Lower Burrell building that housed popular restaurant being razed

It started as a local landmark, eventually became an eyesore and soon will be just a memory.

The building that served various purposes including restaurant, lounge, private jail, and a meeting place for Alcoholics Anonymous is being razed after more than a year of being a vacant eye sore.

In the 1960s and '70s, the building along Route 366 (Greensburg Road) near Kinloch was a popular hangout for locals as Villella's Restaurant and the Frontier Lounge, but was most recently known as the Hope Haven.

Westmoreland County Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Jack Karazsia said the demolition was part of a countywide program to eliminate blight.

Lower Burrell asked the county to try to get the building town down more than a year ago.

The property owner, Sharpsburg-based National Builders, split the cost with the county.

Karazsia said the demolition is about 75 percent complete. The work started a few months ago but was slowed due December's cold snap.

He expects the work to be finished within 30 days.

Lower Burrell Mayor Don Kinosz will be happy to see the land cleared.

"They removed an eyesore and opened an opportunity for future development," Kinosz said. "Our hope is some commercial developer will see (the land) as an opportunity and come in and do something there."

Both Kinosz and Karazsia said there are no immediate plans for the property.

The owner of National Builders, Mark Scoratow, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Karazsia said the land has potential especially because of the road improvements just down the road at the Parnassus Triangle, where Greenburg Road, Stevenson Boulevard in New Kensington and Coxcomb Hill Road leading to Plum intersect.

"There's a lot of traffic there," he said. "They're making some good headway with the road improvement there."

Karazsia said once the building is razed, he'll work with the county's community revitalization program to try to attract a developer.

"We need some commercial development in that area if we're going to prosper," he said.