Develop PGH Bulletins: Order To Vacate Downtown Tower Lifted After Elevators Fixed

Pittsburgh PA

11 October, 2021

7:02 PM

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By Rich Lord, Public Source October 11, 2021 Develop PGH Bulletins updates you on the Pittsburgh region's economy. Check back frequently, sign up for the Develop PGH newsletter and email [email protected] with questions, tips or story ideas. 10/11/21: Salem's chosen from among four contestants for talks on former Shop 'n Save site Salem's Market & Grill will get a shot at negotiating a lease for a key spot in the Hill District, Mayor Bill Peduto's administration has announced. Salem's won out over three competitors for first dibs on the former Shop 'n Save site in the Centre Heldman Plaza, which is owned by the city's Urban Redevelopment Authority. The contestants made their pitches to the neighborhood in September, in a virtual meeting. In a subsequent online poll by the Hill Community Development Corp., Salem's was the first choice of 47.5% of respondents, and the second choice of 28%. In a press release, the mayor's office highlighted the vote, Salem's plan to collaborate with the neighborhood and its status as a four-decade-old local and minority-owned business as factors in its selection. "Salem's has a proven record for providing high quality food and products and supporting our minority communities," Peduto said in the release. Shop 'n Save operated in the 30,000-square-foot site from 2013 until it closed in 2019. 10/1/21: Elevator problems drove city's condemnation notice for 24-story Stanwix Street tower Update (10/4/21): The City of Pittsburgh has permitted tenants to reoccupy 625 Stanwix Street, and the building code violation has been marked as abated. The state Department of Labor and Industry has allowed the residential tower's elevators to go back into service, according to city officials, addressing the issue that prompted the issuance of a notice to vacate. Update (10/2/21): An attorney for JoCo Sky told PublicSource that the company has arranged hotel stays for all residents of 625 Stanwix Street, and for their pets. The company is also providing 24-hour security to residents while they prepare to vacate, and is paying their travel costs. The company expects to repair the elevators this weekend, and then to request reinspection by the state. A major Downtown office-and-apartment tower that has been undergoing redevelopment has been condemned by the City of Pittsburgh after its elevators failed a state inspection. The 24-story 625 Stanwix Street currently includes both offices and some 80 residences, branded as The Venue Apartments and characterized online as "luxury apartments." Residents are being relocated to hotels and are being given rent credits, according to Ken Scholtz, an attorney representing the owner, who responded to PublicSource's questions. The Venue Apartments are part of 625 Stanwix Street, Downtown. Owner JoCo Sky LP was served with a condemnation notice on October 1, 2021, after the building's elevators were sealed by the state. (Photo by Rich Lord/PublicSource)The building is owned by JoCo Sky LP, a firm based in Brookline, and managed by Nexus Real Estate. In January 2020, JoCo Sky and a contractor, Ava's Handymen, got a building permit to renovate 48 apartments on the 11th and 12th floors. Those renovations appear to have led to the condemnation. "As contractors were completing apartment renovations on the 11th and 12th floor of the building, the final tests were being conducted on a new fire alarm panel," Scholtz wrote. That's when the elevator system shut down, apparently because of a problem with the recall system — the function used by firefighters to control elevators in emergencies. Scholtz wrote that JoCo Sky became aware of this issue on Wednesday, and has tried to have the elevators repaired. On Thursday, the state Department of Labor & Industry inspected and discovered that the elevators needed "a major repair," according to a department spokeswoman. The department later sealed both of the building's elevators, banning their use until they are repaired and pass inspection. The city followed up by serving a condemnation notice on JoCo Sky, giving them until early next week to vacate the building. In January, designers hired by JoCo Sky briefed the City Planning Commission on plans to replace four storefronts on the property with five apartments. That work hasn't started yet, according to Scholtz. In July of this year, the city's Department of Permits, Licenses and Inspections opened an investigation of 625 Stanwix and found that required fire alarm, sprinkler and pump inspection reports were not available. As of last month, the city was still awaiting an update from building management, and issued a criminal complaint, according to records in the city's public interface for code enforcement data information. Scholtz wrote that the city erroneously sent paperwork related to the fire system to the owner of a parking garage that is part of the building, and JoCo Sky didn't get it until this week. He added that the fire sprinkler system works. 10/1/21: Landlords didn't rush to court when eviction curbs endedThe first full month of unfettered evictions did not result in a surge in filings by local landlords hoping to oust tenants. Landlords in Allegheny County filed cases against 507 tenants in September. That's down slightly from the August total, almost even with July, and less than half of the normal pre-pandemic tally. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's curbs on evictions, driven by fear that mass displacement would worsen the COVID-19 pandemic, were in place for nearly a year before they expired on Aug. 26. The CDC's actions followed expirations of state and local rules that suppressed evictions for the first five-and-a-half months of the pandemic. Even without the CDC rules, though, Allegheny County courts are operating under an order issued by President Judge Kim Berkeley Clark on Aug. 6, which extends through Oct. 31. The order does not bar the filing of cases or ejection of tenants, but allows district judges to slow the process substantially if the tenant has applied for rental assistance. The county is operating a rent relief program meant to help tenants affected by the pandemic to stay in their rentals. – Nick Tommarello contributed. September recap:News from the City Planning Commission, Urban Redevelopment Authority, Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh and more The history and possible futures of an American steel town Where the sausage is made: A nine-member panel privately plots a course for the Hill Electric buses are the future for Allegheny County. But progress depends on funds. Expect the inspector: Unlike Pittsburgh, the state's No. 3 city examines every rental home — eventually Develop PGH archives2020 Census: Pittsburgh's slight decline came with 'massive' demographic shifts in 2010s Hundreds of violations, few penalties: Allegheny County's health enforcers frequently inspected — but rarely fined — two McKeesport properties Facing roaches, rodents, leaks and balky heat and fire alarm systems, fed-up tenants of PNC Bank's McKeesport complexes demand change PNC Bank pledges to address 'completely unacceptable' conditions as officials demand changes at its McKeesport properties August development coverage Rich Lord is PublicSource's economic development reporter. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @richelord. Develop PGH has been made possible with funding from The Heinz Endowments. This article was produced by PublicSource.org, a nonprofit news organization serving the Pittsburgh region. PublicSource tells stories for a better Pittsburgh. 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