- October 14, 2021
- Comments: 0
- Posted by: admin
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Foggy this morning, then partly cloudy this afternoon. High 77F. Winds light and variable..
Partly cloudy skies early will give way to cloudy skies late. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 61F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: October 14, 2021 @ 5:21 am
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I’m greatly concerned over Philipsburg Borough’s intemperate rush to demolish the historic Platt-Barber building, along the railroad tracks in Philipsburg. The façade of this structure is an esthetic and architectural gem, and has been listed by the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission as an outstanding asset in Philipsburg’s Historic District. The structure was built as a wholesale grocery warehouse, in the days when canned goods were brought in by rail and distributed to local stores by wagon. Hence its location on the rail corridor along Water Street, which is fast losing its last buildings. Should we stand by until they’re all gone?
I attended the borough council meeting of Sept. 21, where the “emergency” determination to demolish this building was made, but was unable to get anyone to tell me where the funding for this demolition is coming from, or whether there has been a structural inspection by a qualified engineer, as required in Sec. 106 of the Historic Preservation Act, for a designated historic structure. While the roof has collapsed in one section, the walls are four bricks thick, on a solid stone foundation, and are not even cracked or listing in any way. This building hardly looks like it’s ready to fall over, yet the borough persists in using scare tactics to frighten the public.
This bogus “emergency” declaration is all the more disturbing because we have a developer with a plan to stabilize and repair the building. Said developer, who has an outstanding record in rehabbing historic structures, has been presenting his visionary ideas to the borough council all this past summer, with no results. We’re fortunate that this firm has bought the old Swift packing plant directly across the tracks from the Platt-Barber building, and has started rehab work there, despite borough opposition. Of course the borough has no plans for either of these sites, except to turn them into vacant lots, at enormous expense.
In spite of borough stonewalling on the details, it looks as though asbestos removal plus demolition of the Platt-Barber building would cost around $400,000. All this for yet another empty lot? Instead of rushing to claim “blighted properties” money, and issuing somewhat dubious “emergency” declarations in order to get it, the borough should be looking for historic preservation funds from HUD and/or PHMC. Let’s wake up before our town has lost even more of its historic and architectural heritage!
Luther Gette
Philipsburg
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