9/4/13 - The Hartland Township Board has postponed taking action to address a hazardous building, giving the owner time to decide what he plans to do about it. Township Manager James Wickman says the township is usually able to reach some kind of agreement with the owners of blighted or dangerous properties within its borders, but despite years of work no solution has been found for one particular property on Read Road. Its owner moved to Alabama during the recession in search of work, and in that time the building has become blighted and been declared hazardous by township officials. For the past couple of years the township has been following the steps outlined by the state to resolve the issue, but in July a dangerous building officer issued a notice that the building would have to be boarded up from the outside and secured against entry, or else the township would have to take action. This was not done to the officer's satisfaction, and Wickman tells WHMI the board was asked to act at last night's meeting. There were several options open to the township board, including ordering the demolition of the building. It first heard from the daughter of the owner and her fiance, who said the owner of the home was having financial trouble due to his wife's illness. The board decided to put off action for another two weeks, during which time township officials expect the property owner to make a decision about whether he plans to rehabilitate the home or demolish it on his own. An estimate provided to the township put the price of demolishing this house at $10,000 or more. (TD)
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