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City gets court’s OK to demolish Idora home
YOUNGSTOWN
A city man has until Friday afternoon to remove his belongings from 2278 Volney Road before the city proceeds with demolition, a court magistrate ruled Wednesday.
Magistrate Dennis Sarisky of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court denied an injunction to stop demolition filed by Atty. Donald P. Leone, who represented Thomas T. Kelly, owner of the Volney Road home in the Idora neighborhood.
Sarisky said he would file his ruling in writing Friday and also asked that a firefighter accompany Kelly during the removal of belongings from the property.
“We’re happy,” said James London, Idora Neighborhood Association president.
London and about a dozen residents attended the hearing. Although many of the residents supported demolition of Kelly’s house, at least two did not.
Chuck and Linda Tranum can see Kelly’s backyard from their house. They said the property needs to be cleaned up, but they disagreed with the action taking place at the courthouse.
“There’s too much happiness here in taking a man’s property,” Chuck Tranum said.
“I feel very sorry for him. He needs a friend, so we’re here,” Linda Tranum added.
London said he had tried to help Kelly, but when the property didn’t improve, he and residents told city officials about their concern for the house.
“We didn’t want any extension on demolition because it’s been long enough,” London said, adding the property has been blighted since the 1990s.
Leone argued that Kelly was entitled to a demolition appeal hearing and interpreted an April 11 letter from DeMaine Kitchen, the mayor’s chief of staff, as a supplement to the original “raze or repair” notice sent March 23, which gave Kelly 30 days to fix the property.
Leone also said the April 11 letter did not specifically cite the emergency-demolition ordinance. Kelly was present at the hearing but did not address the court.
City Law Director Anthony Farris said Kitchen’s letter was sent as a courtesy and the city is not required to notify a homeowner once a property is determined by city officials to need emergency demolition.
The emergency-demolition ordinance has been upheld by the 7th District Court of Appeals, he said.
Kelly “did not appeal the [March 23] raze or repair notice within 10 days,” Farris said.
Subsequent to the March 23 letter, Fire Chief John J. O’Neill Jr. inspected the property and wrote in a memorandum to Kitchen: “This structure is vacant, structurally unsound and also poses a danger to surrounding occupied structures. This building is a public hazard as well as a danger to firefighters who may enter in the event of a fire.”
“Once it was determined to be a threat to human life, we can use the emergency demolition ordinance. You don’t get an appeal on an administrative letter [such as Kitchen’s]. His rights were not violated. I feel we did everything right,” Farris said.
Sarisky said once Kelly retrieved his belongings, “the city may proceed as they feel fit.”
Kitchen attended the hearing and said as long as the magistrate files the ruling Friday, the city would proceed with demolition as early as Monday or Tuesday.