Council votes to demolish homes
The Olney City Council voted to move forward with the first demolitions of dozens of derelict homes and structures that harbored criminal activity and were believed to be holding down property values across the City. The Council heard reports and recommendations from Police Chief Dan Birbeck and code enforcement officers Det. Dustin Hudson and Cpl. Joe Logan about the first four properties to face the wrecking ball. They are 406 S. Ave. F, 205 E. York St., 205 W. Cherry St. and 1005 W. Payne St.
The Council then held a public hearing for each of the properties but ultimately voted to go forward with demolition of three of the properties.
The City has been working with residents and owners for years to repair the properties and mitigate the code violations, Det. Hudson told the Council, but those efforts have failed and the properties are now not habitable.
“It’s completely uninhabitable. It’s falling down on the inside and out,” he said of 406 Ave. F, adding that the owner plans to let the City foreclose on the home for nonpayment of property taxes.
The owner of 205 E. York St. is deceased and his son had been living there, Det. Hudson said. “We abated this in 2021 for accumulation of debris and it’s in worse shape now than what it was in ‘21. It is a consistent problem for code enforcement.”
Chief Birbeck said police “made an arrest for possession of heroin and also other drug-related stuff so it is definitely a nuisance to our community.” .
City Administrator Arpegea Pagsuberon said “a revolving door” of residents signed up for water service and paid the bill for a month then let the accounts lapse.
The owner of 205 W. Cherry St. also is deceased and the home “hosts a large beehive that we are going to have to mitigate,” Chief Birbeck said.
Karen Harbaugh, the sister of the deceased owner of 1005 W. Payne St., asked for an extension to obtain control of the property from another claimant.
The house is the site of “high drug activity” and police have had “multiple encounters” with the residents over criminal allegations such as burglaries, Chief Birbeck said.
Code enforcement officers also discovered that wastewater was flowing from a toilet through a ditch under the garage in a makeshift septic system, Det. Hudson said.
“We do have considerable pressure being placed on us from neighbors in surrounding areas and there are other issues with the house,” Chief Birbeck said. “Our abatement has a built-in 30 day window to get the appropriate contracts in place by the owner if she does abate it.”
Ms. Harbaugh said she has filed an affidavit of heirship with Young County to claim the property, and was told a decision could take several weeks.
City officials have told the Council that they plan to demolish as many as four derelict properties per month as part of a code enforcement push.