Getting into places..

[JL385]

Question: How do photographers obtain legal access to places that are "off-limits" to general public. I am going back home in October and I would like to visit Centralia, Pa. Its a old town that has been abandoned because of an underground mine fire. Do you contact the police department / city hall (of the bordering town?) and ask for permission? I assume they would want you to have insurance to cover you if you get hurt, maybe even sign a wavier? I'm just looking for the proper professional way to do what i would like to do. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

 

[tirediron]

I would start with the local municipal offices; they may or may not be the place, but they should be able to direct you to the right place. Often it does take a bit of digging, and sometimes you really can't find an answer... things have been boarded up, 'No Trespassing' signs posted for so long that everyone forgets why or who, and the records have disappeared...

 

[Designer]

Question: How do photographers obtain legal access to places that are "off-limits" to general public. I am going back home in October and I would like to visit Centralia, Pa. Its a old town that has been abandoned because of an underground mine fire. Do you contact the police department / city hall (of the bordering town?) and ask for permission? I assume they would want you to have insurance to cover you if you get hurt, maybe even sign a wavier? I'm just looking for the proper professional way to do what i would like to do. Any insight would be greatly appreciated.

It would certainly help if you were an established journalist with some particular "angle" on a potential story to tell that also needs photographs. It's not as if this place hasn't already been photographed, so just being a photo enthusiast will probably not be enough.

Places such as abandoned factories or warehouses are dangerous in many ways, so whoever owns the building (or insures it) will not be anxious to let someone prowl the premises just out of curiosity. If you get hurt in there, who is going to be responsible?

 

[Gary A.]

Find the owner. It most likely be the county, but it could also be the company that owns the mine. Generally, you have to give/have a good reason to be allowed to to enter a place which is 'Off Limits'. Do not tell them "I want to take some pictures". Do tell them something along the lines of "I am a documentarian". Assuming you are not a documentarian or a credentialed member of the media and that you want to go because you just want to take some photos of an abandoned site ... (don't get me wrong, there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking pictures of an abandoned site. If I was in PA I'd want to go with you.) The more and better the BS the better your odds of success.

Hooking up with a small paper and getting them to use your Centralia story would be a great cover and you'd get published. Another angle is to find a former resident ... Centralia then and now thing. There are a lot of ways to get in.

 

[Designer]

The more and better the BS the better your odds of success.

I disagree, Gary. In my former occupation(s) various people would lie to me, and when they did, I lost any tendency toward showing lenience. Quite the opposite.

 

[FotosbyMike]

I would agree with the above, but I the town is still publicly accessible take a look at this link Visiting Centralia PA - Frequently Asked Questions about visiting Centralia most it is owned by the Commonwealth of PA.

Good luck.

 

[smoke665]

We had a similar situation here in town. Many years ago our steel plant that had been in operation for a 100 years closed. The years took a toll on the buildings, and they became a gold mine of opportunity for photographers. However not only was it off limits because of the dangers, but there was still limited security in place, who would prosecute trespassers when caught. Over the years a very limited number of people were allowed in, until finally one by one the buildings were demolished. Sadly I was one of those who didn't make it.

 

[Gary A.]

Looks like it is open for business. If you plan to spend a long time there, I'd check in with the local authorities (police) and just let them know who you are, what you're doing and that you will be respectful of the No Trespassing signs. They may give you some tips on photo ops and in the best case scenario they may even help you around the No Trespassing signs. (Remember you're a documentarian, lol.)

 

[Destin]

Is Centralia actually illegal? I've been there multiple times and there are always a ton of people walking around it. I've never seen posted signs or anything, or heard of anyone getting in trouble for being there.

It's technically public property and still a town.. there are warning signs about the dangers of sink holes and such, but that's about it. A few people still lived there as recently as 4-5 years ago.

 

[fmw]

My preference is usually that it is more effective to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.

 

[Destin]

My preference is usually that it is more effective to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.

In life I agree. As a hobbyist I agree.

But if you're doing photography as a business, I don't think I'd use this method.

 

[waday]

I'm assuming Graffiti Highway is one place you want to visit? That's the abandoned highway. PennDOT has started to crack down on trespassers there. If you do encounter an officer, be nice and you'll probably just be told to move on.

If I remember correctly, they either did or were planning on attempting to make it more difficult to access Graffiti Highway.

 

[Dave Colangelo]

This heavily depends on where you are trying to get into,

Many cities list the owner of record publicly, philly has a nice site for it but not all places are as web friendly. Generally the local municipal office can pull the info some may require a form or a call or an in-person visit etc. From there you may be on your own to find the owner as all cities track and release different info on property ownership. FWIW trespassing in PA is a Felony so tread lightly.

 

[JL385]

I'm assuming Graffiti Highway is one place you want to visit? .

Its not on the top of the list but it looks pretty cool, i'm more interested in the gritty abandonment aspect more so than the art but yeah i'll most likely hit the highway for the structural crack and the graffiti.

Is Centralia actually illegal? .

Not 100% sure i know the people still living there are under certain stipulations of when they die or move the state then owns the land. I assume there must be "no trespassing" considering the coal fire is still burning under ground and toxic gas still being in the area. We all know the coolest stuff to shoot is usually in the out of bounds area's.

 

[JL385]

This heavily depends on where you are trying to get into,

Many cities list the owner of record publicly, philly has a nice site for it but not all places are as web friendly. Generally the local municipal office can pull the info some may require a form or a call or an in-person visit etc. From there you may be on your own to find the owner as all cities track and release different info on property ownership. FWIW trespassing in PA is a Felony so tread lightly.

Agree'd i'm about to be a dad and in a very good career... last thing I need is a felony charge to ruin my life. I'm very grateful for all the responses from everyone on how to properly approach these situations.