Youngstown officials can’t seem to find Moffie

By David Skolnick | February 12, 2014 at 12:02a.m.

YOUNGSTOWN

When it comes to finding Sam Moffie — who is suing Youngstown for demolishing a vacant house he owned on the South Side without informing him — city officials still struggle to send information to his correct address in Poland.

It’s happening even though the city has documentation, including the lawsuit, with Moffie’s correct address, home and cellphone numbers, and email address.

Anthony J. Farris, deputy law director, sent a motion Feb. 4 to Moffie that also was filed with the court asking for additional time to respond to the lawsuit.

Instead of sending it to Moffie’s address at 421 S. Main St., the motion was sent to 4215 S. Main St. The incorrect address is on the envelope and in the motion request.

“How incompetent can they be?” Moffie said.

Moffie said his postal carrier knows him, read about the demolition of his vacant Youngstown house in The Vindicator, and gave him the city’s letter with the wrong address.

This isn’t the first problem the city has had with Moffie’s address.

The city sent a certified letter and another through the regular mail July 18, 2013, to Moffie’s former residence on Golfview Avenue in Boardman, where he hasn’t lived for three years, to tell him his house on South Avenue — across the street from his former bar, the Coconut Grove — was being demolished if work wasn’t done within 30 days. Both letters were returned to the city unopened.

But other documents sent by the city to Moffie in 2012, including a citation for the South Avenue house’s exterior and his vacant property registration bill, list his correct address. The latter also listed his home and cellphone numbers, and email address.

“Once again, they still don’t know my address,” Moffie said. “After the story [in the Jan. 20 edition of The Vindicator], you’d think they’d know my address. How can they continue to screw this up?”

Mayor John A. McNally said he spoke to the law department about the address issue.

“I told them, ‘Let’s make sure we have everyone’s right address,’” he said. “It’s getting to be a little silly.”

Law Director Martin Hume said Moffie received the information so no harm was done.

“We expect future correspondence to be correct,” he said.