Brief condemnation gives way to May flowers

An Oberlin flower shop has received a new lease on life just in time for Mother’s Day after being briefly condemned.

Puffers Floral Shoppe, 13 E. Vine Street, was condemned by the city May 9 after heavy rains caused a retaining wall on the property to fall into nearby Plum Creek.

Despite condemning the building May 9, a further inspection of the structure showed there isn’t an imminent danger of the building falling in and the business was reopened May 12, according to Oberlin Law Director Jon Clark.

“After a couple of meetings with the engineer that the city hired and an updated assessment of the situation following the partial collapse of the wall, the city has canceled the condemnation,” Clark said.

The city will monitor the situation on the property closely and if further rains cause more issues, officials

will take the appropriate actions, he said.

The wall’s drop into the creek did not catch city officials by surprise though. According to paperwork provided by the city, the

business had received multiple warnings that the retaining wall could possibly fall and even take the shop with it.

In a Sept. 28, 2015, letter requesting entry into

the business for inspection, Code Compliance Officer Gary R. Guendelsberger stated he had reason to believe a number of code compliant issues existed on the property.

A March 2 letter also signed by Guendelsberger said a study was completed on the site and concluded the retaining wall was integral to keeping the business from slipping into the creek itself.

The letter also outlines a meeting between Clark, Guendelsberger, City Manager Rob Hillard and Director of Planning and Development Carrie Handy had with contractors KS Associates about possible solutions to the problem ranging in price from $10,000 to $100,000.

“The choice on how to repair/replace the wall rests with you,” the letter reads. “Doing nothing is not an option. Without repair, the wall will eventually fail.

“Failure of the wall will result in the closure of the building. Since no one can predict when the wall will fail, you’ll need to be ready to vacate the building when it does.”

According to owner Jim Hutchson, though, the burden for fixing the wall rests with the city.

Hutchinson also claimed there was no damage to the building when the wall fell.

KEITH REYNOLDS — THE MORNING JOURNAL The destruction left behind after high water caused a retaining wall conjoined to Puffers Floral Shoppe, 13 E. Vine St., in Oberlin, to fall into Plum Creek. The falling retaining wall led to a brief condemnation from the city.