Pittsburgh City Council is waiving its normal rules to speed up a bill that would pay a contractor for its ongoing work to repair the exterior of the City-County Building.
Councilman Bruce Kraus said the $500,000 pledge from the city government will be matched dollar-for-dollar by Allegheny County, which also operates in the structure at 414 Grant Street.
These payments to the Graciano Corporation are the first of several installments in a project that could cost more than $4 million, according to Kraus. He said Graciano is already several weeks into the repair of the building's soffit and fascia, which run along the perimeter of the roof.
"There's some decay in the mortar, as I understand it, and so it has made the block that makes [up] the soffit and fascia vulnerable for falling," said Kraus. "The project is to shore up that soffit and fascia with whatever remortaring might be necessary."
At Tuesday's meeting, Council bent its regular rules so the bill could be passed on Monday, one day before Council Members begin a three-week recess.
Kraus said a majority of Council gave Graciano informal approval to begin the "emergency work" months ago.
"At the minimum, we have five signatures from Council to approve that spending, so, in essence, it already has been approved. It's just that we're formalizing it now, within the context of the Council," said Kraus.
Graciano Corporation has not yet responded to calls for comment.
