Pittsburgh expands demolition blitz to tackle blighted homes in West End

Pittsburgh leaders say they are bringing in more demolition crews as part of a city-wide blitz to knock down blighted and dilapidated buildings. 

This latest move to knock down old, beat-up homes is the second such blitz this year. It started over on the South Side, but now it's in the western part of the city.

Officials say there are quite a few homes that could meet the wrecking ball. Pittsburgh has three rivers, 90 neighborhoods, and at least 2,000 structures that look dilapidated.

Diane Cox lives along Allendale Street in the Sheraden part of town and says an abandoned home next door has practically turned into a varmint petting zoo.

"Raccoons all over the place, skunks, I'm sure there are some rats in there, deer are rampant around here," Cox said.

This is one of the 10 homes set to be demolished in the Elliott and Sheraden parts of town. The city is set to bulldoze them as part of what leaders are calling the Hilltop "demolition blitz."

"Some of these buildings have been waiting years to be torn down. Those are the ones we're focusing on first," said Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O'Connor.

Several other condemned houses on Motor Street are also scheduled to be torn down.

Mayor O'Connor says paperwork is often the first thing that needs to be cleared before the heavy equipment rolls in.

"To find who owns these properties and to go through the legal process. You could have someone's great-granddaughter who lives in California, they don't even know they own this property," O'Connor explained.

O'Connor says the city was able to find money to do the demolitions after reopening the budget. He cautions, however, that the problem took a long time to happen and will take a while to resolve.

"One thing at a time, one day at a time, and one building at a time," he said.

That's OK with Cox, who says it's better late than never.

"It is time, because I'm tired of dealing with it," Cox said.