PITTSBURGH — Two elderly brothers who live in Pittsburgh’s Arlington neighborhood are relieved to know their home has been saved. They were concerned about their foundation after a collapse next door that destabilized the land.
The brothers said they had been calling the city for help addressing the property for years and made several calls, warning them that a collapse was imminent in the weeks before their predictions came true.
“I told them, ‘It’s gonna go, I’m telling ya,’ I called them several times. ‘It’s gonna go. It’s gonna go. It’s gonna go,’” Francis Seman said.
The neighboring garage, which was condemned, collapsed in March. It pulled down a large retaining wall with it.
After the collapse, the land between Francis and Michael Seman’s home and their neighbor’s kept crumbling away, inching closer and closer to their home. The Semans’ home has been in their family for generations, since the 1800s, and they were terrified they were going to lose it.
That’s when they reached out to 11 Investigates for help. For over a year, investigative reporter Jatara McGee has been exposing the city’s blight problem and challenges in addressing it. There are thousands of dilapidated, dangerous buildings causing safety concerns and headaches for neighbors all over the city.
This particular property in the 2900 block of Arlington Avenue was inherited by the city. It’s an example of one of the big challenges facing our aging city. The owners of the property passed away, and their home fell into disrepair.
Both the home and garage were condemned by the city and continued to sit for years after, as their conditions worsened.
In May, Councilperson Bob Charland acknowledged the city failed the Semans. But last week, the city started to make things right.
Wreckcrew Demolition LLC won the bid to do the work on the property. Last week, crews demolished the home. Now crews are in the process of clearing the land, regrading the property and installing a large retaining wall.
“I am so relieved right now. You know, it’s a big thing off my shoulder,” Francis Seman told 11 Investigates. “Tremendous. 10,000 times over tremendous.”
He and his brother Michael have been waiting years to see excavators and other heavy equipment next door, tearing down the home next door that was dilapidated and attracting pests.
Monday, project managers walked Francis through the plans for the area directly next to his home. They said they plan to replace the sidewalk next to this home and the fence that separates the two properties.
“You guys helped an awful lot,” he told 11 Investigates. “It is deeply appreciated.”
He even became emotional discussing the relief the project has given him and his brother.
“Chokes you up a little bit?” McGee asked.
“Yeah,” Seman replied with a smile.
The city previously paid $59,000 to complete the emergency demolition of the collapsed garage and temporary stabilization measures.
The most recent work of tearing down the condemned home, regrading the property, installing a new retaining wall and making repairs is costing the city $262,000. The Department of Permits, Licenses and Inspections will fund the project with PAYGO funding intended for demolishing condemned buildings.
The project is significantly more expensive than a typical demolition. That said, the city has more funds to work with this year.
11 Investigates previously reported that the mayor increased the budget for 2025 to $5.3 million.
For years, city officials have blamed the ability to rid the city of dangerous structures at least partly on limited funding. But last year, money wasn’t the main problem. Despite having the funds, the city demolished less than a quarter of its goal for the year.
McGee questioned PLI Director Dave Green about the demolition lag last year. 11 Investigates has repeatedly requested interviews since then, but the city has declined or not responded.
A review of demolition data so far in 2025 shows numbers continue to trend down. City data shows that, over nine months into the year, the city has 37 city-funded demolitions complete or in process. That’s more than the city tore down all of last year (22) but just a fraction of the number of demolitions the city completed in 2021, 2022 and 2023, even with increased funding this year.
Here are the numbers from 2021 until now:
- 2021: 92 city-funded demolition permits issued
- 2022: 112 city-funded demolition permits issued
- 2023: 105 city-funded demolition permits issued
- 2024: 22 city-funded demolition permits issued
- 2025 (so far): 37 city-funded demolition permits issued
11 Investigates will stay on it.
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