NIT Opinion –
The dirt is still moist, fresh and black at the former location of the burned-out house at 202 12th SE.
That was the house that was severely damaged on June 3 and sat there, untouched, for nearly 6 months. The house was privately demolished in recent days; city staff say it was taken down in November. It was photographed by NIT staff still standing at that time.
The exact date it was demolished is immaterial. It stood – barely – for approximately 6 months. It was an eyesore to anyone who drove by on that well-traveled road. It was a danger to children and others who might have wandered inside.
Most would agree, 6 months is too long for such a structure to remain unattended to.
No one is saying city staff did not do their jobs. It seems that no real stringent rules are in place to force faster action on dangerous structures. That the house is gone seems to prove that someone in city hall made sure it was taken down within whatever timeline was possible.
It would seem plausible that if a house, building, or other structure is so severely damaged by any catastrophe, rules should be in place to mitigate safety hazards and remove the buildings in a more timely manner. Ninety days should have been enough time for that small house to vanish.
The house burned up on a Tuesday; it was obvious it was a total loss. It could have been declared so by city staff, and the property owner should have been notified within 48 hours of the incident and the fact that the house was no longer safe and needs to be demo’d immediately. All of this could/should be articulated in city code. If the owner cannot/refuses to demo the house within 90 days – barring a court action – the city should have torn the house down by then and assessed the property owner.
If city leaders are truly interested in turning Mason City around, dealing with this kind of issue is important. It is bad for the city’s reputation for people to see a house like this sit, month after month.
GONE
Matt-Thanks for investigating this and writing the article. This house was dangerous and sat way too long, the yard was a mess also! Broken glass, wood with nails sticking out of them. The entire burned up front pouch was laying in a pile in the front yard! Your involvement helped get this house demolished and the property cleaned up. We in this Southside neighborhood appreciate it!
You don’t know what talks went on between the property owner on 12th & the council. Maybe you should have stood out front with a protest sign. Oh but then Robin might come along and assault you. smh.
Well tell your cohorts that own those N End buildings to clean their own freakin act up! The city gave them $25,000 a few yrs. ago to at least get the outside looking less Halloween. But you know how you hate seeing tax money go to improve MC….. riiiight? Can’t have no taxpayer money cleaning up & improving MC. And why would they go N first to fix up. Pretty sure there’s no reason to shop there. duh.
@meme-You are right about the 25K and Hardy took the money and did nothing and the city did nothing about it. It is the North entrance to the city and does not reflect very well on visitors who are looking to invest in the community. The people in the North End pay taxes as well and are entitled to a decent area to live in. You are one of the elitist I talk about all the time.
NIT… nice attempted fumble tecovery. You dropped the ball when you first coveted this story. Pointing the finger at Bookie wont redeem you.
Because there might have been a few days overlap when the house was torn down? The photos of the house still standing were taken in late November (see the snow?); that is when NIT started investigating the situation and putting the story together. Yes, it was torn down shortly thereafter (quite a coincidence). That’s great. The truth is it sat too long and the city hurt property values and left a dangerous structure to sit idle, while it moved quickly to demolish a house in much better condition because elected leaders are pandering to their meat-cutter. That’s a fact; the story is as much about the house not being demolished in a timely manner as it is exposing the double standard that exists here.
I agree in total with this article, on the other hand, there are also buildings in town like this still standing that have not been burned and nothing is being done about them. There are a few on north Federal that have been vacant for years that need to go to clean up the impression of the town.
This is a very important point. Why has nothing been done about the blight around town in five years under Bookmeyer / council and longer under Tornquist? Lazy? Incompetent? Don’t Care? All of the above?
Why so much attention to 300 block of East State Street? This question is easier to answer. That area is just a block and a half from Eric’s wife’s house and right across the street from Jean Marinos rentals, that’s why. They are enriching themselves through elected office by enhancing their property values. It’s too bad that Jean still rents to druggies and young men who beat on their girlfriends – actually right there in that very vicinity. Really Jean is putting little feeble Eric in harm’s way by surrounding him with these hardened criminals. I bet Opey Bookmeyer does’t sleep a wink in his Brooks Brothers pjs at night knowing the prowlers are right outside his bedroom window.
Matt, I think a better term for our fine Mayor would be Ottis of Maybery, Opey was just a kid, either would fit but Ottis fits him better. 🙂
Blight under Bookmeyer? LOL! The blight in this town has been here since Bang and YEEEEEEEEARS before that. lol!You’re such a hoot.
@John-Very good comment. Just how long do we have to wait to get the blight in the North End eliminated. It has gone on for years. The old sandwich shop and Pete’s Place has been out of business since the 80″ and Pete’s had a fire in it years ago that make it uninhabitable. On top of that the ceiling has fallen in years ago. Why is this allowed to go on?? Is it because none of the council have a stake in fixing this problem?
Thank you LVS, but seriously, I know there are still a few apartments rented above some of these buildings but WOW, they look terrible coming into town from the north. It is not like these rental people can’t be relocated. Look at the building next to the dollar store on Federal and others you mentioned.
Good things could happen on the north end if these buildings were cleared. There are a lot of destination businesses that would work there if the blight was cleared.