Republic file photo Columbus City Hall is shown in downtown Columbus.
The Columbus Board of Public Works has voted to take legal action to demolish a Cherry Street property.
Code enforcement’s Fred Barnett said conditions at 41 S. Cherry St. violated the following:
- Public Nuisance: City of Columbus Municipal Code 9.16.010
- Indiana Code 36-7-9-4 Unsafe Building
- City of Columbus Municipal Code 15.20 Unsafe Building
- Chapter 15.24 Minimum Housing Standards
The issues had not been resolved since the owner of the vacant property, James Francisco, was last notified on Feb. 3, city officials said. Barnett said code enforcement has been in contact with Francisco regarding the problems for the past two years after the home caught fire in July 2022.
“It’s been a blight on that neighborhood for awhile,” Barnett said of the structure.
“(Code enforcement) seven or eight years ago, made up a process that we would follow when it came to ordering a house demolished. We file civil suit against the property owner and the judge makes that decision,” Barnett told the board.
The letter had given Francisco until April 29 to resolve the issues— “it never happened,” Barnett said.
“I talked to the owner, he said he was going to fix it up or sell it, one of the two— that never happened,” Barnett said.
Board member Melanie Henderson asked about the cost of demolition — Barnett said it’s “around $12,000 to $15,000.”
The money comes out of the city’s unsafe housing fund, which Barnett said is “kind of depleted,” although he noted nearly $6,000 in fines and legal fees that code enforcement has been able to collect will help bolster the fund.
