 Rebecca Blake and Jodie Duncan believe a building located in the
1500 block of Broadway in Beason to be unsafe. It has partially
collapsed.
Blake said that Oran Township officials have been unable to
locate the owner of the property and added that property taxes
remain unpaid.
She was also interested to find out if it would be possible to
make the property into a community park.
Planning and zoning chairman David Hepler asked Logan County's
zoning officer, Will D'Andrea, if he would research the matter.
D'Andrea returned to the committee this month with state statute
60 ILCS 1/85-50, which addresses townships and the demolition,
repair or enclosure of buildings.
Part (a) of the law basically says that a township board may
request the county board to begin proceedings on a property that is
inside the township but outside the territory of any municipality.
Which committee members determined essentially means, not within a
municipality's boundaries, but in the county.
Part (a) concludes by saying that "if the county board declines
the request," the township may pursue action on its own to resolve
the situation.
Then, under part (b) it states that a township board may take
action on dangerous and unsafe buildings, or uncompleted and
abandoned buildings, and it goes on for three pages defining how the
township should proceed.
It was interpreted that step (b) allows a township board to skip
step (a) in asking the county for help.
This provision also allows for the removal of garbage, debris and
other hazardous, noxious, or unhealthy substances or materials.
The first step the county or township would take would be to
apply for an order from the circuit court. Then there is a long list
of legal processes to follow, which starts with notifying owners and
any lien holders.
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Committee member and finance chair Chuck Ruben observed that the
costs associated with doing this would be just like what the city of
Lincoln has discussed often and recently. The county or the township
pursuing the action would face financial risks with potentially
mounting costs for legal fees and processes, as well as the action
taken to remedy the problems on the property. And when finished, the
property owner might pay costs and regain clear ownership of the
property, or not; and then there would be a need for further legal
costs pressing a lien foreclosure.
Speaking for the county, D'Andrea said, "Since we don't have
building codes, there is no way we could require someone to take
down a building like that."
Board chairman Bob Farmer asked D'Andrea if he would be the
person to decide if a building was unsafe.
D'Andrea said that he didn't know. That would be a question for
an attorney. He said that when he read the statute he wondered, "Who
decides what's hazardous, or noxious, or unsafe?" He could find no
definitions for those conditions.
Duncan and Blake were not present at this month's meeting. Hepler
asked D'Andrea to contact them with his findings and suggest that
they contact their township. He also offered that the township might
approach the county board if they want to pursue this.
[By
JAN YOUNGQUIST]
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