Longtime Irwin appliance store to relocate so borough offices can become ADA compliant

IRWIN, Pa. — Gary Proctor, the owner of Rosendahl’s Appliance Center in Irwin has been busy.

“Usually, November and December are our busiest months,” Proctor said. “People [are] either putting new appliances in before the holidays, or you know, remodeling, building.”

Proctor has been the owner of Rosendahl’s Appliance Center for 12 years, but the store has been around much longer than that.

“The store’s actually been here for 97 years,” Proctor told Channel 11′s Andrew Havranek.

For more than 60 of those years, Rosendahl’s has been in its current location on Main Street.

But, that will soon have to change.

The store is located on the ground floor of the Irwin Borough Building, where the mayor and manager’s offices are, as well as the police department.

But to get to those borough offices, you have to go up steps. It’s not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

For the past five years, the borough says has looked at potentially remodeling, installing an elevator, or building a new building.

But, they say none of that is feasible.

Instead, they’re moving downstairs at the end of March. That means Rosendahl’s, which has leased their location from the borough -- will have to find a new home.

“I’m glad we’re not having to get out at the end of the year here,” Proctor said. “I’m glad we have the three months to figure something out.”

The borough released a statement saying it understands many might be upset about the news.

“The Borough acquired the property in 1891 and has occupied it in various ways for over 130 years. Over the course of the past five years, the Borough formed a Real Estate Committee (”the Committee”) to analyze ways to make the Borough Office more accessible to the public, including those with mobility issues. The Borough researched its ability to continue operations on the second floor by installing an elevator, but it was not physically feasible given the constraints of the design and layout of the building. The Borough further determined that it was important to remain downtown on Main Street to continue offering visibility and convenient public access to local government. Constructing a new building on the Borough’s 6″ Street lot, which is currently under the ownership of the Irwin Volunteer Fire Department, was also considered but ultimately rejected, as constructing a new building would be more expensive and needlessly increase business traffic in a residential neighborhood.

The Committee, which toured the limited number of vacant and suitable buildings throughout the Borough, negotiated offers to purchase property, which fell through, and hired professionals to design build outs. It was determined that acquiring and renovating a new building would be prohibitively expensive, necessitating substantial real estate tax increases. This was not a feasible or prudent option, as Council did not want to increase the tax burden on Irwin residents.

Renovating the Borough’s Main Street building and relocating the Borough Office to the first floor proved to be the most cost-effective way to make the Borough Office more accessible. As such, the Borough hired a design professional on April 12, 2023 to begin preparations. The Tenant on the first floor has been aware of the plan for years while making their business available for the Borough’s design professionals to measure the space and begin design work. In fact, the last lease that was negotiated with the Tenant in 2023 provided them with an additional three months of occupancy beyond their standard annual lease term so that they had ample time to determine a suitable relocation plan. The Borough is committed to its loyal business community and, since the beginning of this project, has had the full intention of supporting the Tenant in finding a new location in the Borough. In this spirit, the Committee contacted numerous downtown landlords and provided the Tenant with rental rates and contact information for available spaces in the Borough. To say that anyone was shocked or caught off guard by the plans announced at the Borough Council meeting on December 11, 2024 is simply not the case.

The Borough understands that this project, which necessitates the relocation of a tenured tenant, is upsetting to some; however, the Borough has been a transparent partner to the Tenant and is acting in alignment with its responsibility to its taxpayers by moving forward with the most cost-effective way to make its government offices accessible without the need to increase residents’ property taxes.”

“While it’s not my last name I would love to continue to keep the name in the community,” Proctor said. “I would love to celebrate 100 years in Irwin if at all possible, but we have to wait and see.”

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