Steps taken to demolish Main Street building
City of Washington officials are taking steps to demolish the vacant building at 144 S. Main St.
Ron McIntyre, code enforcement officer, posted a notice for demolition on the exterior wall of the former Washington Bar and Restaurant Supply building and sent it to W. Sanders, trustee for the Sanders Family Irrevocable Trust, named as the owner in the property deed.
McIntyre’s letter directed Sanders to contact him within 10 days to complete an interior inspection. The first notice was sent Dec. 10 and the second Dec. 21. McIntyre said the notices, mailed to the address given by Sanders of 391 W. Chestnut St., Washington, were returned unopened by the U.S. Postal Service.
An exterior inspection revealed potential structural damage – a hazard to neighboring properties and residents. The windows have been boarded up by the fire department, and exterior tiles continue to fall onto the sidewalk.
“It’s definitely a concern,” McIntyre said.
The building was sold to W. Sanders at the Sept. 8 repository sale for $5,500 and is now listed at $89,750, marketed as a “great opportunity to renovate … for retail and apartments” on a realty firm website.
McIntyre said he has not spoken directly to Billy Joe Sanders, a trustee of LotsofRealty.com LLC, about the property, but said Sanders recently talked to Jerry Coleman, the building zoning code officer, about obtaining a building permit.
“It’s a sign that at least something is happening,” McIntyre said.
Coleman could not be reached to determine if a building permit had been issued.
McIntyre said he will send the last of three demolition notices Feb. 8. After that, steps to have the building declared a nuisance will be taken, including a determination by mayor and council to hold a public hearing.
“I think (Sanders) intends to do something. We’ll have to see if he’s going to follow through,” McIntyre said. “If he’s not going to bring it up to compliance, we’ll probably have to demolish it.”
The building is on the city’s list of structures to be demolished. Once declared a public nuisance, properties are released to the Washington County Redevelopment Authority for demolition, using the city’s allocated Community Development Block Grant as funding.
Phone calls and an email to LotsofRealty.com were not returned Monday.