GRAVETTE -- A public hearing was held preceding last Thursday's committee of the whole meeting to discuss cleanup liens on five properties that have abandoned buildings or whose owners have been derelict in clearing the premises.
The owner of property at 503 Dallas S.W. St. S.W. paid the cleanup costs assessed against him just hours before the meeting and discussion of that parcel was dropped from the agenda.
No one was present to make comments on cleanup liens on three properties, at 602 Second Avenue, S.W., 403 Birmingham St., S.W. and 13418 Sandusky Drive. Resolutions will be passed at the April 28 council meeting to place the cost of cleaning up these parcels on the owners' property tax bills.
Mr. and Mrs. Mayhue, owners of the fifth parcel, at 501 Dallas St., S.W., were present at the meeting and addressed the council regarding their property. Mr. Mayhue gave a recap of his efforts to repair and clean up the place, the former Gravette Manor Home property, and expressed his desire to work with the city in ongoing restoration efforts. He said he had received correspondence giving him a seven-day time limit to respond and maintained that was not a reasonable request.
The Mayhues said they had been attempting to find corporations interested in occupying the building but their efforts had been unsuccessful. More recently, they have attempted to identify veterans organizations which might benefit by using the building. Their current plan is to demolish only a portion of the building and renovate the rest.
Because the Mayhues did not respond in a timely manner to previous requests for cleanup, contractors hired by the city began work. Trees were trimmed or removed and outbuildings were torn down. Mr. Mayhue said he received a $1,500 bill for cleanup costs and asked at that time that cleanup efforts be stopped. Later he received a bill for almost three times that amount from a contractor who will not answer his calls. He asked for an accounting of what work has been done.
Mr. Mayhue maintained that health issues had prevented him from responding to the city's requests. He said at one time he hired electricians to do temporary wiring to provide lighting for cleanup work but, in only a few days, someone tore out all of the copper wiring. He said he would pay what he owed the city but would simply like to have an accounting of what work was done. He has tried to hire contractors but said work was not progressing to his satisfaction.
Mayor Kurt Maddox said no deadline had been set and if the Mayhues would make a good faith effort to work on the property, their time for repair could be extended. He said if the Mayhues paid what they owed before the April 28 council meeting, no resolution would be passed regarding their property. He asked council members to recommend a time period for repairs to occur. They voted to give the Mayhues 90 days to tear down the building or make measurable progress on repair. If neither occurs, further action will be taken.
General News on 04/20/2016