesday on the HARB resolution, which remained tabled.

“There’s a few things here that have changed from the letter that you have explained that are a little different,” council President Gerald Smurl told Mammano.

A parking lot and fence owned by Don Mammano at...