FARRELL Authority OKs sales of property

Farrell City Park will be getting another medical facility.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
FARRELL, Pa. -- The Farrell Redevelopment Authority has approved the sale of several parcels of municipal property targeted for economic development.
Farrell City Council voted for the transactions last month, but the authority holds actual title to the property and must approve its sale.
It took that action Wednesday, selling property in Farrell City Park as well as lots on Spearman Avenue.
PLB Associates LP of Hermitage is buying 5.152 acres in the park fronting on the Sharon-New Castle Road for $90,160.
LaVon Saternow, city manager, told the authority that PBL plans to put a medical facility on the site but has yet to reveal the identity of its tenant. City officials have been assured that the tenant is a desirable business for that location, she said.
The city abandoned recreation at Farrell City Park years ago, deciding instead to divert it to commercial development. A previous project at the site involved the construction of medical offices.
The park is adjacent to the Farrell hospital of UPMC Horizon.
Saternow said there will be only three acres of the 10-acre park left after the sale to PBL.
The authority also sold four lots where the old municipal building was located at 926 Spearman Ave. The land is now vacant, and Emil and Kathy Koledin of Wesex Corp., West Middlesex, want to buy the property for $2,000.
Location
The land is adjacent to the rear of a small Wesex-owned plaza at the corner of Idaho Street and Spearman Avenue. Saternow said Wesex doesn't intend to build on the city property but may use it for parking or some other purpose.
The plaza has been designated as the site of a new 3,000-square-foot office for District Justice Henry Russo.
Mercer County is paying $270,000 to buy the condominium office from Wesex.
The city land is in a state Keystone Opportunity Zone, which is a tax-free district created to attract development, and Saternow said Wesex won't have to pay any taxes on the land for the next 8.5 years.
Finally, the authority agreed to grant a one-month option for $1 to Barnes/Miles Global Community Development of Pittsburgh on a vacant parcel of land in the 800 block of Spearman Avenue.
Barnes/Miles is a housing development company that plans to build 25 highly energy-efficient houses in Farrell.
Saternow said the company wants to build a model house on the Spearman Avenue site.
The company has formed a partnership with Southwest Gardens Economic Development Corp. to build five houses on Southwest Gardens' lots.
The two- and three-bedroom houses will cost between $70,000 and $80,000 each, but grant programs are expected to lower the sale price to between $25,000 and $35,000 to foster homeownership among low- and moderate-income families.