Another engineer’s report could save the Realty Building, if the owner lets them in

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Mixed signals are coming from the city of Youngstown on the fate of the Realty Building that was damaged in a natural gas explosion last month . Will it be demolished or not?

Another structural engineer’s report may be the building’s last hope — if the owner grants them access to the building this week.

Last week, Youngstown City Council announced they had hired Structural Systems Repair Group (SSRG), which believed it could stabilize the building, giving hope to residents and community organizations such as Youngstown CityScape who are striving to save it.

However, Tuesday afternoon Mayor Tito Brown said the building needs to be demolished so the residents of nearby International Towers can return home, the neighboring hotel can reopen and downtown can return to any sense of normalcy.

He believes restoring the building would be too expensive and too lengthy a process and sees demolition as the best option.

However, this comes before SSRG has given their in-depth analysis of the Realty Building, which Councilman Julius Oliver says might take place this week.

Oliver says SSRG will be back Thursday to conduct a deeper assessment. He said they are able to put seismic GPS equipment on the building that will show if the building is moving. If SSRG detects movement, it is unlikely they will be able to save it, but they want to be sure.

He says SSRG wants to be confident in whether or not they can stabilize and repair the Realty Building — but since the NTSB has handed the building back over to its owners, it’s up to them to grant SSRG access.

Oliver says he has not heard back from building management if they will allow SSRG to do their assessment.

Building management has already stated they will demolish the building , so it is unclear if SSRG’s assessment, if positive, could change their minds.

In a letter to former Realty Building tenants Thursday, Live Youngstown Property Management said, “we will have security controlling access to the building and will not be granting access to unauthorized personnel.”

The mayor has given the owners of the Realty Building until July 5 to take some action and develop a plan or the city will take over. He says nothing has been done since the explosion as the owners deliberate with the insurance company.

While the future of the Realty Building is still unclear, the community may at least see some plan of action come July 5.

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