The Corner of Sketchy and Dicey (Monessen)      

For the most part, the commercial and residential areas of Monessen are very distinct: the commercial district sprawls along two main streets near the river and the residential area occupies the hillside above.  Dotted here and there in the residential landscape are places like Nuzzaci Pizza (a going concern) and Billy T’s (a nagging concern).

I was inspired to visit Monessen mostly because one of my best friends hails from there.  In a way, I was paying respects as well as reporting back.  If I may share his remarks on this photo:

Billy T’s (corner of Sketchy and Dicey) is on the corner of 9th St. and Knox Ave — that place was a scene of so many shootings, stabbings, etc.  It changed ownership and names a bunch of times, but it was a nasty place even back when I was growing up and it finally was shut down for good.

Billy T’s, situated at the foot of the residential hillside, was in fact shut down in 2009.  But the opiod epidemic in Monessen lives on.  My photographic impressions of the degraded nature of the town are reinforced by this article in the Uniontown Herald-Standard (please read).  I don’t know what the answer is.  I imagine that people feel trapped there.