By Stephen Smoot
At about 10 a.m. the Sunday before last, the collapse of the abandoned Royal Chrysler building led to the closure of “the portion of the road (Hood Avenue – US Route 19) between Coffman Alley and Vincent St. that runs in front of the Royal Chrysler building,” according to the City of Shinnston.
While Harrison County 911 stated that the collapse caused no injuries, it has given citizens a headache ever since.
The City of Shinnston released a statement later in the week addressing the issue, saying first “The City of Shinnston understands your frustration and concern regarding the ongoing road closure on Hood Ave.”
It then explained the delays in addressing the issue. First “the immediate demolition of private property is not typically within the jurisdiction of the City of Shinnston.” Shinnston has an ordinance providing for due process and graduated steps to tearing down dilapidated structures owned by private citizens, but the law does not address an immediate need.
“The City has to take steps that involve all stakeholders,” according to the law. Additionally, the statement revealed that “the road closure in this instance . . . falls under the West Virginia Division of Highways” and only that State agency has the authority to impose or to lift road closures.
“Please use the detour,” the City stated in a release, but went on to urge that “if traveling through the West Side, please slow down greatly, as the neighborhood is full of children.”
Delegate Clay Riley updated constituents in the area about his efforts to resolve the problem. In the middle of the week, he stated in a Facebook post that “I have contacted the WV DOH to confirm that they are taking the necessary steps to remedy the issue as soon as possible.”
He added that the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection was “reviewing the ability to do an emergency MOU (memorandum of understanding) to demo the building.”
Shortly after, Riley reported that “I heard back from DEP that a path to funding the demolition has been identified and preliminarily approved.” He explained that “State, County, and City officials are working to get the necessary final approvals and clearances as laws still need to be followed.”
He also gave kudos to all involved, saying “they are doing a terrific job in a situation that truly isn’t theirs to fix. It is a private property owner issue that is impacting the public, but leaders lead and that’s what’s happening.”
