Pittsfield Health Board Orders Demolition of Morningside Home
PITTSFIELD, Mass.— The city hopes to remedy an abandoned Morningside home through a demolition order.
Last week, the Board of Health supported a demolition request on 21 Ensign Ave. While the mortgage and taxes continue to be paid, the property is abandoned and has a hole in the roof.
Director of Public Health Andy Cambi explained that it would normally be a slower process, but they were recently able to get success with a Lincoln Street property through an order to demolish.
"It's in housing court right now, and the judge has given the owner 30 days to sell the property or our order sticks to demolish that property. Another option is that we will have a receiver go in there and rehab the property," he said about the Lincoln Street multifamily that was blighted and unsecured.
"The reason it was able to escalate so quickly to that was because we had that order to demolish, so I'm using this as a tool, especially with this specific property, because of the great damage that's on the roof. As you saw from the pictures, that hole has been open for a couple of years now. It keeps getting bigger."
He pointed out that the home continues to be paid for, explaining, "It's just literally an abandoned property, but everybody's still active on it." This is the next step, he said, because tickets and letters have not worked, and the city doesn't normally take court action on vacant properties just to remedy the situation because they're vacant.
"This is saying, 'Okay, you're not maintaining the actual property.' It's a public health nuisance to the neighborhood because of the tall grass, the overgrowth, and the blight conditions," Cambi explained.
"Like I said, structurally, that just is creating much of an issue, so that's why I'm asking the board to give us that opportunity to send out a demolition order because it does have some impact moving forward on our next steps."
Board member David Pill sees hope for the home.
"Actually, other than the roof, it didn't seem like it's unsavable," he said. "This is a perfect receiver property."
Others agreed, commenting that its bones seem "reasonably good, except for the skull." Cambi, who hasn't been inside the home, pointed out that it has been opened to the elements.
"They've already received a condemnation order over a year ago saying 'You're in violation,' so once people start hearing we're asking you to tear down your property, then they perk up, and then they will take necessary steps, just like it worked in Lincoln," he said.
He said that a property can remain in a vacant, condemned stage for a couple of years as the city goes through its list, but because of the roof condition and the active ownership, the city doesn't want it to fall through the cracks.
According to Zillow, the 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home was built in 1930 and was last listed for about $150,000 in 2018.
Also on the agenda was a tobacco violation hearing for Elm Street Convenience, which is alleged to have sold cigarettes to a minor working as a plant for the Tri-Town Health Department's Tobacco Awareness Program.
Supervisor Erica Ramos called for clarification on the letter because her race, appearance, and age were not described correctly.
"I knew that it wasn't quite accurate, because I card everybody I don't know, especially if they look very young. I have a lot of regulars that I know their age. They're older. I've carded people in the beginning, and if they're a regular, I no longer card them, but I had looked over the field notes of the letter that was sent to us and the field notes do not match the description of who would have been working there, which would have been me at the time," she explained.
"…I'm very confused as to if they have the right place, or if there was some kind of confusion there, because it doesn't describe me very well."
Tobacco Awareness Program Manager Kate Fletcher confirmed that she was outside the store when the minor made the purchase last month.
"Compliance checks are a really important part of what we do, because that is sales to underage youth, and we do routine unannounced checks with youth buyers, and it's a fairly simple process. They go into the store and they try to make a purchase of a tobacco product, and if they're able to do that, they leave, and that is entered into a tablet as a violation," she said.
"Now these are youth, so in terms of description, they're doing the best they can, but it's fairly straightforward."
Board members assumed that the discrepancy was just a difference of perception, but wanted to give the owners a chance to prove them wrong.
They voted to allow Elm Street Convenience to obtain the video of that day and provide it to Cambi, and if the video shows a violation or if no video is provided by June 18, there will be the enforcement of a $1,000 fine.
