Demolition Contractor in Bethel Park, PA

Who issues a demolition permit in Bethel Park?

Bethel Park runs its own code office. The Community Development Department takes building and demolition permits at the municipal building on West Library Avenue. Its Building Inspection Division enforces the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction Code and the adopted ICC codes. Local zoning sits in Chapter 69 of the municipal code.

Administration and enforcement of that code fall to the Building Code Official and the Construction Code Official. The municipality's permit list includes a demolition permit for houses and for commercial buildings. The state code is plain about it: a permit is required to move, demolish or alter a building. Applications go to Community Development in person or by email, and the municipal fee schedule sets the cost.

Bethel Park also issues a grading permit, priced by how much dirt moves. That one matters on a teardown, since the hole gets filled and the lot gets graded after. Allegheny County rules put an asbestos survey ahead of most demolition, and a licensed abatement firm removes anything found.

Gas, water and power get cut and capped by the utility and by licensed trades before anything comes down. PA One Call gets the underground lines marked. When we quote the job we go over what Bethel Park wants and who handles each step.

Garage demolition and gut-outs on Bethel Park's post-war houses

A house built in 1958 usually has a garage of about the same age. Block and frame garages go when the footer settles or the sill rots, and the roof follows. We take them down with the excavator, break out the slab and footers, and haul it off. The pad can be left ready for a new build, or topsoiled and seeded.

Houses of that age change hands with kitchens, baths and paneling the new owner wants gone. We do selective interior demolition down to the studs and leave what holds the house up. We have a building background, so framing, load paths, wiring, plumbing and duct runs get read before anything comes out. Added scope gets handled as it comes up.

Roughly three quarters of the homes here went up before 1980. Lead paint rules cover housing built before 1978. Asbestos hides in old floor tile, pipe wrap and duct insulation. Testing and abatement go to a licensed firm first.

We keep the dust down and carry the debris out. Old concrete, sheds, decks, porches and above ground pools come out the same way.

Brick pointing, foundations and the coal mines under Bethel Park

Bethel Park was a coal town before it was a suburb. The Coverdale Mine opened around 1920 and worked room and pillar until it closed in 1949. Its company houses are still lived in. Census counts about 1,470 homes in Bethel Park built before 1940.

Old mine workings do not stay put. The state defines mine subsidence as ground movement from the collapse of an underground coal or clay mine. A homeowner policy usually does not cover that damage, so Pennsylvania sells its own mine subsidence insurance. DEP keeps a map where you can check an address.

Cracked block, a bowing basement wall or a chimney pulling away can come from water, settling or ground movement. We do the masonry side of that work. Brick pointing puts mortar back into joints that have washed out. Spalled brick gets cut out and replaced, and chimneys get repointed, rebuilt or taken down.

We also do foundation repair and waterproofing on block and stone walls. We build and rebuild retaining walls in block, stone, poured concrete and railroad tie. Freeze and thaw winters here are hard on mortar, brick and concrete.

When a wall is bowing or the house is settling, a structural engineer should look first. We do the masonry and waterproofing the repair calls for. Piers, anchors and interior drain systems are another company's work.

Where we work in Bethel Park

We come out from Pittsburgh on PA-88, Library Road, which starts at Saw Mill Run Boulevard in Overbrook. It runs through Castle Shannon and straight into Bethel Park. The T covers the other side of town, with stops at South Hills Village, Washington Junction and Lytle. US-19 runs the western edge.

Bethel Park covers about twelve square miles across nine wards, with roughly 118 miles of municipal road. About 33,000 people live here. We work the whole town, from Coverdale and Bethel Village to Baptist Road, Clifton Road, Brookside Boulevard and Oxford Drive.

The main ZIP here is 15102, and the edges of town run into 15234, 15236 and 15241. We are a registered Pennsylvania home improvement contractor, PA HIC registration PA074091. We have been in the demolition business since 2001, and masonry is the second line. Call or text (412) 720-1866 to set up a look at the job.