Lansford Borough Council last week discussed abandoning its old garage on Spring Street, which has been used for salt storage.

Concerns about the condition of the building, even for salt storage, continue to be raised, and residents pointed out that the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry outlined violations back in 2017.

Council President Bruce Markovich said the borough is looking at moving its salt reserves to a building adjacent to the train station on Dock Street.

“We’re going to store it in there and get that building emptied out,” he said. “Then we can get rid of that building.”

Councilman Joseph Butrie said the borough should get appraisals on the Spring Street property with the garage and with the structure razed, suggesting the borough should tear down the building before selling the lot.

“Look at all the properties in town. Look at the condemned buildings,” Butrie said. “Somebody else buys it, it’s still going to sit the way it is. In the best interest of the borough and taxpayers, level the building. Sell the property. Done deal.”

Councilwoman Jennifer Staines questioned the move, saying they would be spending $80,000 to tear down the building for a $30,000 lot. Butrie disagreed with the cost to raze the building.

The next step will be to get the property appraised, Markovich said.

The borough is also working on getting an occupancy permit for the former Zimmerman building along Dock Street for use as a temporary borough garage. The borough’s main garage was heavily damaged by fire last month.

The borough did inquire about getting a construction trailer as a base of operations for the borough workers, Markovich said, but its insurance company won’t pay for it.

The insurance company will pay the borough $144,000 for its street sweeper, which was the source of the garage fire, and $20,000 for a sewer vacuum truck, which was also destroyed in the fire.

Markovich thought the amount on the sewer vacuum truck was low, but he also wanted the insurance company to give them a breakdown on all the damage and allow council to review it at one time.

The insurance adjuster believes all the tools and contents of the garage were totaled, Markovich said. Another company would be inventorying the tools, he said.