Condemning a lack of condemnation; resident pushes city to do more on South Ellis

Cape Girardeau resident Debra Hamilton saw the rundown, vacant houses in the 800 block of South Ellis Street, a neighborhood where her uncle lives and her late grandmother called home.

Squatters lived in some of them. Drug addicts frequented them, said Hamilton, who grew up in the south part of the city.

Weeds and grass grew high and spilled out over the sidewalk.

Hamilton said she complained to city government over and over. But nothing happened. The problem persisted for months, she said.

Frustrated, she took her case to the city council last month. The council heard her loud and clear, and so did the city staff.

The boarded-up front door and window of this house are seen Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2017 at 811 S. Ellis St. in Cape Girardeau.Fred Lynch

Mayor Harry Rediger told her that the situation was "unacceptable" and vowed that officials would "get some answers."

Hamilton said earlier this week that property owners have now boarded up windows and doors on a few vacant houses. Weeds and grass have been cut.

"That block looks much better," she said.

Alex McElroy, development services director, said the police department's nuisance abatement division has been working with property owners to get them to cut "the high grass."

McElroy said the inspections division of development services sent letters to the owners of 811, 838 and 840 S. Ellis "with instructions to clean up property and secure from entry."

But the neighborhood still shows signs of decay.

The front door at 840 S. Ellis is boarded up. But as of Tuesday, several window panes were missing or broken.

Hamilton said vacant, dilapidated buildings, many of which had been rental properties, also can be found on other southside blocks. Those need to be addressed too, she said.

Hamilton said she doesn't believe that the problem in the 800 block of South Ellis would have been addressed by city staff if she had not taken her complaint to the council.

Ward 1 Councilman Joe Uzoaru wants the city to board up vacant structures upfront even as it pursues condemnation of such property.

Houses with "busted out windows and open doors" present a bad image of the city and are discouraging to southside property owners who are trying to keep up their homes, he said.

"It only takes a few of those (vacant) houses to destroy a neighborhood," said Uzoaru.

Condemnation is a "very cumbersome process," he said.

Uzoaru suggested the city should board up the buildings before condemnation. "We know they are dangerous," he said.

But city attorney Eric Cunningham said the city must rely on the condemnation process outlined in state law. "There is a due process that is followed," he said.

The city's "building supervisor," who acts like a judge in condemnation cases, can order a building be secured after a hearing is held, Cunningham said.

Uzoaru suggested last year that the city fence off rundown, vacant properties while efforts are made to have the property owner repair the building, tear it down or ultimately have the city condemn and raze the structure.

But city staff said any effort by the city to secure such sites outside of the condemnation process could pose a legal liability for the local government.

Hamilton agrees with Uzoaru that such buildings should be boarded up sooner rather than later. Not doing so is "just crazy," she said.

At the Sept. 18 study session, Hamilton said that when she complained about vacant, unsecured houses on Ellis Street earlier this year, city personnel gave different excuses for not addressing the issue, including not having enough abatement officers.

"The grass is knee high. Brush is blocking the sidewalk," she told the council last month.

The houses have been largely abandoned, she said at the time. They have no electricity, no running water. Still, the front door was left "wide open" at one house, she said at the meeting at city hall.

Hamilton suggested the city had not made it a priority to address the issue. "We invest in what is important to us," she told the council.

"I don't want squatters, drug addicts and criminals in those empty houses," she said.

Uzoaru said he is "disappointed" with the city's condemnation efforts. "We don't condemn enough houses," he said.

City records show the city has spent far less on demolition of condemned structures in recent years than what was budgeted, Uzoaru said.

For the past four fiscal years combined, the city budgeted nearly $700,000 for such demolitions, but spent less than $166,000, city records provided by Uzoaru show.

As of late August, the city had spent $59,200 on demolitions for the current fiscal year, which began July 1. The city has budgeted more than $234,000 for demolitions for the 2018 fiscal year, which ends June 30.

But city finance director John Richbourg said the budgeted amount annually reflects the maximum that could be spent if the city uses some of the surplus dollars in the health fund. He said city staff "don't really plan on spending it."

Officials said the city government has made strides to remove dilapidated, dangerous buildings in recent years.

McElroy, the development services director, said in August that the city of Cape Girardeau condemned 95 structures over the past six fiscal years, resulting in the demolition of 64 buildings.

Steve Williams, housing assistance coordinator, said at that time that the city's adoption of minimum housing standards has encouraged property owners to do a better job of maintaining their buildings.

Since fiscal 2012, 45 buildings have been rehabilitated, officials said.

The city makes every effort to have the property owners repair or demolish their buildings, city officials said.

Both McElroy and Williams said earlier this year that condemnation can be costly to the city.

When the city pays to demolish a privately owned structure, it seeks to recover the costs through issuance of tax bills.

But the city frequently is unable to recover costs from property owners, many of whom live out of state, officials said.

Condemnation should be the last resort, Williams said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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