Work on Mahoning Drive-in sign halted

Though Mahoning Drive-In Theater is set to open for the season on Friday, it could have to do so without its iconic marquee.

Representatives of the Drive-In and Mazzella Enterprises came out to Mahoning Township’s board of supervisors meeting on Wednesday night to find a solution to a stop work order issued by zoning officer Carl Faust, which addressed a repair job to the marquee.

The order, which was attached to the marquee on Tuesday, stated that the structure lacked necessary permits, and that a continuation of work could result in fines of $1,000 plus costs.

“We had thought it just fell under a routine maintenance. So, we’re here this evening to ask for your consideration to consider this as what it is — repair and maintenance — that would fall under a different category,” Demetri Patitsas, business manager of Mazzella Enterprises, said to the board members.

In early January, a windstorm brought down the top piece of the theater’s sign, featuring an arrow and lighted 3D letters that spell out “Mahoning Drive-In,” located at the corner of Seneca Road and Route 443 West.

Fans from all over contributed to the repair of the sign, with Mazzella’s crew offering to do the work at a significant discount.

Owner Jeff Mattox said that Faust had not reached out to him at all during the repair process. Patitsas said that Faust had left messages with Mazzella Enterprises on April 14 and 19 asking about elements of the project, though he was unable to speak with him directly, and had to leave voicemail messages in response.

Drive-In partner Virgil Cardamone asked the board to look at the matter from the perspective of their sizable fan base — many of whom had contributed to repairing the sign — especially with the theater’s season opener just days away.

“We’ve been very blessed with this township, we’ve never had any sort of issues, but this is the kind of speed bump that we hit at the worst time. To have thousands of eyes have to see the marquee not finished for the reason that it’s not finished. … Our hope for tonight is to try to get you guys to hear that, see where we’re coming from. We’re not rebuilding anything, we’re just putting that sign back up,” Cardamone said.

Even though permits were filed following the issuance of the stop work order, the board was unable to take any action in the case.

“If their permits are all filed, it shouldn’t be a problem getting back to work, but we can’t reverse Carl’s stop. That has to come from Carl,” Chairman Franklin Ruch said.

Nanovic agreed that work could likely continue without an issue if Faust decided to lift the cease order.

As Faust was not at the meeting, no action could be taken. Secretary-Treasurer Natalie Haggerty was unable to reach him by phone.

Although the outcome is left to Faust, Supervisor Bruce Steigerwalt expressed additional concerns for the project over the fact that no one had contacted the township or the zoning office since the sign had come down, essentially leaving them in the dark.

“Without someone coming by and saying ‘this is what our intentions are,’ we have no idea. And now, at this twelfth hour, you’re coming in and saying ‘this is our intention,’” Steigerwalt said.

Owner Jeff Mattox said that he was under the assumption that putting the sign back in place did not warrant any permits or government contact.

“I thought that it was my property, and I had the right to make repairs to it if I wanted to,” Mattox said.

Steigerwalt said that he was unsure of Faust’s intent with the stop order, though he speculated that it was possible that repairs stemming from a structural fail could, hypothetically, call for compliance with a current code.

Despite the difficulty, Mattox, Cardamone and the Mazzella Enterprises crew maintains that they will work toward a resolution in order to be ready for their grand premiere.

“If they can overturn the work cease, even on Friday, then by the time people pull on that lot at 6 p.m. we should have that arrow and the lettering up. That’s our big hope,” Cardamone said.