EBENSBURG — Codes enforcement officials on Wednesday halted demolition of a building on land the state sold to Altoona-based developers.
Meanwhile, long-term plans for the five-acre site near the intersection of routes 219 and 22 still are under wraps.
The required permits for demolishing a building had not been applied for or granted, said Barb Frantz, administrator of the Cambria County Building Code Enforcement Agency.
“They’re shut down, and they still haven’t told us what’s going in there,” Cambria Township Supervisor Robert Shook said.
At issue is five acres that was part of the Ebensburg Center, a 90-acre housing complex for the mentally challenged, and sits at one of the busiest commercial intersections in Cambria Township.
With the support of state Sen. John Wozniak, D-Westmont, and the governor, the state sold the land for $675,000 to CDM Ebensburg LLC of Altoona, ostensibly for the purpose of demolishing a former house and building a new Super Sheetz store and gas station.
Sheetz would not discuss its plans then, and it later was announced that the land had a covenant that prevented gambling, including lottery ticket sales, which some speculate could throw cold water on Sheetz’s plans.
Now, seven months later, plans for the parcel remain shrouded in secrecy. That’s why demolition of the former house, starting Friday and proceeding at a rapid pace, caught local officials off guard.
Code enforcement chief Frantz at first thought a permit might have been obtained through the state, and later was surprised to learn that the deed had been transferred and so a local permit was required.
She moved swiftly to shut down the demolition activities.
Permits are required for demolitions so that environmental issues such as septic tank capping, asbestos removal, back fill materials and other aspects are properly dealt with, according to the agency’s Web site.
The biggest question mark hanging over the site is the plan for its future.
The sale was finalized on
June 16, when the CDM group paid $675,000 to the state, with a mortgage from First National Bank for $750,000, courthouse records show.
The CDM group is a partnership of Altoona developer Donald Devorris, chairman of the Blair Companies; Bill Campbell, an executive with Hoss’s Steak and Sea House Inc.; and John McGregor, owner and president of Team Motors Inc.
When contacted about the future of the property, a CDM employee asked, “of what concern is it to the newspaper?”
Executives at Sheetz, the first buyer identified by Wozniak and Gov. Ed Rendell, were not immediately available for comment.
Also at issue is another state agency’s plans for the same intersection, where PennDOT plans a $2.35 million road upgrade where the extra-large trucks from Gamesa must turn with their load of turbines for commercial-sized windmills.
Wozniak was in Harrisburg and not available to comment, his staff said.
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Demolition halted; plans for site remain mystery
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