A motel that once served as a rest stop for turnpike drivers has become an eyesore and a health hazard, and North Huntingdon officials have initiated steps to tear it down.

The Carlton Motel, located at the corner of Gregg Drive and Pennsylvania Avenue adjacent to the Irwin interchange on the turnpike, has accrued a list of complaints and code violations stretching back to 2003.

Township records indicate that since January of that year the motel has been cited five times for property maintenance violations, including a citation issued last week for excessive trash buildup around the building.

Like a number of hotels in the immediate vicinity, the Carlton sprang up with the completion of the turnpike in the early 1940s.

"All those hotels popped up because we were the terminus of the turnpike at the time," said Carl Huszar, president of the Norwin Historical Society.

In the 1950s however, the turnpike was extended to Monroeville, and the Carlton and other hotels lost a large portion of their business. The Carlton passed through a series of owners and gradually fell into disrepair.

"Our department has known about it for years," township planning director Andrew Blenko said. He said that back in 2004, the township ordered the Carlton's owner, Gary Monsour of Loxahatchee, Fla., to resolve the cited problems, and when he failed to do so, the township closed the building.

Despite an order to repair the building, a 2005 inspection found that Monsour, who travels back and forth from North Huntingdon to Florida, had not taken any steps to fix the problems on the property. At that point, said Blenko, the township could have had the motel demolished, but the commissioners at the time chose not to do so because of budgetary concerns.

In a memo to township commissioners last month, Blenko listed the history of complaints against the motel, and advised commissioners that the cost of demolishing the building would run around $80,000.

"If the decision is to tear this down, that'll be a decision of the board of commissioners," said Blenko, adding the next step is to notify Monsour and schedule a public hearing on the matter.

Board President David Herold said the commissioners intend to follow through on the matter.

"We're planning on demolishing it because it's a health and safety hazard for the people around it," he said.

In addition to the general lack of maintenance and abandoned vehicles on the property, Herold said the motel's old pool, full of stagnant water, represents a public health threat.

"The building's just in bad shape all around," he said.

Herold said a letter had been sent to Monsour, but the township had not received any response.

The cost of the demolition would be paid upfront by the township, and both Herold and Blenko said some money was available in the budget. Township officials then would place a lien on the property, which will allow them to recover the cost of the demolition when the property is sold at sheriff's auction.

The hearing on the demolition could take place in April. Blenko said the township then would have to advertise for a contractor to do the work.

"I wouldn't see anything happening to June at the earliest," he said.

Blenko said Monsour might resist the action, because even though the motel is closed, he still collects revenue from billboards located on the property, which are visible from the turnpike.

If the property is sold at sheriff's sale, lien holders, including the township, would have a claim on that revenue.