Inspectional Services: Fire-damaged Lynn building needs upkeep

LYNN – The owner of a fire-damaged apartment building on the corner of Green and Friend streets has not properly maintained the currently uninhabitable property and must begin doing so, the Department of Inspectional Services said last week.The six-family residence sustained heavy damage from smoke and water following a fire on April 26, and six weeks later, the property at 73 Green St. is overgrown and strewn with garbage, clothes, suitcases and even a pair of mattresses. Following last week’s rainstorms, a foul odor emitted from the residence, and some who live nearby complained of animals taking up residence where 14 adults and eight children once lived.Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan said property owners are required to make the building secure, as well as maintain the property after a fire or other disaster occurs.”It’s been boarded up and made safe,” he said. “But the property owner still has to maintain the property even though there’s nobody living there. In this case, it sounds like the tenants abandoned some property.””That’s a nuisance to the neighborhood when the building sits there,” Donovan said. “If the roof was open the building will stink and it’s a difficult situation.”It can take anywhere from a month to a year for renovation work to begin on damaged homes, Donovan said. Once everything is settled with the owner’s insurance company, he will have to hire an engineer and an architect to develop plans for repair.”Depending on the cause of the fire, he may have to bring the building fully up to current code,” he said. “It becomes quite a tussle at this point.”Ward 3 Councilor Richard Colucci said he drives by the property every day, and has noticed the deterioration.”I sent the health inspectors down there last week and they’re making sure the guy cleans the place out, cuts the grass and makes sure the place looks okay,” he said.Colucci said he sent health inspectors to the property Friday, but had personally not heard complaints from the multi-family property directly next door to the residence.He has not spoken with the owner personally.”I just think the grass and the trash in the yard need to be taken care of,” he said. “It’s probably a matter of insurance.”Taylor Provost can be reached at [email protected].