(Photos: Coal Region Canary)
Pottsville Fire and an emergency demolition crew were on the scene of a partial building collapse in part of the city’s historic downtown Thursday evening.
Pieces of 313 West Market St. began falling to the sidewalk earlier Thursday. When the emergency demolition crew from Quandel Construction arrived, they began dismantling the brick facade to secure the crumbling building.
Building Collapse on West Market St. in Pottsville
The 300-block of West Market St. was closed to vehicular and foot traffic after 7 p.m. Thursday as the demolition crew picked away at the loose bricks. By about 7:30 p.m., most of the third-floor facade had crumbled into two waiting dumpsters on the sidewalk below.
At one point, the men part of the demolition crew picked enough of the bricks away and brought down a sizable portion of the facade. As the bricks fell into the dumpster, a large cloud of dust filled the air.
The immediate goal was to secure the building so it’s safe for traffic to resume past it.
The building at 313 West Market St. was formerly an antiques store but hasn’t been operational for years. It’s currently owned by Bernard Poda, who acquired the building in 2007.
Back in early July, the City of Pottsville Code Enforcement charged Poda with a summary offense of owning a dangerous structure. He was due in court on Aug. 11 but no further information is available from court records.
Street Reopened, Building Secured
By 9 p.m. Thursday, the City reopened the 300 block of West Market St. to foot and vehicular traffic. Dumpsters holding the debris from today’s collapse have been hauled away. The property and sidewalk in front of it have been fenced in.
Pottsville Fire Chief Jim Misstishin tells us enough work was completed on the failing building to at least secure it. But he isn’t sure what the next steps will be as the city deals with its owner in court.
The building definitely appears to be a lost cause at this point. Damage isn’t exclusive to the brick facade.
As the demolition crew worked to pick that apart, especially near the third floor, eyewitnesses to the work said they saw the roof show signs of collapsing. For the time being, however, the roof (or at least what’s remaining of it, is intact.
Throwback
Here’s a throwback to November 1994 and how 313 West Market St. looked back then, courtesy of the Schuylkill County Map Viewer tool:
(Photo: Schuylkill County Map Viewer)
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Jason Bourne
August 20, 2020 at 9:48 pm
America is falling apart but Wall St is doing better than ever. Maybe you people will wake up to the fact that there is no correlation between Main St. and Wall St. Wake Up sleepy head.
Canary Commenter
August 20, 2020 at 10:16 pm
You seriously try to tie everything to Trump and that’s one of your many faults that you clearly put on display on this site. This building has been a shit show since the Clinton administration but you don’t hear people blaming Clinton for its condition. Why? Because we’re not all nutjobs and political neophytes like you. You obviously only started paying attention to politics 3-4 years ago and likely, before that, said “Oh, I don’t get involved with politics,” or “Mom, when’s dinner?”
What you don’t realize that unlike during the Clinton administration here in Schuylkill County, when people fled the area in search of work or a better life because of failed/doomed policies like NAFTA, anyone that wants a job can get one in Schuylkill County. At least, they could before your boy Wolfy shut down businesses across the state because of things he believes are “science” and “data”.
Seriously, Bourne … get a clue. Stop repeating what you hear on the TV or read in your liberal friends’ Facebook feeds.
Coal Country
August 21, 2020 at 8:16 am
Spotted the little snow flake.
Moe
August 21, 2020 at 4:10 pm
I love your message.., keep pushing trumps accomplishments.. he did more in 3 years than all dems did in their lifetime.
Gus
August 20, 2020 at 11:21 pm
Why is the building historic? Not a question that should remain at the end of an article with the headline “Historic Building Collapses”
Canary Commenter
August 21, 2020 at 2:07 am
Fair question. It’s old and it’s in the city’s historic downtown district.
Jason Bourne
August 20, 2020 at 11:29 pm
First of all Canary, I didn’t say Trump’s name. This has been going on since Bush’s time in office. Secondly, this is bigger than just a building on Market St., this happening everywhere. We’re in a pandemic and Wall St. had another record high yesterday. You feeling it Main St?