Mold is still a problem for a home at 330 Ringneck Trail, Warsaw, Code Enforcement Hearing Officer Lawrence Clifford learned Monday.
Kyle Babcock, a former Warsaw city councilman, had the home built over 10 years ago, but it went into foreclosure in 2009 after problems with window wells, leaking water and mold, according to a Sept. 16, 2014, Times-Union story. He and his family vacated the property in May 2009 due to the problems, and the property entered into litigation, a July 22, 2014, story stated.
During an Oct. 17 hearing on the property, Clifford took demolition of the property off the books because substantial repairs had been made to the home. If the remainder of the repairs were completed before Monday’s hearing, Clifford told Jeff Woken, regional field service manager at Altisource, Columbus, Ohio, a remediation company working for the mortgage company, Deutsche Bank, that he wouldn’t need to come to the Dec. 19 hearing.
But Woken and Rick Lawrence, attorney with Nelson and Frankenberger LLC, representing Deutsche Bank, were back at Monday’s Code Enforcement hearing. Lawrence said, “We think the basis for the original issue is mold. The last thing we’re trying to get cleaned up is a mold … So, long story short, we went in and ripped out all 2 by 4s in the basement, cleaned up everything down there. … The last thing we did, the middle of last week, we did a mold test, and that’s what stuck us. We got the test results back last Thursday and the basement was still showing high.”
He said they didn’t have time before Monday’s hearing to figure out why the mold test was still showing high despite their efforts so he asked for an extension of another month or two.
Clifford asked Warsaw Building Commissioner Ray Behling if he’d been in the residence recently to inspect it. He said he hadn’t, but he did see the work in progress.
Clifford tabled the hearing to Feb. 21 in the city council chambers. If the mold issue is resolved by then, Clifford said the two men didn’t need to be present for the hearing. Before that hearing, Lawrence will contact Behling to set up a time to inspect the property.
Lawrence stated they were working with Babcock’s attorney on the foreclosure case.
In another matter, Clifford issued a $5,000 civil penalty effective immediately against Ralph and Joellen Fitch, 7329 W. Division Road, Larwill, for their property at 502 W. Winona Ave. When Clifford asked if the Fitches received service of notification of the hearing, Behling said it was returned to the city and the Fitches didn’t claim it. Under trial rules, Clifford said, “refuse certified mail is service” so he could proceed with the hearing.
The code violation list against the property includes accumulation of garbage, trash and junk on the front porch; and vehicles – some not properly plated – routinely parked on the front of the property in the grass.
Code Officer Dana Hewitt said the city got a complaint from neighbors about the junk and that there had been a fire there but repairs haven’t been made since the house fire. When Clifford asked how bad the fire was, Behling said the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory cut a hole in the roof to put it out, and Hewitt said windows were shattered out/removed from the first and second floor.
Hewitt said he worked with the animal control officer to remove several dogs from the property, and three of the four vehicles parked there have been removed. The fourth is parked on the side of the property and isn’t plated properly. There is still some trash and debris on the property, he said.
Clifford asked if the property should be demolished because of the fire. Behling said it could be repaired, but he had not been inside it to do an inspection. Joe Fretz, Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory, said it was a bedroom fire upstairs and the whole bedroom was heavily smoke damaged. With the amount of water that was used to put the fire out, Fretz said that ran down into the basement so there was probably 6 inches of water down there.
The one-unit property hasn’t been repaired since the October fire, and the tenants moved out. “The house wasn’t in real good shape before the fire and is in worse shape now,” Clifford stated. In ordering the $5,000 civil penalty against the Fitches, Clifford cited some of the reasons as being the property was not repaired since the fire and it’s vacant and unsecured.
He asked Fretz, if the house catches fire again, “Is this just a stand back and watch it burn?”
“Yes, it will be,” Fretz replied.
A hearing on the Fitches’ garage along East Market Street was rescheduled for Feb. 21 because the city had not received service on a notification they had sent out to the Fitches separately. The garage is on a parcel behind a home that was demolished at 832 E. Market St.
The case against Hugo and Sarah Pedrozo, Austin, Texas, for a property they own at 504 E. Fort Wayne St. also was rescheduled for Feb. 21. Behling said the case started back in April when the city’s code enforcement department gave Pedrozo a list of things that needed fixed on the property. As of this morning, he said the list of repairs have still not been addressed, and Pedrozo won’t let anyone deal with the issues except him or an attorney.
Hewitt said Pedrozo did not get the notice of the hearing until Thursday by certified mail so Pedrozo called and requested an extension so he could contact an attorney in the Warsaw area about the home. Clifford said Pedrozo received the notice but didn’t have the 10-day notice that was required by statute if he had only received it on Thursday. He suggested new notification be sent out to Pedrozo this week about the Feb. 21 hearing.
A very dilapidated tree house at 719 W. Market St. has been torn down so Behling said the case against Mitchell and Jennifer Dawson was in compliance, and no action was taken or required by Clifford.
In other business, Clifford tabled to Feb. 21:
• A hearing on a garage owned by Charles Hartley, 1027 E. Market St. The city got its notice of hearing returned, but with no signature.
• A hearing on property at 507 N. Lake St., Alan Kado and Diana Kado, trustees. Attorney Richard Helm requested the hearing be rescheduled for February, Clifford stated.
• A hearing on property at 519 N. Park Ave., owned by Faviola Duran. Behling said they didn’t get service for the notification and Duran doesn’t appear to live there.
