2023 Top stories: State Towers decay left dozens without a home

Dec. 28—EDITOR'S NOTE — This is the third in a five-part series focusing on the top five stories in Mercer County this year, as judged by The Herald. Previously, The Herald focused on the 2023 National Roller Sports Championships held in Hermitage and the Shenango Valley Mall. The series will run through Saturday.

READERS' POLL RESULT: 9.7% (fifth place)

When the Sharon Sewer Authority shut off water and sewer service to State Towers April 12, it started a chain of events that led to the building being declared uninhabitable, leaving dozens of people without a home.

Without water service, residents were forced out of the high-rise building at 632 E. State St. in Sharon.

Days after the water service was discontinued, inspectors from Sharon Fire Department — armed with an administrative search warrant because city officials said building management had barred firefighters from inspecting the building — declared the building to be in "deplorable" condition.

The fire department spotlighted multiple code violations, including non-functioning smoke alarms, substandard fire doors, a boiler that had a gas leak and deemed hazardous, collapsing ceilings and a wall, and sanitary hazards.

Approximately 35 families lost their homes when the building was closed.

Building manager Joe Fusco told The Herald that he had been unable to pay the sewer bill because residents had been counting on the federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), a pandemic-era initiative to help people pay rent after losing employment due to COVID.

However, Dr. Erin Houston — executive director and CEO of the Shenango Valley Urban League, the county's ERAP administrator — said the federal program had made "a nice amount" of payments to State Towers management.

Fusco was found guilty of property violations and building owner Nancy Duker of Los Angeles was charged with property violations.

William G. McConnell, Fusco's attorney, argued that the city failed to adopt notification requirements the most recent International Fire Code correctly and said the charges should have been dismissed.

Ultimately, Houston and ERAP came through for the State Towers residents, first by providing them with temporary housing — at local hotels and motels in most cases — then by helping with moving those affected into permanent housing.

As 2024 dawns, State Towers' future remains unclear. Repairs could be expensive and Sharon City Manager Robert Fiscus said in July that the apartment building is in property tax arrears.