Group to protest the city's lack of action

Eleven houses on the street have been demolished in the past three years.
By ROGER G. SMITH
CITY HALL REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- In May, the house across from Holy Bible Church of God was abandoned, boarded up and obscured by overgrown bushes that rise over the porch roof.
The abandoned and boarded house next door on St. Louis Avenue had waist-high weeds.
ACTION marchers will see the same when they return today to protest the South Side neighborhood's condition.
Members of ACTION -- the Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods -- is to have another march in its Holy Ground Campaign at 9 a.m. at Holy Bible, 54 St. Louis Ave. The city and suburban church coalition has staged several protests recently over blighted neighborhoods.
In June, Mayor George M. McKelvey told marchers he supported their efforts and pledged to seek more money from council for demolition.
No change
Today's march is to demonstrate the lack of change since the spring, ACTION said in a prepared statement.
There are raccoons and other rodents on the properties and odors emanating from the basement, the statement says. Organization officials couldn't be reached to comment.
Mike Damiano, the city's demolition director, said Friday it wasn't clear if the St. Louis houses in question are on the list or if the owners have been cited.
Houses removed
But the city has removed eyesores from St. Louis Avenue in the past three years, he said.
A house next to the church was taken down in 2002, he said. There also were 10 other houses on the street razed since 2002, including four on the 400 block and three in the 200 block, he said.
"I can't say they've been ignored," Damiano said of St. Louis residents.
The demolition budget was $175,000 in 2003-04 and is $225,000 for 2004-05, enough to level about 100 dilapidated houses across the city, he said.
McKelvey said his pledge remains to help ACTION and every other city resident plagued by blight.
The city doesn't have the money to take on the entire problem, he said. But the city is searching for alternatives to put a major dent into the demolition list, he said.
The city is talking with federal officials about resolving the expensive issues surrounding asbestos in condemned homes, said Jay Williams, director of the Community Development Agency. Asbestos affects about eight of every 10 demolitions, he said.
The hazard pushes the total cost to demolish all of the roughly 500 condemned homes in the city from $1.5 million to $5 million, he said.
rgsmith@vindy.com