Monessen paving project to include Knox Avenue sinkhole

There’s currently a steel plate over the sinkhole, and the area has been sectioned off with cones.

Seven streets in Monessen will receive much-needed repairs this year, including Knox Avenue where a sinkhole opened up last week.

The other six streets slated to be repaired are Ninth Street, Leeds and Marion avenues, Columbus and Montraver drives and Pacific Boulevard.

It’s no secret that Monessen’s streets have been in poor shape for quite some time. Residents and other travelers know they’re in for a bumpy ride when driving throughout the city, as many of the streets are full of potholes and cracked, uneven pavement.

The sinkhole is located within the 1100 block of Knox Avenue in a residential area. The city placed a steel plate over top of the hole and sectioned it off with traffic cones.

The city intends to address the sinkhole as soon as possible.

“It is very important that we do this very quickly because it is in the middle of a neighborhood,” Mayor Ron Mozer said. “If a truck goes through the cones, it will fall in the hole even if there’s a steel plate on it.

“Somebody could kick the plate off or something. You can’t leave this thing in the middle of the neighborhood. It’s very critical to get it done quick.”

According to Mozer, the city’s engineer, WEC, estimated it will cost $9,000 to repair the sinkhole.

“That’s below the $12,000 threshold. Therefore, we can do it through a requisition,” he said. “We’ll put a requisition in and we’ll get it done.”

It’s unclear what caused the sinkhole. The city engineer used a camera to examine the hole, but wasn’t able to find any debris or material.

“There’s no sign of the material,” Mozer said. “The only thing that makes any sense is to excavate it, fig- ure out what the problem is and take it from there.”

On Thursday, Monessen council authorized the city engineer to seek out bids to pave the upper and lower portions of Ninth Street between Schoonmaker and Knox avenues. The city will utilize CDBG funds for the project, which Mozer estimated will cost about $200,000.

Mozer, who’s running for reelection this year, has dedicated a significant portion of his time in office to improving Monessen’s infrastructure and image.

The city completed the repaving of Third Street last year, which was also made possible through CDBG funds.

There have been more than 125 blighted properties razed in the city during Mozer’s tenure.

And the city has made significant progress on its sewer rehabilitation project, with Phases 3 and 4 nearly complete.