Jeannette officials had success Friday in their first attempt to seek civil penalties against property owners who they say are violating zoning rules by operating a salvage yard in their backyard.

District Judge Rebecca C. Tyburski ordered Conway and Jennifer Heminger pay a $10,000 fine to Jeannette during a hearing Friday.

Jeannette manager Ethan Keedy said after the ruling that city officials plan to target other property owners who are violating zoning rules in a similar fashion.

“That is the key to get the property cleaned up and to get them into compliance,” he said.

Keedy and Jeannette code and zoning officer Bill Whetzel laid out evidence against the Hemingers during Friday’s hearing. City officials have repeatedly, since at least 2019, asked the Hemingers to clean up the property on 11th Street in West Jeannette, next to the now clear land that once held the old Fort Pitt Brewery.

Both Hemingers have been found guilty in the past of nontraffic citations for accumulation of rubbish and garbage, according to court records. They’ve been fined a total of $1,300 across three cases.

But Keedy and Whetzel said the citations haven’t solved the problem.

On Friday, numerous items could be seen in disarray in the Hemingers’ backyard, including vehicles, a hot water tank, a tire, several chairs and multiple full laundry baskets and milk crates.

After the hearing, Conway Heminger said he at one time had a hobby of clearing out homes.

“The city got a bunch of snakes in there,” he said angrily, pointing to the courtroom.

He said he will probably appeal the ruling and claimed a city-owned property on South Fifth Street was in similar shape and should be cleaned up. The South Fifth Street property, which has a dilapidated home slated for demolition, didn’t have any items lying in the yard when a reporter drove by Friday.

A salvage yard is not permitted in the commercial corridor zoning district where the Hemingers’ property is located. A zoning variance would have to be granted by the city to continue operating as such.

Jeannette’s zoning rules carry penalties of up to $500 per day for violations. Whetzel estimated the potential fine the Hemingers could face for the current violation as exceeding $100,000, though Tyburski said she was limited in the amount she could impose.

If the fine is not paid, Jeannette could put a lien on the property and even push it to sheriff’s sale, Keedy said.

He praised the ruling as a way to improve the health and safety for businesses and residents near the Hemingers’ property. Next door, the former Fort Pitt Brewery buildings were demolished through a Westmoreland County Land Bank project and the property is being prepared for redevelopment.

“We do not want a scrapyard down there,” Keedy said.

He balked at Conway Heminger’s claim that city-owned properties are in need of a similar clean up.

“Nothing will compare to the third-world country that is down on Conway Heminger’s property,” Keedy said.

If the conditions at the Hemingers’ property remain as is, additional civil actions could be filed for separate zoning violations.