Barricades will remain at Wick Building until building is deemed safe

YOUNGSTOWN — Barricades will remain in front of the downtown Wick Building, which had several bricks fall off its exterior, until the city receives a letter from a certified engineer that it is structurally safe, the mayor said.

That’s not likely to come for at least a week, said Mayor Charles Sammarone.

The mayor said he and other members of his administration met today with Lou Frangos and Dominic Marchionda to discuss what needs to be done to secure the building.

Frangos is finalizing a deal to sell the building at 34 W. Federal St. to Marchionda.

The bricks fell Tuesday evening landing on the sidewalk on North Phelps Street, near West Federal Street. Barricades were put up shortly after the incident happened, and workers were at the building making sure nothing else will fall from the exterior.

Sammarone said Marchionda will hire an engineer to examine the building’s exterior and make sure it’s structurally sound. It will take at least a week for the engineer’s report, Sammarone said.

If the report states there’s no additional problems with the building, the barricades will be removed, Sammarone said.

But if there are more problems, the mayor said Marchionda would be given a certain time frame to fix the problem.

Marchionda plans to convert the building into an apartment complex.