Officials give ruling on houses

Safety-service director: No money available for demolitions anytime soon

Lorain officials ruled 20 houses are public health nuisances that should be demolished.

However, it was unclear exactly when wrecking crews would tear down the homes.

The Lorain Demolition Board met Oct. 19 to consider 23 cases of houses that are vacant and deteriorating, so much that they create hazards

to the public health of the city.

However, despite the rulings, residents may not see quick actions to get rid of the sites, said Safety-Service Director Dan Given.

Ward 2 Councilman Dennis Flores said he was glad the city was taking proactive measures to clean up West 14th Street in his ward, which is in the central part of Lorain.

Given countered the city of Lorain has a formal process to declare the nuisances and will inform owners to clean up the properties or face legal action.

The city does not have money to pay for demolitions, he said.

In the reviews, Housing inspector Eric Elmi provided the street addresses, parcel numbers and photographs showing conditions inside and outside. The homes were inspected by departments of Fire and of Building, Housing and Planning staff, with help from the Lorain County Health Department.

Public comment

The meeting lasted more than three hours, but was sparsely attended by the public.

Along with Flores, four other people commented from the audience.

Glenn King of Legacy Property Management LLC asked for a reprieve for 4310 Meister Road.

“This house is salvageable,” King said, outlining his plans to buy and restore it.

Even so, the board voted 4-2 to rule it a nuisance to be demolished.

If the house were saved, it would generate property taxes that would help the city and save the neighborhood from having a vacant lot, which also could hurt property values, King said afterward.

“I just hoped that they would give us a little more

consideration and not just slam the door,” he said.

The house at 4248 Leavitt Road was on the list.

It caught fire on Jan. 20, 2016, said Lorain fire Assistant Chief Christopher Radman.

No one was hurt in the blaze, said owner Rebecca Smith, who lived there but was not at home when the fire broke out.

Smith said she had a buyer for the property, but the buyer won’t close on the deal while the house is on the demolition list.

The board voted to demolish the home.

Given and Smith noted the city has money to pay for demolition due to an insurance policy on the home, but Smith said she already had a point of sale for the house and a willing buyer.

“They have the money for the demolition and that’s why they’re doing it,” she said. “They don’t care.”

James Feather is executor of the estate of the late George Schneider, a landlord who was known for occasional legal disputes with the city due to his properties.

Feather agreed to cooperate with the city to transfer 325 W. 14th St. to the Lorain County Land Reutilization Corp., or county land bank, for eventual demolition.

It was one of Schneider’s worst houses, he said.

“It needed to go anyhow,” Feather said. “I don’t think anyone’s lived in it for 20 years.”

Lorain writer Loraine Ritchey of the Charleston Village Society Inc. historic preservation group said she had pictures from four years ago of the interior of 1348 W. Erie Ave.

“I will tell you, I’m shocked at how much worse it has gotten in three to four years,” Ritchey said. “It’s disgraceful.”

The house sits on the foundation of a home that was destroyed in the Great Tornado of 1924, she said.

In recent years, it has suffered from neglect of out-oftown owners, Ritchey said.

“That house has been an

eyesore,” she said. “I don’t understand why it has been allowed to get to where it is now, because as bad as it was, it was not that bad four years ago.”

Bad surprises

The houses were loaded with garbage and showed signs of structural defects such as bowing walls in the basement.

Amid those conditions, there were a few surprises, almost all of them bad.

Inspectors snapped dozens of photos of every home except 494 W. 14th St.

There, Elmi said they would not go in because the failing roof and walls are “ready to fall down at any moment.”

“This building is extremely dangerous to walk in,” he said.

It had just 14 photos to illustrate the conditions and interior shots were taken from the outside looking in.

At 1296-1298 Massachusetts Ave., inspectors found the decaying body of a dead kitten; they found a decaying cat carcass inside 30373039 Cromwell Drive.

At 2249 Beech Ave., there were fresh beer cans, signs of someone “squatting and having a good time, unfortunately,” Elmi said.

Hypodermic needles were present at 330 W. 23rd St.

A picture of 488 W. 13th St. showed a red handbag,

“belongings, probably a stolen purse, and left there,” Elmi said.

Those houses were voted for demolition, along with:

• 2887 Grant Ave.

• 235 Florida Ave.

• 341 W. 23rd St.

• 305 W. 23rd St.

• 308 W. 14th St.

• 315 W. 14th St.

• 550 W. 14th St.

• 637 W. 14th St.

• 3045 Tressa Ave.

Other cases

The rear structure of 685 W. 14th St. was condemned.

Elmi noted that structure also is known as 675 W. 14th St., but that is not a legal address, and the front structure at 685 W. 14th St. is not a candidate for demolition.

The board declined to consider evidence about two houses at 324 and 520 W. 14th St., because they are owned by the county land bank and will be targeted for demolition.

City inspectors were shocked at conditions at 1039 W. 14th St., Elmi said.

The outside had some building code violations, but the interior was neat and livable, he said.

The city officials admitted they were surprised owners Orlando Melendez and Carmen Naranjo did not attend to discuss the case.

The board voted to notify them to repair the exterior violations.