Board of Appeals

HOUSING BOARD OF APPEALS HEARING MINUTES July 15, 2015 CITY HALL 10 N. DIVISION STREET COMMISSION CHAMBERS 3RD FLOOR – ROOM 301 BATTLE CREEK MI 49014 Call to Order: 1:00pm Roll Call for Board Members: Tony Goodman, Robert Whitfield, Andy Harrison Staff Members Present: Dennis McKinley, Code Compliance Administrator; Marcie Gillette, Community Services Director; Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer; Jason Francisco, Senior Code Officer; Jeanette Cook, Senior Code Officer; Don Wilkinson, Building Inspector; Lisa Silkworth, Secretary Additions/Deletions to the Agenda: none Approval of Minutes: Mr. Whitfield made a motion to approve the minutes from the June 17, 2015 meeting, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Approved. Old Business: 1. 532 Lakeview Ave Issue#EN15-00178 Code Compliance Officer: Elijah Martin Property owner, Victoria Rust, present. Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer, stated this is a second appeal and she is looking for more time to finish painting the garage. Ms. Rust stated she has been in a hotel and her house was vandalized and she needs more time. Ms. Rust stated the insurance company will not let her into the house. Mr. Martin stated the exterior of the garage still needs to be finished. Mr. Martin pointed out the issue was only the garage paint. Ms. Rust stated she wanted more time. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to affirm the order as written, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Affirmed. 2. 133 Seedorf Issue#EN14-16034 Code Compliance Officer: Jeanette Cook Property owner, Stephen Jenkins, present. Jeanette Cook, Senior Code Officer, stated this is a second appeal and Mr. Jenkins had made some progress since her last visit. Ms. Cook recommended granting a thirty day extension. Mr. Jenkins stated he Housing Board of Appeals July 15, 2015 Page 2 of 5 contacted his maintenance person and the work should be completed within those thirty days. Mr. Goodman made a motion to grant an extension to August 18, 2015, seconded by Mr. Whitfield. Extension granted. 3. 9 Summer Issue#EN15-01290 Code Compliance Officer: Elijah Martin Property owner, Stephen Jenkins, present. Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer, stated some work had been completed and was unsure of how much time the owner needed. Mr. Jenkins stated his maintenance person is trying to get everything completed. Mr. Jenkins stated he needed a little more time. Mr. McKinley clarified the code issues. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to August 18, 2015, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Extension granted. Dangerous Buildings Show Cause Hearings: a. 118 Buckley (House/Attached Garage) Issue#EN15-01752 Building Inspector: Don Wilkinson Property owner, Tad Vandervoort, present. Don Wilkinson, Building Inspector, stated the house was damaged by fire. Mr. Vandervoort stated he is working with the insurance company. Mr. Wilkinson stated the house does meet the requirements for a Dangerous Building. Mr. Vandervoort stated he had to dispute many insurance items. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to affirm the property as a Dangerous Building, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Affirmed b. 220 Oneita (House) Issue#EN14-26203 Building Inspector: Don Wilkinson Property owner, not present. Don Wilkinson, Building Inspector, stated the house was in serious disrepair and met the qualifications of a Dangerous Building. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to affirm the property as a Dangerous Building, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Affirmed c. 22 Richards Pl (House) Issue#EN15-02036 Building Inspector: Don Wilkinson Housing Board of Appeals July 15, 2015 Page 3 of 5 Property owner, not present. Don Wilkinson, Building Inspector, stated the house was in serious disrepair and met the qualifications of a Dangerous Building. Mr. Harrison made a motion to affirm the property as a Dangerous Building, seconded by Mr. Whitfield. Affirmed d. 33 Walnut (House) Issue#EN15-01731 Building Inspector: Don Wilkinson Property owner, not present. Don Wilkinson, Building Inspector, stated the house was damaged by fire and met the qualifications of a Dangerous Building. Mr. Harrison made a motion to affirm the property as a Dangerous Building, seconded by Mr. Whitfield. Affirmed New Business: 1. 62 Lynwood Issue#EN14-12008 Code Compliance Officer: Jeanette Cook Property owner, Mary Butler, present. Jeanette Cook, Senior Code Officer, stated the house has exterior violations. Ms. Butler stated she is injured and cannot get on a ladder to paint and her brother-in-law is helping her. Ms. Butler has a company to do the work and is requesting more time. Mr. Goodman made a motion to grant an extension to September 15, 2015 with the requirement of a signed contract in thirty days, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Extension granted. 2. 345 N Wood St Issue#EN14-11095 Code Compliance Officer: Jeanette Cook Property owner, Markus Pyphi, present. Jeanette Cook, Senior Code Officer, stated there are exterior violations and the property is currently in the vacant and abandon process. Mr. Pyphi stated he would like an additional 90 days. Ms. Cook recommends a shorter extension. Mr. Harrison made a motion to grant an extension to August 18, 2015, seconded by Mr. Whitfield. Extension granted. 3. 4457 S Minges Rd Issue#EN15-01841 Code Compliance Officer: Jason Francisco Housing Board of Appeals July 15, 2015 Page 4 of 5 Property owner, James Meldrum and Kay Meldrum, present. Jason Francisco, Senior Code Officer, stated the property has some exterior violations and some of the repairs have been completed. Mr. Meldrum stated they intend to re-roof and are waiting for the contractor. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to September 15, 2015, seconded by Mr. Goodman. Extension granted. 4. 64 Mott Issue#EN14-15778 Code Compliance Officer: Jason Francisco Property owner, Kenneth Morris, present. Jason Francisco, Senior Code Officer, stated the violations are from 2014 and was originally written to the previous owner. Mr. Francisco stated there is a roof permit active on the property. Mr. Morris stated he has purchased the roofing materials and intends to complete the project. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to September 15, 2015, seconded by Mr. Goodman. Extension granted. 5. 80 Oak St Issue#EN15-00231 Code Compliance Officer: Jason Francisco Property owner, Eva French-Moore, present. Jason Francisco, Senior Code Officer, stated there are exterior violations that have not been corrected. Ms. French-Moore stated the property has family members living in it and she is trying to get the repairs done. Mr. Francisco recommended granting a thirty day extension. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to August 18, 2015, seconded by Mr. Goodman. Extension granted. 6. 16 Vale Issue#EN15-02516 Code Compliance Officer: Jason Francisco Property owner, Larry Wright, present. Jason Francisco, Senior Code Officer, stated the roof has been bad for a year and there are other violations. Mr. Wright stated the roof was covered and the roof did in fact leak. Apartment #3 is the apartment where the interior surfaces were damaged by a water leak. Mr. Francisco stated the roof was written up in 2013. Mr. Francisco recommended affirming the order as written. Mr. Wright stated the area of the roof has been corrected. Mr. Francisco restated the violation was the interior in apartment #3. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to August 18, 2015, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Extension granted. 7. 320 Burr Issue#EN15-00653 Code Compliance Officer: Elijah Martin Housing Board of Appeals July 15, 2015 Page 5 of 5 Property owner, Donald Puetz, present. Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer, stated the violations were from routine inspection. Mr. Puetz is disputing the painting of the large window. Mr. Puetz also disputes the foliage removal. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to affirm the order as written, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Affirmed. 8. 84 Harris Issue#EN15-01569 Code Compliance Officer: Elijah Martin Property owner, Charles Bosher, present. Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer, stated the exterior violations were not during a property survey. Mr. Bosher stated the work was complete. Mr. Goodman made a motion to affirm the order, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Affirmed. 9. 183 Summer St Issue#EN15-02661 Code Compliance Officer: Elijah Martin Property owner, James Chambers, present. Elijah Martin, Senior Code Officer, stated the violations were exterior. Mr. Chamber stated he has started scraping. Mr. Chambers needed some more time. Mr. Whitfield made a motion to grant an extension to September 15, 2015, seconded by Mr. Harrison. Extension granted. Public Comments: none Board and Staff Members Comments: Mr. Whitfield had some clarifying questions about procedures. Adjournment: 2:20pm The City of Battle Creek will provide necessary reasonable auxiliary aids and services, such as signers for the hearing impaired and audiotapes of printed materials being considered in the meeting upon reasonable notice to the City of Battle Creek. Individuals with disabilities requiring auxiliary aids or services should contact the City of Battle Creek by writing or calling the following: Vicki Houser, City Clerk 10 N. Division Street Battle Creek, Michigan 49014 (269) 966-3348/Voice/TDD /lms