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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-19-593~.4 Council rains. November 19, 1959, ~ p. m. Minutes of a special meeting of the Town Council of the Town of Pulaski, and Public Hearing on the petition of T. A. Douthat, Mrs. Mattie Fuller, Mrs. Laura Hunter and Garnett S. Moore, to be heard with reference to legal proceedings instituted by the Town, wherein petitioners had been directed to abate a nuisance in the form of unsafe buildings belonging to them, was held in the Municipal office, Thursday, November 19, 1959, at ~t p. m. There were present: Mayor C. V. Jackson, presiding Councilmen: W. A. Larson, J. R. Martin, Glen K. Aust, John W. Nash, F. L. Carrico, W. S. Cummings , Absent: W. F. White and T. J. McCarthy Also present: Town Manager: T. B. Noland Clerk: Gladys R. Dalton Alton I. Crowell Special Attorney representing the Town Oscar J. Blake, Engineer from the firm of Poulton, Maher and Blake of Roanoke Mr. and Mrs. T. A. Douthat Mattie Fuller, and by her Attorney, A. Dow Owens Laura Hunter Garnett S. Moore Visitors: Bill Akers, reporter for the Southwest Times Rev. Thomas G. Howard The invocation was given by the Rev. Thomas G. Howard, pastor of the New Century Methodist Church. Town Mana ger Noland advised that John B. Spiers, Jr., an Attorney of Radford, Virginia, who represents T. A. Douthat, had advised that he would be unable to attend the hearing and asked that they be heard at the next meeting of Council. On motion of W. A. Larson, seconded by F. L. Carrico, and carried unanimously PUBLIC HEARING ON UNSAFE by those present, it was resolved that the matter of T. A. Douthat~s BUILDINGS IN TO~nV - NO petition be considered at Council's regular meeting on December 1, ACTION TAKEN , BY COUNCIL 1959, at ~ p. m. A. Dow Owens advised Council that his client, Mrs. Mattie Fuller, had failed to give notice of her desire to be heard at this meeting, but that she so desired to be heard at this time, if Council would permit. On motion of J. R. Martin, seconded by W. A. Larson, and carried on the unanimous vote of those present, it was RESOLVED that M~. Fuller be heard at this meeting. Council rains. contd. November 19, 1959, ~t p. m. Since the petitioners had been advised that they would be heard in alphabetical order, Town Manager Noland advised that on November 6th Mrs. Laura Hunter had been given notice to abate a nuisance in the form of an unsafe building, belonging to her and located at 33 Randolph Avenue in the Town of Pulaski. At this point, Mr. Oscar J. Blake of the Structural Engineering firm of Poulton, Maher and Blake of Roanoke, Virginia, was properly sworn in by Mayor Jackson, and gave a complete report on the condition of this building as was found when he made his inspection aryl report to the Town on September.., 1957 during a survey of old buildings in Pulaski. Mr. Blake's report on the condition of this building is as follows: "The PUBLIC HEARING ON UNSAFE BUILDIN foundation of this building is in a very poor condition. The building rests on unbraced posts which sit on rocks or on the ground. Posts are' decayed. Floor joists sag an unreasonable amount as one walks on them. The floor has bad cracks and holes in it, and is very much out of level. The roof sheathing is inadequately supported. Masonry chimney is suppo~t- ed by roof joits. The chimeny leans, and is very likely to fall. The wood siding is unpainted and badly decayed, or missing. Paper and wall board are falling from the walls and ceiling. Doors are sagging and falling apart. The roof sheathing shows sign of decay from roof leaks.'.. The metal roofing is rusted. The cornice is rooted and falling. The building leans and is considerably out of plumb." Mr. Blake stated he did not think the building was worth being repaired to bring it within the recuired specifications. Mrs. Hunter stated it was not her intention to resist Council's action, but asked their indulgence until she could find some place to live; that she had been unable to find living quarters. She further stated that it was her desire to build back after the building is torn down if the Town would permit her to do so. Mayor Jackson advised Mrs. Hunter that it was the intent of Council to be reasonable,. and as to her plans for building bac3~, this matter would be discussed with her at a later date. 314 f Council rains. contd. November 19, 1959, ~ p. m. The Council then passed on to the Garnett S. Moore ' PUBLIC HEARING ON UNSAFE BUILDINGS petition whereupon Mr. Moore stated that there would be no necessity for placing in the records the report of Mr. Blake's survey of his building since it was his opinion that present day cot~itions are different from those which existed at the time his sub3ect building was erected. There was a full discussion of the condition of this building during which discussion Mr. Moore contended that since his building was unoccupied, and since it had no heat nor electrical service it did not constitute a hazard. There was some discussion between Mr. Moore and Mr. Blake with reference to technical analysis of the condition of the Moore building. Following this, upon the invitation of Council, the Town Manager explained why in his opinion the Moore building constitutes a serious hazard to the public because :n its present condition the building constitutes a conflagration hazard. The discussion included a prediction on the part of Mr. Moore that within about six months he would be able to repair the building or make it suitable for tenants or storage. Whereupon, Councilman Larson asked Mr. Moore if it was his definite plan to do something to abate the nuisance, and Mr. Moore stated: "Yes, within six months something will be done to make it structurally safe for storage or tenants". Mr. Crowell suggested that Mr. Blake's report on his inspection df the Moore building be placed in the minutes, as follows" "This building has a poor foundation. It rests on poste most of which are inadequately braced. The floor 3oists and rafters show signs of decay and are in poor condition. The flooring is up and down and missi ng in places with no sub-flooring. The ceiling is falling or missing in places. Inside partitions are of single layer of 1" wood with missing boards. Doors and frames are in poor condition. Outside walls are bulging.- One can stand on the inside and view the outside through large cracks or holes in the walls. The wood siding is unpainted and decayed, or missing. The metal roofing is rusted badly and partly missing. The roof shows signs of leaks. The building leans and is considerably out of plumb". The Council then passed on to the Mattie Fuller matter, whereupon Mr. Blake gave a report on his inspection of this building, as follows: "This building has a very poor foundation. The wood posts on which the building rests are rotted around base. The floor 3oists are 2 x 8 x 16" of spanning 16"-0" which are undersize according to building code requirements. The flooring is in very poor condition. The building leans and is out of level. Chickens and trash cluttered the back porch and yard." 3~4"~ Council minx. contd. Nov. 19, 1959, ~ P. m. At the conclusion of his report, Mr. Blake stated that in his opinion the cost of repairs necessary to bring the building up to building •code standards would exceed fifty percent of todays value and that for this reason the building should be removed. There then followed some questions from Mr. Owens which were put to Mr. Blake on when Mr. Blake tAight have made calculations and what his figures actually are as to the cost'` of repairs. Mr. Fred Swinburne, a licensed contractor in the town of Pulaski, ', PUBLIC HEARING was introduced by Mr. Owens following which Mr. Owens brought out through ON UNSAFE BUILDINGS questioning of Mr. Swinburne that Mr. Swinburne feels that the buildings could be made sate for a sum not exceeding $1,050.00. There followed some discussion between Mr. Swinburne and Mr. Blake on the technical aspects of load bearing floors and foundations. Mrs. Fuller then stated to Council that she was 74 years 1 of age and she hoped Council would permit her to live out her life span in the building in question since it had been her home for approximately twenty-five years. At the conclusion of the hearing, Mayor Jackson advised those'; present that Council would postpone action on the matters discussed at the hearing. On motion of W. A. Larson, seconded by W. S. Cummings, and carried on the unanimous vote of those present, it was RESOLVED that Council go into executive session. There was a general discussion with Mr. Moore on legal matter which are now at issue in the Courts, but no action was ne cessary, nor was any taken. The meeting adjourned at 6 p. m. Approved: fl u ~ - ayor ATTEST: