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Jefferson County agrees to demolition MOA for two Brookville properties, requires historic mitigation and environmental review
Summary
The county approved a memorandum of agreement with the Pennsylvania State Historical Preservation Office to demolish two blighted properties at 446 and 450 Madison Avenue in Brookville Borough using 2024 CDBG funds; mitigation will include placing historic placards and the project remains in environmental review, likely delaying bids until midsummer.
The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners agreed to a memorandum of agreement with the Pennsylvania State Historical Preservation Office to carry out demolition of two properties at 446 and 450 Madison Avenue in Brookville Borough, using 2024 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds.
Because both structures are listed as contributing resources in the borough’s historic district, the CDBG-funded demolition triggers mitigation requirements. The board heard that mitigation will include installing historic placards or other interpretive signage in coordination with the borough’s historic review board and other agencies; the exact text and placement of any placards will be decided in follow-up discussions.
A member of the public asked whether plaques would be placed on or outside the properties. County staff replied that mitigation is required but that placard location has not been finalized and that the demolition remains in environmental review. Staff indicated the project is not likely to be put out to bid until at least midsummer, pending completion of environmental review.
Commissioners emphasized the county’s broader efforts to address blighted properties, noting a county-level fund is being built to support remediation work but is not yet ready for use. A commissioner referenced two state laws (identified in the meeting as Act 152 and a second act read aloud unclear in the record) as enabling counties to assemble resources for blight remediation.
The board did not adopt detailed placard language or a demolition schedule at the meeting; those details will be handled administratively and through coordination with Brookville Borough and the historic review board.
