2023.05.15 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Memorandum To: Bryan Bear, City Administrator From: Rachel Juba, Community Development Director Date: May 10, 2023, for the City Council Meeting of May 15, 2023 Re: Resolution to Order Repair or Removal of a Hazardous Building at 14197 Forest Boulevard North 1.BACKGROUND: On September 21, 2022, there was as structure fire at the property located at 14197 Forest Boulevard North. The house on the property substantially damaged due to the fire. On September 23, 2022, a City of Hugo Inspector Hugo Fire Marshal, and State Fire Marshal inspected the property. In the inspector documented in an inspection and damage report that there were several areas on the exterior and interior to the house that needed to be repaired or replaced due to fire damage. These items included, roofing, wall structures, floor systems, foundation, and mechanical systems. There are several holes in the walls and floors as well as damage to the support system of the house making it very unstable. At that time the house was deemed an uninhabitable structure and labeled unfit for living. The house is in a state of dilapidation and is hazardous to the health and safety of the public. Washington County Sheriff’s Department has reports of people breaking into the building. The building is difficult to secure and can easily be accessed by the public which is a safety hazard. Staff has been in contact with the owners about the hazardous and nuisance state of the building. This has been documented by several phone calls and letters send to owners and lien holders. The discussions and letters provided ways to eliminate the potential health and safety hazards of the building, such as voluntary repair and demolition of the hazardous building, and required the building to come into compliance. Staff has not been made aware that the owners have made a decision on how to abate the violations and remove the hazardous building. Minnesota State Statute provides city’s authority and a process to deal with hazardous buildings. This process allows the city to order a property owner to repair and remove a hazardous building. The law requires that the Court to be involved with the process. The City first needs to identify the building as hazardous and adopt a resolution ordering the hazardous building to be repaired or removed. The order is then served to the property owners and lien holders with a specified amount of time to complete the work. If the owner does not do the work or does not answer the order, the Court can grant the city authority to remove the hazardous building and charge all the costs against the property as a special assessment on their property taxes. J.1