City council allows final property appeal
A telephone conference call to discuss the property at 411 N. Maple with absentee property owner Patty Davis resulted in a two-week extension for Davis (who lives out of state) to present the council with a plan to finance repair of the house before the city moves to take other action.
Davis and her husband moved from the home in April 2003, and their grown daughters were living in the residence at that time. The women left around Christmas of 2003 and the house has remained empty since.
Pictures taken by Peabody police officers in February of this year show unsecured doors and windows, animal waste in the home, spoiled food on the counters and floors, and trash strewn around the house. The foundation exhibited signs of animal inhabitation and neighbors were present at the meeting to complain about odors and opossum infestation.
Davis told the council she and her family had been back to Peabody several times in the past month or so to work on the property and they have hired a local person to take care of mowing and trimming.
Peabody Mayor Randy Dallke acknowledged the property shows marked improvement, but is a long way from being removed from the list of nuisance properties.
Davis said her family's intention is to get the house cleaned up, make repairs to the plumbing and electrical systems to bring the structure up to city codes, and then sell the property. She requested additional time to seek the financing necessary to accomplish repairs.
After deliberation and discussion, the council agreed to give Davis until the next council meeting, Sept. 27, to find financing with the understanding that if she fails, the council's resolution will likely mean the structure will be demolished. Demolition charges will be added to the property tax bill.
No one was present at the meeting to address the council about a similar action at 302 N. Elm.
Council member Tom Schmidt made a motion for the city to abate the nuisance as noted in the original letter sent to the owners of record and, after following proper city procedure for notification of expense to the property, assess that amount to the personal property tax bill. The motion was seconded by Jon Gard and unanimously approved.
Health and safety officer Deb Buser presented council with a list of additional properties that will require action in the near future if owners refuse to respond to city demands for mowing or nuisance abatement.
In other business the council:
— heard that there had been citizen complaints about trash in downtown receptacles not being picked up.
— heard that inter-city agreements between the city of Peabody and the city of Hillsboro on who will provide "locates" for Peabody water problems and the cost of water purchased by Peabody are still pending.
— tabled decisions on employee uniform allowance for 2005, the purchase of a new police car, repercussions on homeowners who remove sidewalks and don't replace them, and a request by Tom Moore to move a newer mobile home onto a lot he owns that currently has an older mobile home on it.
— conducted annual performance reviews of city employees Stephanie Ax and Ronnie Harms. The reviews took place in executive session with employees present. No action was taken after either executive session.
— heard from city administrator Jeff Benbrook that the city currently has all of the funds distributed annually by the state. Benbrook cautioned council that it must keep an eye on its spending and the funds in that account.
— announced that among other issues to be discussed at the next meeting, the council will consider a "free lot program" for city-owned lots, discuss additional nuisance properties, and conduct performance reviews on Darren Pickens and Bruce Burke.
