YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) – Despite the building owners and the mayor deciding that demolition is the best option , there is still a group of people working to save Youngtown’s historic Realty Building after a major gas explosion in May.
One of them is councilman Julius Oliver who wants the engineering firm hired by the city — Structural Systems Repair Group (SSRG) — to have access to the property . The owners, YO Properties 47 , denied them entry Thursday.
Just because it may be the best outcome for the owner, doesn’t mean it’s the best outcome for Youngstown’s downtown and our citizens.
Councilman Julius Oliver
Oliver said he wants to know the real condition of the building, whether it can actually be fixed, or if it must come down.
To help answer those questions Oliver sent a letter to Mahoning County’s Chief Building Official Jeff Uroseva in which Oliver cited a section of the Ohio Building Code that allows a building official or a designee to enter the structure.
Oliver said everything has been looked at from a demolition standpoint — not restoration.