The buying frenzy is being financed by hundreds of thousands of dollars provided by the federal government. Some of the homes will be rehabbed and resold, while others will be torn down. The ultimate success of the plan – which will be plainly visible to the residents who live near these properties – is dependent upon the city’s ability to implement a strategy to ensure that the structures do not become a drag on the neighborhood.

The directors of the Planning and Development and the Building and Housing departments, each appointed by Mayor Edward O. FitzGerald and approved by City Council, had absolutely no municipal experience prior to being hired.

The city paid $47,000 for this house on Gladys. It will be featured along with another city-owned house on Andrews in an upcoming event showcasing real estate around Downtown Lakewood.

David A. Dummermuth bought 1195 Gladys in September, 2005 with a $157,500 mortgage. A foreclosure case was filed in April, 2008. Dummermuth, a Shaker Hts. resident, declared bankruptcy in January, 2009.  The home sold at sheriff’s auction in September, 2009 to Deutsche Bank for $44,000.

City Council gave approval at their March 1st meeting to allow the city enter into an agreement with a Realtor to find a buyer for the home. Nathan Kelly, director of planning and development, said the property will be featured at the March 13th, Lakewood Downtown Open House.

The former owners of this home on Cranford live just one street over.

Jason and Jennifer Yonkers bought 1297 Cranford in 2005 with a $124,000 mortgage. Foreclosure proceedings began in August, 2006, and again in October, 2007.

Court records show that the Yonkers, who live on Brockley in a house that is currently in the final stages of the foreclosure process, had several cash flow and legal problems.

Deutsche Bank purchased the house at sheriff’s auction for $46,667 in August, 2009. The City of Lakewood acquired it from them a couple of weeks ago for $54,900.

The city doubled its bet on Cranford by picking up the neighboring house, also bank-owned.

John Bohi bought 1301 Cranford in 2003 with a $87,000 mortgage. In December, 2007, he took out a $100,000 mortgage on the property. Foreclosure proceedings began in July, 2008. The house was sold to Key Bank at sheriff’s auction in March, 2009 for $90,608. The city picked it up late last week for $58,000.

The city acquired this house on Westlake for $59,000.

David Kovacs purchased 1269 Westlake in 2002 with a $84,500 mortgage. Two years later, he refinanced the mortgage for $119,850. Foreclosure proceedings began in March, 2008. Wells Fargo bought the house in November, 2009 at sheriff’s auction for $36,667.  The city paid $59,000 on March 1st for the house.

Fifth Third Bank surrendered the deed to the city for the vacant apartment building that sits next to Calanni's on Madison Ave., near Bunts Rd.

North Ridgeville resident Tracy Brown bought 13736 Madison Ave. in 2003 as an investment property. He started interior renovations, and then ran out of money. The inside of the building is in poor condition. The city declared it a nuisance last year, and began the process of trying to demolish it. During one of his final appearances in Lakewood housing court in 2009, Brown said he was working with his lender on a deal where he’d forfeit the property to the bank, who would in turn fork it over to the city.  All indications were that the city would then take it down. The property transferred to the city on February 16th.

The city formally gained control of this W. 117th apartment building on Feburary 2nd.

After a brief legal skirmish with the mortgage servicer, the city acquired the vacant apartment building at 1482-1484 W. 117th via sheriff’s auction for $50,000. It is said to be in poor condition and will be definitely demolished.

And according to a message on LakewoodBuzz.com, the city has notified residents in the area that it intends to knock down the nearby Highland Manor apartment building located at 1468 W. 117th around March 5th.

The structure is vacant and in a state of deterioration. It was successfully foreclosed upon, but the mortgage company refuses to send it to sheriff’s auction.

When a city loses two apartment buildings to neglect that are less than sixty yards apart on the same street, one would hope it might trigger some kind of profound self-examination on the part of residents, city administrators and elected representatives.  Clearly, something is very wrong and needs to be corrected. And it goes beyond the standard line  — “The market has failed this property.” — uttered by city administrators.

Yes, the obvious lack of parking hurt the viability of these properties, but there are plenty of apartments around the city that have little to no parking available and are doing just fine.

Until the city locks down Ward 4, where these buildings are located, and proactively and aggressively enforce the housing laws, nuisance ordinances, and criminal codes, the situation will not improve.

Other housing notes

- The city is not formally tracking vacant houses for fear that such a list could provide a “shopping list” to criminals, according to Housing and Building Director Ashby.

- After two years  and two months in office, Mayor FitzGerald is finally getting around to creating legislation that would require banks to notify the city when a house in foreclosure becomes vacant. The city is modeling their plan after a Bedford Heights law.

- The department is getting new software in the next couple of months that is supposed help streamline internal information, and allow inspectors to spend more time in the field. There have been a few attempts to install various types of software in the department over the years with negligible results, according to the mayor. The latest effort has been described in glowing terms by the administration, and has caused a twinkle in the eye of each and every city council member. No questions asked.

- The Building and Housing department will not be hiring any additional inspectors. The topic came up at a recent council meeting. Coucilperson Thomas Bullock (Ward 2) and green banana Monique Smith (At-Large) asked representatives from the housing department point blank if they could use more inspectors.

Assistant Building Commissioner for Residential Housing Jeff Fillar said he is most concerned with getting the current personnel up-to-date with their certifications, education and training, and adding new people isn’t in the equation.

The mayor repeated a variation of a statement he’s made in the past: no inspectors will be hired until the department successfully transitions to the new software, and improves from its dysfunctional past.

- LakewoodAlive representatives, a handful of senior city administrators, and a few council people gathered in private a few weeks ago to plot out the city’s housing strategy.

- Lakewood Municipal Court hired a retired city housing inspector on a part-time basis to coordinate a diversion program to deal with select types of housing, building and health code violations. It will mostly be limited to cases involving owner-occupied properties and is supposed to allow housing inspectors to spend more time in the field, and less time in court. It sounds like a decent deal on paper, and hopefully will be a step in the right direction. The part-time status of the coordinator could be a reason for concern, however. Part-time efforts, no matter how well intentioned, frequently end in half-assed results.

- Peter Machlup the self-proclaimed co-owner of the house that formerly stood at 1570 Woodward has moved his legal action against the city from county court to federal court. You can read his initial complaint (.PDF), the city’s response (.PDF), and his rebuttal (.PDF).

Basically, he’s not happy the city didn’t recognize him as a co-owner of the property and feels the nuisance and demolition appeals process was not fair.

Director Nathan Kelly said details of the planned route are still being negotiated, but Lakewood would split the cost of the service with the city of Cleveland. He said the intent of the project is to keep RTA in the circulator business. RTA eliminated all 12 of its circulator routes on September 20, 2009 due to budget concerns.

A draft copy of the service agreement proposal (see .pdf) between Lakewood and RTA indicates the focus of the yearlong program would be to provide transportation to shopping and medical facilities. Shopper Service, as it is known, would only be available on Fridays from noon to 6 p.m.

Terms of the agreement call for the city to pay RTA $15,000 in two separate installments of $7,500. No mention of Cleveland’s participation is made. RTA would keep all fare income (regular rates apply), but would allow the city to sell advertising on the circulator in order to defray its costs.

Lakewood Mayor Edward O. FitzGerald, who was busy at an event to promote his vapid insipid political careerism, missed most of the council meeting and was not available to comment on the matter.

However, at a town hall meeting held at The Meridian on January 28th, he mentioned that the city was also working on a separate plan to operate a similar kind of service, either on a Monday or Tuesday. He was uncertain as to what date it might begin. “It’s complicated,” he said. “I can’t make an absolute promise we’re going to do it.”

At a council meeting held around that same time, he said that RTA’s circulators had maintenance issues and hard-to-get parts. He noted that Giant Eagle contributes about $7,500 annually to help support city transportation services, while Marcs, Walgreens, and CVS provide nothing at all.

1598 Wyandotte was in foreclosure under two different previous owners.

1300 Andrews is surrounded by generally well-kept homes.

Aided by federal funds, the city recently purchased two more properties that had been in foreclosure. The houses will likely be rehabbed and resold.

The city paid $52,000 to LPS Asset Management Solutions and Morequity, Inc. for 1300 Andrews. The house went into foreclosure in July 2008 and was sold at sheriff’s auction a couple of weeks ago.

1598 Wyandotte, after falling into foreclosure once in 2006 and again in 2008 (each time with a different owner),  is now in the city’s hands. It sold at sheriff’s sale in September to Fannie Mae, who turned it over to the city.

Legal update

The city will continue to acquire and repair or demolish properties throughout 2010. One of the next official acquisitions could be the vacant apartment building at 1482-1484 West 117^th St.

Wilshire Credit Corporation was trying to stop the city from tearing down the building. It had been declared a nuisance. After the city successfully bid $55,000 for it at sheriff’s auction, Wilshire withdrew their court appeal.

Also withdrawing her court appeal is Victoria Greenleaf, co-owner of the house that once stood at 1570 Woodward. She was contesting the validity of the city’s appeals process. Her business partner, Peter Machlup, is also challenging the city’s actions. His case is still pending.

Two $1,600 monthly rent payments from the owners of Two Dads' Diner were delinquent and resulted in eviction proceedings.

Small businesses are an important strand in the fabric of Lakewood, so it’s disappointing when a new business and their landlord cannot get along.

Nick and Tammy Asimakis, owners of the building at 14412 Detroit Ave, on Wednesday withdrew their eviction case against Two Dads’ Diner in Lakewood Municipal Court.  (Read the complete court filings.)

The Rocky River couple had claimed that Two Dads’ Diner, owned by John Kamkutis and Frank Zingale, broke the terms of their lease by failing to make rent payments for the months of November and December. The lease was signed on August 31, 2009.

Tammy Asimakis issued their tenants a three-day notice to leave the premises on December 16, 2009 and six days later filed eviction papers and asked for back payments.

On December 31^st, John Kamkutis, who is also a Lakewood School Board member, deposited the delinquent checks in the Asimakis’ mailbox, and included a $1,600 check to cover January’s rent. He also provided payment for utilities.

Magistrate felt eviction was warranted

Magistrate Thomas J. Wagner heard testimony regarding the situation from Asimakis and Kamkutis on January 7, 2010 and concluded that Two Dads’ Diner failed to pay their rent and needed to vacate the building by January 31^st.

Business operating account statements provided by Kamkutis indicate the checks he provided Asimakis were cashed the day after the hearing. The statements show Two Dads’ Diner had a cash balance of about $4,800 near the end of the month, and a total of around $35,000 in transactions.

Violations of lease agreement and Ohio law cited by Two Dads’ lawyer

A little less than two weeks after the magistrate’s decision, a lawyer representing Two Dads’ Diner filed objections to the report and made a request to the court to overrule the judgment. Anthony J. Coyne of Mansour, Gavin, Gerlack & Manos argued that the landlord had violated the terms of the lease and Ohio law.

He said Ohio law prohibits the acceptance of money following the service of a three-day eviction notice. Coyne suggested that the acceptance of January’s rental payment should waive the three-day eviction notice because cashing the check was inconsistent with the notice to vacate.

Coyne felt the magistrate did not give consideration to relevant terms of the lease. For instance, the lease specifically states three-day notice must be provided via registered or certified mail. It also states the tenants have 30 days to make payment after receiving the notice. Kamkutis and Zingale received neither.

Coyne also argued the lease stated the landlord – not the tenants, as the magistrate had ordered – should be responsible for all attorney’s fees.

In a possible explanation as to why the rent was late, Coyne wrote that the landlords refused to accept rental payments unless they were made out to Tammy Asimakis, even though Nick Asimakis was also named as a lessor in the rental agreement.

Where do things go from here?

The Asimakis’ dismissed their legal action before they could respond to Coyne’s objections. Two Dads’ Diner remains open and is generating pretty positive buzz, but one has to wonder what will happen next. Will landlord and tenant co-exist peacefully, or will there be hard feelings that linger and cause other issues down the road?

LakewoodAlive posted this image of the proposed project on their Web site. The bottom most drawing depicts the front of the building. Click on the photo for a larger view.

Quaker Steak and Lube will be an anchor tenant at the Discount Drug Mart Plaza, according to the project’s architect, who shared details of a major renovation planned for the property located across the street from the Lakewood Public Library on Detroit Rd.

Speaking tonight to the Board of Building Standards/Architectural Board of Review/Sign Review, the project representative said the entire structure is getting “a total face lift from front to back.”

In addition to refacing the building with brick, the plan calls for complete removal of the front walkway overhang, removal of all angled street parking spots, new landscaping, and sidewalk expansion. The rear parking lot will be totally resurfaced and restriped.

One planned improvement certain to cause some controversy is the addition of a two-story faux tower perpendicular to Mars Ave. One board member called it “unnecessary” and thought it would clash with the nearby library.

A planning dept. representative described the tower in positive terms has having a “lantern effect” in relation to the view from Mars, but wanted to be sure steps were taken to discourage it from becoming a pigeon roost. Overall, he described the project as a “huge step forward.”

Another potential design disappointment will be the absence of oversized front windows in the Discount Drug Mart section of the plaza. The developer explained Drug Mart gets “real antsy” about big windows due to maintenance and security issues.

The developer was receptive to a suggestion from the board regarding the proposed color of the brick siding. To add character and break up monotony, they asked him to make each storefront a different shade. “It’s very easy to achieve,” he replied, explaining it could be done at no extra cost.

Out of a concern for long-term durability, the board asked the developer to consider using precast concrete materials instead of EIFS, a synthetic stucco poorly suited for high traffic areas.

One board member asked the developer to put together an exterior lighting plan to make use of the “monumental southern exposure” along Detroit Rd. A building dept. representative requested that the developer take into account the panoramic view from the upper floor of the Lakewood Library, and figure out a plan to shield the rooftop HVAC mechanics from sight.

Executive Director of LakewoodAlive Mary Ann Crampton said she worked on the renovations plans with representatives from the development group Giltz and Associates, Inc. over the last 18 months and found them to be very responsive.

She was not satisfied with their early project renderings because they were “matchy to the iconic structures we have,” referring to the library and neighboring Masonic temple. “It was not real,” she said. “This is a little more authentic.”

Crampton is partial to the tower. “You can actually tell we have a downtown,” she said.

She is looking forward to utilizing the expanded sidewalks during the summer for live music as part of a program she’s calling “front porch concerts.”

The board accepted the developer’s preliminary plans, and will continue to review them and offer feedback, but will not give final approval for several more months.

One quick aside — it would be nice if the city posted the plans for this project online and encouraged public comment.  They’ll never do it, but they should.

GrafTech tearing down the barn

The board gave approval to GrafTech’s plan to tear down the prominent red brick building along Madison Ave. GrafTech representatives said the 110-year-old structure, also known as Building 19, is vacant and unstable due to a failing roof.

They explained a salvage expert from Chicago inspected the building and found it didn’t contain anything that could be recycled. The pine wood used to support the interior of the building, though old, was too soft to be reclaimed. Similarly, the bricks were deemed inappropriate for reuse as street pavers.

The board did take a firm approach with GrafTech and ordered them to rip out the concrete building pad and replace it with grass. GrafTech had hoped to get by on the cheap and leave the concrete pad in place.

No love for Brennan’s Floral Gift Shop

For the second consecutive month, the board deferred approval of Daniel Brennan’s proposal for construction of a greenhouse/storage area at Brennan’s Floral Gift Shop at 13396 Madison Ave.

The board wants something with a higher-end look to it. One board member described the structure in the plan Brennan submitted as being “a big dumb box at the side of the building.”

Brennan and the board are having a tough time clearly communicating their ideas to each other. They suggested he meet with his architect and come up with a more detailed drawing.

The city bid $55,000 at sheriff's auction to acquire this property.

The city’s effort to rid itself of one of the blighted apartment buildings on West 117^th St. has run into a snag.

Wilshire Credit Corporation, acting as the servicing agent for Wells Fargo Bank, filed an appeal in the Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas on December 11, 2009 seeking to block the city from demolishing the 8-unit building located at 1482-1484 West 117^th St. (Read the appeal here – .PDF)

A loan gone bad, a building in limbo

According to the loan history detailed in Wilshire’s court filing, CIT Group issued the former owner of the property, Mariana Sanic, an adjustable rate 30-year mortgage in May of 2005 for $208,500. The first monthly payment was around $1,500 at an interest rate of 8.05%.

Sanic defaulted on the loan three years later and Wilshire foreclosed on the property seeking $203,939.92. The interest rate on the loan had risen to 11.05%.

Wilshire won a default judgment in September of 2008, but before the property could be sold at sheriff’s auction, Sanic – who had lived on West Clifton – declared bankruptcy in Florida. The bankruptcy essentially put the building in limbo.

Excrement in the tub

Responding to a complaint, the Division of Building and Housing conducted an inspection of the property in June of 2009 and identified an array of damage to the interior and exterior of building including damaged floors and plaster walls, as well as broken windows, doors, and toilets. The housing inspector noted excrement in one of the bathroom tubs.

A copy of the correction notice was mailed to Sanic at her Port Orange, Florida address. She was given 30 days to make repairs.

Missed demolition notice – things get confusing

On October 15,^, 2009, the city sent a letter to Sanic and Wells Fargo Bank notifying them the property had been declared a nuisance and would be demolished. The letter indicated the deadline to appeal the decision was 10 days after receipt of notification, or, as it turned out according to the certified mail receipt, November 2^nd.

Though the letter was received by Wells Fargo on November 2^nd, it didn’t reach the correct contact person within the organization until much later, when it was too late to submit an appeal.

Almost simultaneously, the bankruptcy, which had kept the property in a virtual no man’s land for a year, was ended and the court ordered the property to sheriff’s auction for sale.

Wilshire, acting on behalf of Wells Fargo, mailed an appeal to the city, but it was rejected because it arrived after the stated deadline.

Wilshire’s position

Wilshire wants the county court to restrain the city from enforcing the demolition order. They also want to be able to appeal the demolition order before the city’s Board of Building Standards

Wilshire claims the city violated the 14^th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution that provides for due process. Under Ohio law, Wilshire believes, the city was supposed to have included the corrections notice in the October letter that warned them of the demolition order. According to their interpretation of Lakewood’s laws on the matter, the city should have recognized them as the owner of the property and sent them a copy of the corrections notice in June, when the inspection was originally performed.

Wilshire also says Ohio law requires the city to provide a 30-day window to appeal, not a 10-day period. Wilshire alleges the city sent the notification to the wrong corporate address in Maryland, when it should have gone to an address in Oregon – the same address listed on the foreclosure papers.

Finally, Wilshire refers to an Ohio appellate decision that gives property owners a reasonable time to repair their property if it isn’t an immediate threat to public safety.

Follow the money

In October of 2008, Wilshire appraised the as-is value of the property at $185,000. Seven months later, the same type of appraisal was performed and it registered a steep drop to $110,000.  The land – without the building on it – was deemed to be worth just $12,000.

Wilshire claims it has a $100,000 insurance claim pending and a firm rehabilitation plan that would allow it to completely repair the property and recoup its investment. Wilshire says the property is worth far more to them in a rehabilitated state, and they don’t want it razed.

City buys property at auction

11 days after Wilshire filed their court complaint, the property was auctioned off by the Cuyahoga County Sheriff’s office to the City of Lakewood for $55,000. Presumably, Wilshire had a representative present at the auction and could have easily purchased the property themselves if they so desired.

What happens next is not clear. Wilshire could withdraw their appeal, and let the city have the property. Alternatively, Wilshire could continue with the appeal and try to reach an agreement with the city that will allow them to rehab and sell the property.

Is this Cleveland or Lakewood?

Incidentally, the other vacant apartment building on the Lakewood side of West 117th – which the city is also trying to demolish – was struck sometime around December 28th by vandals  who smashed the glass in the front doors.

The city resecured the building with reasonable promptness, but one has to wonder what people think when they drive along West 117^th, and see all of that plywood on the Lakewood side of the street.

Woodward house razed, owners say appeals process wasn’t fair

It was mentioned in this space previously that the house at 1570 Woodward was designated as a nuisance property due to its poor physical condition and would be razed.

Well, it has been demolished. In a bit of a head-scratcher, the owners have filed separate appeals in county court seeking to invalidate the city’s nuisance designation. One of partners claims the appeal hearing was non-binding because the testimony wasn’t sworn. The other partner, whose name is not on the deed, alleges the process wasn’t fair because the city wouldn’t formally recognize him as a property owner.

When they spoke before the city’s board to appeal the nuisance designation and demolition order, they didn’t offer much of  defense. They said they were going to tear down the house, and were fighting with their insurance company over a settlement payment.

Read Victoria Greenleaf’s appeal (.PDF). Read Peter Machlup’s appeal (.PDF).

According to Mayor Edward O. FitzGerald, it is very similar to the Public Works union contract that was approved in December. “It calls for a lot of sacrifice,” he said.

Workers will not receive a pay increase in 2010, but will earn raises of 1% and 2% in 2011 and 2012, respectively. They will also adopt a 90/10 healthcare plan.

“There are no sweeteners, so to speak, in the contract,” FitzGerald said. “Overall, it was a pretty positive [negotiating] experience.”

The city has five other union contracts it still must finalize.

Miscellaneous

The county gave the city $49,000 to run events like the H1N1 vaccination clinic that the city hosted in mid-December.

The U.S. Census will hold a Census Job Fair in the auditorium at Lakewood City Hall on Wednesday, January 13, 2010 at 5:30 p.m.

Councilperson Nickie Antonio (At-Large) introduced a representative from the Ohio Department of Health who announced a pilot program in Northeast Ohio that will attempt to lower the high rates of smoking among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender young adults. (See their Web site)

The Council had a second reading of an ordinance that would make bicycle licenses free. They now cost $2. Police Chief Timothy Malley hopes the fee change will encourage more children to get licenses. The ordinance was referred back to the public safety committee for discussion.

Public Works Director Anthony Beno introduced an ordinance to give an easement to the Ohio Educational Credit Union located at 17526 Madison Ave.  The sidewalk easement would allow the credit union to have an ADA compliant ATM. The matter was referred to the public works committee for more discussion.

Discussion of liquor permit transfers for the BP gas station at 14718 Madison Ave. and The Root Cafe at 15118 Detroit Ave. was deferred until the police complete their examination of the situation.

The Council unanimously elected Councilperson Kevin Butler (Ward 1) as their new president. Councilperson Mary Louise Madigan (Ward 4) retained the vice presidency. They also formally accepted the final results of the November general election. “We’re thrilled you won,” said Butler of Councilperson Monique Smith’s victory.

Madigan announced the passing of Milan Stankovich. He recently retired from the city after over 54 years of service and did an absolutely fantastic job of greeting city hall visitors. He made Lakewood look good.

The council meeting lasted 27 minutes and was attended by around 15 people. Check out the docket (.PDF) here.

According to the Zimmerman’s account of events (see a .PDF of their court filing), they lodged a noise complaint against their neighbor on September 23, 2009. A little more than a month later, someone anonymously complained to the Division of Housing and Building – in retaliation, the Zimmerman’s suspect – regarding the condition of their property. The complaint triggered a city inspection.

The city’s October 29, 2009 exterior property inspection identified six relatively minor issues that needed to be corrected: remove debris/unsightly material from the southwest corner of the yard area, maintain landscaping on property, repair rear gable, maintain siding at front eave, replace missing slate on the roof, and paint weathered lattice.

The correction notice noted two areas – the debris in the southwest corner of yard and the landscaping maintenance – that needed to be remediated by November 10, 2009. All remaining items needed to be corrected by December 1, 2009.

A couple of days later the Zimmermans sent a public records request to the city in an effort to determine the identity of their accuser. They also wanted to make a formal complaint against the housing inspector, who they believed entered their property without permission to conduct the inspection.

An excerpt from their letter:

“The acts are outrageous and abusive and an invasion of my privacy and clearly exceed the scope of the inspector’s authority. The actions of the inspector are bad enough that I felt the need to call and leave a message with the inspector that he is not allowed in my back yard to root around my back yard and search under my bushes. You can understand why I would be concerned that this inspector felt he had the right to root around in my back yard and look under my bushes. This was done when I was not present and when I was occupied helping settle the estate of my recently deceased father.”

The city’s law department replied that because the call was anonymous, they were unable to provide the name of the person who phoned in the complaint.

On November 18, 2009, the city issued the Zimmermans an order to appear in Lakewood Municipal Court for “failure to comply with a notice or neglect of maintenance” regarding the two minor violations that were supposed to have been fixed by November 10, 2009.

On that same day, Marianne Zimmerman wrote a letter of appeal to the mayor:

Ed Fitzgerald, Mayor
City of Lakewood
12650 Detroit Ave.
Lakewood, OH 440107

Dear Ed:

I am enclosing a records request regarding the Correction Notice I received. I am sorry it had to come to this. It is obvious that the situation got way out of hand. It was a simple matter of a disgruntled neighbor making an anonymous and false complaint to your Building Department in retaliation for a noise complaint I made against him. He even admitted he made the complaint and admitted he had no proof to substantiate his complaint. How it ended up with a building inspector looking under by bushes in my backyard at some plant pots in winter storage, I don’t know. I am not sure, but I think that the inspector is ordering me to move my pots. Nobody will tell me exactly what the problem is. I think the inspector is complaining about my roof. I can tell you that we have our roof regularly inspected and the roofer said the roof was ok and we have experienced no problems at all.

I would hope that we could come to some resolution and the Correction Notice could be voided. I will admit that I was hurt and upset that the City would treat me in such a callous and indifferent fashion after we have been good and loyal residents for 11 years. We even fix things on our property without any outside prompting. We feel it is our duty to keep our house in good repair. It seems to me that this inspection was in retaliation for a noise complaint we made against the tenant at 17465 Woodford. The landlord’s agent even admitted to making the complaint that prompted the inspection and even admitted he had no evidence to back up the complaint. This is nothing more than a neighbor dispute that got way out of control.

I just want this problem resolved and the inspection withdrawn.

Sincerely,
Marianne Zimmerman
17463 Woodford Ave.

The Zimmermans sent a second public records request to the city on the following day seeking the name of their accuser, photographic documentation of the items identified in the correction notice, and a host of other documents governing policies of the home inspection process.

The Zimmermans next filed a request on November 30, 2009 in Cuyahoga Common Pleas Court to get an order restraining the city from enforcing the notice of correction. They also asked the court to compel the city to satisfy their prior public records request.

The court declined to issue the restraining order regarding the notice of correction. The city provided some photographs related to the corrections notice, but the Zimmermans said it did not satisfy their public records request. Their case remains active in county court.

Having pled not guilty to the city’s housing-related charges, the Zimmermans face trial in Lakewood Municipal Court on January 11^th.

Due to the ongoing legal proceedings, the Zimmermans declined to comment on their situation.

A police dispatcher received a telephone call from a woman described as “hysterical” who said she was robbed by a male with a gun. The cell phone the woman was using had a poor reception and cut out before  additional details could be provided.

A number of officers quickly converged on the scene and learned the suspect was a younger-looking white male, about 5′9″, with a thin build and “messed-up teeth.” He was seen wearing a red hooded sweatshirt and a blue jacket.

Officers followed footprints in the snow leading to a nearby apartment building on Atkins. An officer on the outside of the building saw someone dressed in a gray hoodie and black sweatpants slip out of a first floor window and run south through the backyards on Atkins.

The police set-up a perimeter in the area and took the suspect into custody at 17000 Hilliard at 10:48 a.m..

The victim positively identified the suspect, 19-year-old Chad W. McCall. McCall claimed the gun was fake and he tossed it, although he couldn’t recall where. McCall was wanted in Elyria on a warrant for unpaid traffic tickets.

Lorain County court records indicate the traffic tickets are related to charges of obstructing official business, receiving stolen property, and tampering with evidence, which McCall is expected to face trial for in January.

A preliminary search of the apartment building McCall was spotted fleeing turned up the victim’s black Verizon touch screen cell phone. The victim was also robbed of her car keys and about $90 in cash.

2070 Dowd housed a daycare facility, but became obsolete.

Built with money donated by the community, designed by noted Cleveland-based architectural firm Walker and Weeks, and opened as a childcare facility on February 19, 1925, the house located at 2070 Dowd Ave. operated as a nursery for 77 years.

It closed in 2002 and sat vacant and in a deteriorating state until the Center for Families and Children – the group that owned the property – surrendered it to the city in November. The city razed the house several days ago.

The parcel is directly across from Harrison Elementary School.

Reached via e-mail in September when the Lakewood City Council first considered the acquisition, Dave Reines, vice president of resource development and external affairs at the Center for Families and Children, explained why the private non-profit wanted to unload the house:

“The property in Lakewood is a former daycare center that was acquired by the Center for Families and Children through a merger that occurred in the 1970’s.  We have not used the property since 2003 and have made numerous attempts to try and sell it, but we have been unsuccessful. Given the current real estate market and the likelihood that our efforts to sell would continue to be unsuccessful our Board recently decided to turn the property over to the City of Lakewood.”

What’s next for the property?

At a council meeting in October, Councilperson Mary Louise Madigan (Ward 4) said the estimated cost to rehab the structure was about $300,000 versus only $15,000 in demolition expenses. Director of Planning and Economic Development Nathan Kelly said the city investigated the possibility of turning the house into artist live/work space, but found the cost to be prohibitive.

Like the nearby parcel at 2042 Dowd Ave. that was recently cleared of its house, the city may erect a single family home on the plot. The city received $300,000 from the county via the federal government that can be used to fund construction of homes for low-to-moderate income homebuyers.

If the property is sold before March 2011, the city will share a cut of the net proceeds with the Center for Families and Children.

What does Birdtown know about this?

If you walked down your street, or a street close to yours, and saw two vacant lots where houses recently stood, how would you feel? One week the houses are there, and then the next week they are gone. An absence of detailed information on the matter might create an atmosphere of uncertainty. Are the lots going to stay vacant and attract nuisances? If not, who will rebuild the homes and when?

Citizens of Birdtown – especially discouraged longtime residents who could use a morale boost – deserve to know exactly what the city has planned. Elected officials and appointed administrators need to go above and beyond their typically minimal communication efforts. Sticking a letter full of public relations boilerplate in someone’s front door handle doesn’t cut it (see this letter (.PDF) regarding the Dowd demolition). The city ought to do a full-scale mailing to the entire neighborhood. It’s good news, why not share it?

2107 Robin St. is probably next on the demo list

2107 Robin is situated next to an empty parcel of land

Fannie Mae sold 2107 Robin St. to the city on December 18^th for $24,000. The house is vacant, had been in foreclosure and has been designated as a nuisance due to its poor physical condition. With the wrecking ball sitting on Dowd just a couple of streets away, it’s a fair bet the structure on 2107 Robin won’t be standing for too many more days.