Town of Pulaski eyes 17 unsafe structures

3 7 council Condemned Structure 209 S. Washington Ave. 1 1
Condemned Structure at 209 S. Washington Ave. (Photo courtesy of Town of Pulaski)

By WILLIAM PAINE

Patriot Publishing

Tuesday’s meeting of the Pulaski Town Council was dominated by discussions of dilapidated structures and what to do about them. Vice Mayor Brooks Dawson led the meeting as Mayor Shannon Collins was absent.

Code Enforcement Officer Carla Hodge and Acting Building Official Nathan Smythers told town leaders that 17 houses within town limits were determined to be unsafe and that they should be demolished at the earliest opportunity.

3 7 council Unsafe structures in Town of Pulaski 1According to the Town code, a structure is deemed unsafe if: “The structure is so damaged, decayed, dilapidated, structurally unsafe, or of such faulty construction or unstable foundation that partial or complete collapse is likely.”

Hodge gave council a brief summery on how a property is condemned, which starts with a complaint, often made by a neighbor, about the poor condition of the structure.

Smythers then inspects the property and documents what he finds with photographs. Building officials will notify the property owner about code violations and the owner will be given 14 days to get in compliance. If there is no corrective action, additional steps will be taken involving legal means, to demolish the building.

Town Manager Todd Day expressed his intentions to acquire these 17 unsafe structures through court actions or negotiations with the owners and then demolish those structures, so these properties may be available for new development. The average cost to demolish a structure is $15,000. Demolishing all 17 buildings on the list would cost approximately $268,000.

“Our objective is to address blight in the community,” said Town Manager Day. “We call it Project Revitalize and I’ve budgeted $150,000 in tax dollars to do that this year.”

Councilman Joel Burchett expressed his support for this program, noting that many of those who voted for him in the last election were particularly concerned about dilapidated properties in town.

Councilman Steven Erickson then asked, “It’s going to take $267,000 to demolish these properties … where does the money come from? I’d hate to think we couldn’t get a new dump truck or police cruiser because we spent a quarter-million dollars on tearing houses down.”

Day countered by saying that once these properties are cleared, new homes could be built there, which would provide more tax base for the Town, a situation he described as a “win, win.”

“The only solution is to grow the community tax base,” said Day. “If you find the property owner, odds are they’ll just give it to you … or maybe we negotiate waiving the taxes that ain’t gonna’ get paid anyway. Ultimately, we want a new home on that property. That’s the main goal.”

“It is an obligation to our citizens,” said Vice Mayor Brooks Dawson in reference to the unsafe structures in town. “It can’t be looked at as a frivolous expense. It’s part of the work that we do … It needs to be part of our responsibility.  We have to do everything we can do to fix those 17 unsafe structures and if it requires money, we’ve got to find that money somehow to accomplish that.”

Austin Painter of the town’s Engineering Department updated council on the Streetscape Project, which is ongoing at West Main Street between Washington and Jefferson Avenues.

“Our goal with this project is to provide as much support to our community through rejuvenation and repair of our Main Street to support pedestrians, increase the transportation viability of the downtown through pedestrian access and to support the businesses by re-doing the aesthetics of our Streetscape,” said Painter.

The Streetscape Project will replace all existing sidewalks and crosswalks on this stretch of West Main Street. The project also includes planting four Gingko trees and placing several streetlights along the way. According to Painter, the streetlights will cost approximately $100,000 and should be ready for installation after work on the sidewalks is completed, adding that these streetlights are similar to those seen in downtown Wytheville.

Erickson asked why there was a sign indicating that West Main Street was a potentially dangerous construction zone, even though businesses on West Main are open for business. Painter indicated that this sign was required by state regulations.

Both Day and Painter emphasized that businesses are open on West Main Street even as construction continues. A sign reading “Pardon our Progress, Step Carefully, Shop Confidently” attempts to make this plain to passersby.

Town Council voted to table the supplemental funding request made by a representative of the Fine Arts Center for the NRV, so that the issue could be discussed in next week’s work session. Council will likely vote on this funding request at the March 18 meeting.

Building inspectors found 64 vacant structures in town. These structures are often on properties that require town crews to mow the grass on a regular basis, which costs the town money.

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