MASON CITY – City officials have deemed a house a nuisance and unsafe, but the city council gave the homeowner an extension before ordering the structure demolished.
City staff asked the Mason City council for permission to go ahead with the tear down of 32 6th Street NW, owned by Phillip A. Flinchum. All the costs of the demolition would be assessed to Flinchum.
Flinchum addressed the council Tuesday evening, July 15th. He said he bought the house 40 years ago and it was built in the late 1800’s. He said he has “had a lot of stuff” in the house but he has “worked so hard” to clean up the house since it was broken into sometime in 2012. Health problems have slowed him down as well, he said.
Flinchum said he called City Administrator Brent Trout to ask about what he could do to save his home, and Trout told him to work on cleaning up the place as quickly as possible. He said the very next day, a city building inspector delivered a notice that the house could be condemned and torn down.
The property at 32 6th Street NW sits on a corner lot, with some of the adjacent properties well-cared for. Neighbors said that they regard Flinchum’s home as an eyesore and want action taken. The home is surrounded by a semi-trailer, moving trucks and a hearse, all appearing to be full of “stuff”. A car sits in the back yard that appears to be not in working condition. The house seems to be somewhat run-down, and most of the windows are covered with boxes or baskets full of “stuff”; some windows are cracked or broken. The west wall has a sign tacked to it, stating “dangerous building do not occupy”. A house next door has a “for sale” sign in the yard.
The council voted 4-2 to give Flinchum an additional 30 days to clean up the property or it would be condemned and demolition would proceed. Alex Kuhn and Janet Solberg voted against the extension. Flinchum had been given notice months ahead of the July 15th meeting that he was close to the city taking action.
