Residents put ribbon on burned-out Pa. house

[December 06, 2012]  PENN HILLS, Pa. (AP) -- Some residents of a Pittsburgh suburb have gift-wrapped something they hope will be gone by Christmas: a charred and abandoned house that burned nine months ago.

Amy Davis tells WPXI-TV (http://bit.ly/11TE5KM) that residents put a big red bow on the house next door to hers, so Penn Hills officials will get moving on tearing it down. The house burned in March.

Residents say it's unsafe and an eyesore, and that they fear it could harm their property values.

Davis says gift-wrapping the house "was done in jest to bring light to a situation where there's no humor at all." She says the fire frightened her and caused $8,000 worth of damage to her 100-year-old home.

Municipal code enforcement officer John McCafferty tells the TV station he just got approval to tear down the home.

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Information from: WPXI-TV, http://www.wpxi.com/

[Associated Press]

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