Two more houses to come down

LYNN – Two more houses are on course to be demolished unless the owners step up and put a stop to the process.”I’m hoping that someone will step up to the plate,” said Ward 4 City Councilor Rich Colucci.Colucci said a neighbor wanted to purchase the desolate house at 13 Lander Ave., but the owner could not be found.The windows and doors in the large house on a tiny side street are boarded up and surrounded by rotted trim. The siding is nearly equal parts seafoam green paint and bare chipped shingles. Colucci said house has been vacant for some time and should be torn down.”It’s been like this for years,” he said. “People have been breaking in, it’s a mess.”In contrast, the house on Rollin Avenue, though shabbier than its neighbors, does not look like it’s destined for demolition.”You could move right in,” said Inspectional Services Director Michael Donovan. “The owner just walked away.”While the house has been maintained for several years, like the Lander Avenue house, the owner cannot seem to be found. Donovan said the Rollin Avenue house could be restored.”We just can’t get the owner’s attention,” he said.Colucci said the demolition orders are a way to get the owners’ attention and get them to deal with the property so the city doesn’t have to.Before the city can tear down a building, notices must be sent, hearings held and often the threat of litigation will spur a property owner to action. So far that hasn’t happened. But even before the actual demolition, a checklist still must be completed that includes having a hygienist has to go through the property to check for the presence of lead paint, asbestos, mercury and oil tanks, so there are no costly surprises should the buildings ultimately come down.Demolition bids went out on two other properties, a home on Sewell Street and one on Graves Avenue, last November. Donovan said he believes something is being done with the Graves Avenue home, “because that one hasn’t come back to me.”Donovan also said the number of abandoned properties in the city is down. Abandoned properties must be registered with the city and re-registered at the end of each year, he explained.”A lot are being sold,” he said. “The number of new registered properties coming in is less and less.”