Future of bridge over Saw Mill Run Blvd. uncertain as city plans for demolition amid lawsuit

A bridge near the border of Mt. Washington and Beechview that spans Route 51 is currently at the center of a lawsuit between the City of Pittsburgh and a private business over whether to tear it down.

It’s been there for decades but was recently classified as Priority Zero in a comprehensive bridge report. Now, the City of Pittsburgh has decided to start the process of tearing it down but faces resistance from a local business.

Wabash Properties L.L.C. filed a lawsuit to block the demolition, claiming the city was responsible for maintaining and repairing that section of the bridge and that demolishing it would cut off access to their business, Rohrich GM Parts Center.

“Honestly, I think Rohrich should just bite the bullet, find another parking lot, and tear it down. That’s my opinion,” said Ed Ogden, who lived in the area for 60 years. “I’ve driven under it probably 5,000 times. It’s just dilapidated underneath, rocks falling down…they’ve done some work on it, but I don’t know, it seems useless to me.”

Channel 11 news partner the Trib reports that spalling, or breaking at a portion of the bridge, was a concern because the section could let loose and fall directly onto traffic below.

“Hey, you never know what’s going to happen. Look what happened to the fern hollow bridge,” Ogden said.

On Friday, the City of Pittsburgh released this statement about the situation and its next course of action:

“This bridge was listed as one of the ‘Priority Zero’ spans in the mayor’s comprehensive bridge report. Since receiving the report, all Priority 0 maintenance items have been mitigated, including the removal of loose concrete over/next to traffic and repairs to deteriorated steel beams. Additionally, the city has been working with the adjacent business to restrict vehicle loading from portions of the top of the bridge to reduce standing weight on the structure.

The legislation before City Council this week was to authorize funds with the ultimate objective of demolishing this bridge. That process still requires planning, engineering, and funding. The exact timeline is still to be determined; in the interim the city continues to monitor the bridge.”

At press time, Rohrich had not responded to Channel 11′s request for comment on the situation.

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