Dec 12, 2017 5 min read

Sterling Jones moved into a top-floor apartment at 8 W. Maiden St. in Washington in October. He’s had nothing but problems since, he said.

“This is not what I paid for,” he said.

The building at the corner of Main and Maiden is in disrepair, he said, with large cracks in the walls, severe water damage to the floors and ceilings, bricks coming out of the exterior walls and countertops that are not attached. He said the building shakes during bad storms.

“The building is falling apart on the outside and the inside,” Jones said.

He also said he lost heat for four weeks that wasn’t related to nonpayment. He said he reached out to his landlord, Donna Griffin, hoping she would address some of his concerns.

“Her answer was that nobody else complained,” Jones said.

Jones withheld rent for November and December in the hope it would motivate Griffin to fix some of the issues, he said. Instead, he received an eviction notice.

Jones took his concerns to City Council Monday night, requesting its members do something about the condition of the building.

“I see a lot of things that need to be addressed with this building,” Councilwoman Monda Williams said in response to Jones. “I would advise you to get out of there and look for another place to live.”

Jones said he’s been looking for another place to live since he moved in. He’s not alone, either, as there are five apartments in the building. One of his neighbors, Mike, who did not want to provide his last name, said he’s had problems since moving into the second floor in May. He said the ceiling in his kitchen leaks water and debris onto his countertops. He’s also had issues with maintaining heat in the apartment.

“The water comes in from everywhere,” Mike said. “Someone’s gonna die here.”

Councilman Ken Westcott said he went to look at the building and witnessed some of Jones’ concerns.

“I’m not a structural engineer, but I did see some issues,” Westcott said. “It’s an older building. After what happened with 15 N. Main St., the city’s trying to be more proactive in dealing with these problems.”

The three-story apartment at 15 N. Main collapsed July 12, leading to a nine hour rescue of a resident. The city received court permission to begin emergency demolition the day of the collapse, and is in litigation with the building owners.

City code enforcement officer Ron McIntyre said he’s been in Jones’ building several times and didn’t find “any evidence to the extent” that the building could collapse.

He and building code official Jerrod D’Amico inspected the building Monday morning, after which McIntyre sent a notice to Griffin “for the brick wall and some fire extinguishers that need to be inspected and certified.” He said D’Amico will be writing up a report on their findings, but it is not yet complete.

McIntyre said he also sent Griffin a notice in November about residential heat being required. He said he’s also sent her notices about walls that were cracked, missing tiles, broken drywall, and the roof and drainage.

“She is working on getting the property brought into compliance,” he said.

Her deadline to do so is Dec. 21. After that, she could be cited, unless the city decides to give her more time because of the weather and time of year.

Griffin’s attorney, David Posner, also confirmed Griffin is working to meet the city’s requirements.

“It is my understanding that the city is sending a notice to Mrs. Griffin about certain deficiencies in that building, and I’m sure she will address them,” he said. “She tries very hard to keep her building maintained as best she can, despite that it is an old building. This is the first time to my knowledge that anyone has complained.”

Like Westcott, Councilman Joe Manning said since the collapse, the city has been trying to prevent other structurally questionable buildings from becoming a public safety issue, including Jones’ residence.

“Public safety is always our concern,” Manning said.

He said that’s why the city is putting up a fence around a vacant building at 8-22 W. Chestnut St. and 93-95 N. Main St. Manning said the city fire and police chiefs voiced concerns about the building’s deterioration.

“It’s been a concern for many years,” he said.

McIntyre said the roof of the structure, which has been vacant for decades, is collapsing. He said the building changed ownership many times and has millions of dollars of federal tax liens on it. He said the city has had a difficult time contacting the current owner, Michael Albert Smith, whose only known address is the address of the building.

McIntyre said the city may try to obtain legal rights to demolish the building through eminent domain or court order.

Mayor Scott Putnam said in a news release along with fencing off the property, the city plans to have a structural engineer inspect the building and look into demolition options.

“Safety is our main priority, but we also want to remove an eyesore and hopefully repurpose that corner with a new building,” he said in the release.

McIntyre said the demolition will cost about $150,000.

“So, it’s definitely going to be an expensive demolition,” he said.