Author: SPY

About town

Some recent shots from around town . . .

 631 S. 13th Street

 Free electricity on Locust Street?

 Out for a walk and a ride

 Crew on Central Avenue

 Manor Street paving completed (between 14th & 15th)

 Lots of model cars

Daytime lights

Passageway installed on Locust Street, complete with lights, ramp, and blocks

A pedestrian passageway has been installed in front of the condemned property at 208-210 Locust Street, complete with lights and a handicapped access ramp leading from the sidewalk to the street.

 Electricity for the passageway lights is drawn from this light post at Second and Locust, via an extension cord.
 Concrete blocks were installed at the top and bottom ends of the passageway today to protect walkers from vehicles traveling up Locust.

Movement at condemned house

Belfor Property Restoration was at 208-210 Locust Street for most of the day today constructing a plywood barrier around the front of the condemned building there. A little over a month ago, the building was thought to be in danger of imminent collapse. (Go HERE for more info.)  The building was since shored up inside the front wall. For over a month, wooden barricades and caution tape were placed around the front of the property to direct pedestrians away from the building – but unfortunately into the street. A few weeks later, wire construction fence was added along the sidewalk.
Belfor was there this morning.
Pedestrians had to walk in the street to get around the construction fence and workers today.
 As work progressed, this couple had to walk in the street to get around the construction site . . .

 . . . and in the process had to dodge a cavalcade of cars traveling up Locust.

Shortly after 7 p.m., the work appeared to have been completed, producing this unsightly structure. Although it will undoubtedly keep pedestrians away from the building in question, it does nothing to increase its safety.  In fact, we wonder if the daylong drilling and hammering may have added to its instability. 

A preliminary report indicated there would be a sort of “tunnel” through the wooden structure to accommodate pedestrians on the sidewalk.  Unfortunately, this turned out not to be the case, as one of the workmen locked a makeshift plywood “door” at the lower end.
The property is owned by Samuel and Cynthia Bigler, who were recently cited by the code enforcement department and face a hearing before Magisterial District Judge Robert Herman in the near future.
(Click on the images below to see them more clearly.)