“It’s rotting. It’s an eyesore. The neighbors have been screaming for seven, eight years to take it down.”
Jim Kirkwood, Kentwood director of engineering and inspections, tells the city commission the property owner began construction of the home at 5260 Settlers Pass in 2014.
“The property owner started this eleven years ago. He died. The new property owner got it, I think at auction, and was going to continue but still has not.”
Kirkwood says the new owner is out of the country, and the city has run out of patience with unkept promises.
“He has been in Africa, keeps telling us he is going to be coming back next month, fails to do so, so we finally condemned the property.”
All won’t be lost. The demolition company is planning to reuse some of the wood beams.
“A lot of these are 8 by 8’s and 10 by 10’s so they can shave off two inches of rotted wood and get to some good wood below. So, they are going to repurpose some of the wood.”
The city will bill the property owner for the $27-thousand demolition cost.
“It’s unsafe. It’s unsafe. You don’t want to go in there.”
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