July 14th Council Meeting

By: Emily Guiles

 

On Tuesday July 14^th Muskegon City council meeting took place to discuss new and old business, the first of which was the demolition of five properties that were structurally compromised.

The buildings in question were;

• 1258 5^th Street
• 462 Washington Avenue
• 1252 5^th Street
• 1709 Pine
• 1370 Sanford

All the owners of these buildings had a chance to speak on its behalf, only two property owners were present however. 1258 5^th street, 462 Washington Avenue, and 1709 Pine street had no speaker and are scheduled for demolition.

The property on 1252 5^th street is set to be demolished and has been abandoned for quite some time. Chief of police reported that upon inspection it was discovered that the house needs a new roof and electric installed. Also needed is a new kitchen and foundation. All together the repairs were projected to cost 30 to 70 thousand dollars, with the value of the house only listed at 27 thousand.

The owner of 1252 5^th street, Francisco Lorenzo, lives in Chicago, but is willing to give the house a chance and try to fix it. In order to stop the demolition Lorenzo will have to pay the city 5 thousand dollars to suspend the demolition while the house is fixed.

The other property with a speaker was 1370 Sanford which was identified as an abandoned building. The property was valued at 29 thousand. The 2014 taxes are still owed and there have been contractual issues regarding who actually owns it. The owner does not have the resources to fix or rebuild the property but has asked for a 30 day hold, however the Mayor believes that the council should proceed with the demolition.