Last Minute Reprieve...

Saved:  502 W Franklin, Elkhart, Indiana

    Elkhart's 502 W Franklin received a last-minute reprieve as Concord Township Commissioner Frank Lucchese and Elkhart County Administrator Tom Byers diligently assisted Trust 4781 and other concerned citizens to convince Elkhart City Building Commissioner Dennis Correll, Sr. to stay his demolition order on the site in order to enable ReEnviron's Steve Wall to pursue ownership of the building and lot when the tax certificate lien he purchased last fall matures and he can obtain a court-issued deed.

    Wall currently owns and resides at 519 W Franklin, another historic home on the block that was saved from further deterioration in 2014.

    Wall dialogued with Correll's office last summer and fall in order to preserve the historic structure and the beauty of the neighborhood while preventing yet another ill-kept vacant lot from marring the streetscape.

   It was recommended that Wall purchase the tax certificate in order to receive clear title to the structure and lot.  Once he files for the deed, as is expected October 2015, he will be able to begin assessing repairs, drawing necessary permits and obtaining the necessary performance bond in the amount of $10,000 guaranteeing that ReEnviron will bring the structure to code, permitting issuance of a certificate of occupancy.

    Wall was taken aback two weeks ago when he pulled a permit for another project and the city casually mentioned that 502 was scheduled to be torn down in about 8 weeks.  Wall and Will Lipscomb scrambled to determine how the building could be saved using ReEnviron's interest as a lien holder, and they also brought it to the city's attention that due process for demolition of a structure in the City of Elkhart appears to have not been properly adhered to.

    County Administrator Tom Byers was able to clarify the ownership and procedural status of the site and recommended to Wall and Lipscomb that they appeal to Correll to simply revoke his demolition order until Wall was able to assume full ownership of the site and apply for the necessary permits.

    In the meantime, the city apparently sped up the scheduled demolition prep at the site, including removing utility feeds at least eight weeks earlier than they had stated, eight weeks being the time Correll's office had said they would give Wall in order to fight the demolition.  Evidence at the site indicates that the city may have intended to demo the structure prior to Wall's ability to receive the legal deed.  Correll had instructed Wall to ask the County for a County-issued deed before the eight-week deadline.  The County could not do this but was able to convince Correll to suspend the demolition order, enabling Wall take title to the property this fall under his rights as the tax-lien owner.

    Correll has now provided Wall with verbal confirmation that the structure will not be demolished as long as he obtains the tax deed, files the necessary permits and furnishes a performance bond in the amount of $10,000.00.  Wall will then have six months to make significant improvements to the structure, completing all necessary repairs within the required twelve-month period.

    Wall is somewhat concerned in that the schedule means that major repairs to masonry, for instance, will have to be addressed during the coldest winter months, which will be a challenge, but he is working with the board of T4781 to determine the best options for meeting the city's requirements and completing the repairs on the city's schedule.

    The historical integrity of the 500 Block of Franklin Street is already a touchy subject with many long-term residents after the city tore down 501 W Franklin Street in 2012.  Still referred to as "the Pink House," its loss is felt by those who live there, and many wish the city would have found the means to save it.  Google Maps still shows the structures as they appeared Fall of 2011.

    Today 501 W Franklin Street is a vacant lot where people dump old mattresses and sofas, park for parties, and it is alleged, possibly traffic in drugs. 

501 W Franklin Street, Elkhart, today.  The tan house in the background was burnt out just a few weeks ago.  Though burnt out, the structure has seemingly received no official scrutiny from the city, unlike the secured and viable structure at 502.