Funeral home to reimburse Delta city government for demolition of building

Ford and Sons Funeral Homes will reimburse Delta for the cost of demolishing a dilapidated building that partially collapsed in June, the town announced in a news release issued Wednesday afternoon.

The old Baptist Church building on the southwest corner of Grace and Liberty streets partially collapsed in June. To prevent injuries due to the danger of a complete collapse, Delta hired a contractor on an emergency basis and paid $13,000 to have the building torn down.

Ford and Sons had used the building as a funeral home but sold it to a Delta resident, Roger Moore, in 1991. When Moore was unable to pay the note last year, he returned the property to Ford and Sons to cover the promissory note.

Ford and Sons sought to donate the property to Delta in December, but the Delta Board of Aldermen did not approve an ordinance accepting the property because of concerns about whether it could afford the demolition in its general revenue budget.

Ford and Sons was unaware that it still owned the property, vice president Kevin Ford said in the news release. To help the town, the funeral home company will bear the cost of demolition, Ford said.

"We had not heard about the city's budget problems and believed the city had accepted our deed at the end of last year," Ford said in the release. "When we found out the city had not accepted the deed because it could not afford to tear down the building, we offered to pay for the demolition."

Mayor Bonnie Bradshaw said in the release that she is pleased with the result, calling the Ford family's offer a generous way to solve the problem.

"The Ford family was extremely generous in offering to step in and help the city, which was already in a tight financial situation," Ludwig said. "As the foreclosing lender, they were not obligated to pay this bill, but they offered to do so anyway to help the citizens of Delta."

Ford and Sons will also donate the vacant lot to the Delta city government, which intends to sell it and put the money in the town's general revenue fund.

rkeller@semissourian.com

388-3642

Pertinent address:

Grace Street and Liberty Street, Delta, MO