Clock ticking on Wayne St. properties

Published 7:00 am Saturday, June 10, 2023

An unresponsive downtown property owner has 60 more days to clean up his collapsed-roof properties before the city of Milledgeville does the work itself, Municipal Court Judge J. David McRee ruled Wednesday.

The properties are located at 107 and 115 S. Wayne St. It was Memorial Day 2018 when the roofs over the buildings, that at the time were unoccupied by business tenants, fell in. They have remained that way since. Both properties are owned by All-Star Properties & Investments, LLC, which is registered to a Mr. Larry Simmons with a Conyers, Ga. address. The city has tried to work with Simmons since the collapse occurred, even entering mediation in September 2021, but the owner has yet to take any action toward fixing his dilapidated property, leading to further legal action by the city. 

Not only has Simmons not done anything to abate what has now been legally ruled as a public nuisance, neither he nor a legal representative showed up to court Wednesday despite having been served notice. 

City Attorney Jimmy Jordan, who presented a bulk of the city’s case, had a mixed reaction when asked by the newspaper if he was surprised Simmons did not attend Wednesday’s proceedings.

“Yes and no,” Jordan said. “Mr. Simmons has shown throughout this situation that he pays attention at some points, and at some points he doesn’t. He agrees to things at some points and then never follows through. I would’ve thought he would’ve been here because of how he has conveyed to city officials in the past the value of this property and what he sees as its place in the downtown area. But when you go to a mediation and offer to loan him the money to do the work and he doesn’t do it, one shouldn’t be surprised that he didn’t show.”

Should Simmons continue to follow his pattern of inaction for 60 days from Wednesday, June 7, the city will be allowed to clean up the properties itself and attach a lien to them. Judge McRee’s ruling states that the lien amount will cover the city’s costs for removing the debris and bracing the common walls with adjacent properties as well as the city’s legal fees associated with bringing the matter before the court. The judge’s order also says that the defendant will reimburse the city of Milledgeville for the cost of fencing it placed in front of the properties.

The city on April 12 filed a petition to abate nuisance asking for this action to be taken. Through its legal action the city showed it is willing to eat the significant costs associated with cleanup to remove the eyesore in the heart of downtown. The city had a commercial appraisal done of the properties, and that came in at just $40,000.  An estimate for the work provided to the city and shared with the newspaper shows a price in excess of $212,000. It was also presented in court Wednesday that the cost for installing the two layers of fencing, one of which covers eight downtown parking spots, was $5,567.55. The city would recoup what it could from a foreclosure sale should the lien go unpaid.

Attorney Kerry Allen, representing City Solicitor Carl Cansino’s office in the case, kicked off the proceedings in Municipal Court Wednesday morning. 

“Your Honor, I do not believe the defendants are present or represented today,” Allen said.

Judge McRee verified that by addressing the room. When no one responded on Simmons’ behalf, Allen handed off to her co-counsel Jordan, who also happens to be her father, to present the city’s case. Jordan swore in Milledgeville City Manager Hank Griffeth, who gave a history of the properties since the roof collapse five years ago. Griffeth testified that after attempts to get Simmons to act were unsuccessful, the city installed fencing to make the site safer for the public. 

“The building continued to become more and more dangerous with potential for the facade collapsing, with folks going in and out of the building from the front and the back,” Griffeth said. “The city just took steps to try to secure the property as much as possible and to work with the property owner as much as possible to try to get something done about it… We have expended what I think is a pretty significant cost to try and make sure the building was not a harm to anybody.”

One of the attempts to work with the property owner was a September 2021 mediation session where it was determined Simmons could apply for a loan through the city’s revolving loan fund to cover the costs of clearing the building and bracing the common walls with adjacent properties. A loan application was sent to Simmons, but he never returned it. 

Jordan went on to say that the property owner has not responded since the petition to abate nuisance was filed by the city in mid-April.

“He has had, and his company has had, ample notice of these proceedings,” Jordan said before Judge McRee. “I have not heard from him or anyone representing him.”

Once the city was done presenting its case, the judge made his ruling.

“I find that the city has met its burden in showing under the particular code of the city that this property is defective, a danger to the citizens of the community, and dilapidated and that it is need of significant repair or being demolished,” Judge McRee said. “According to the city ordinance, I am going to order that the defendants in this matter have up to 60 days to either bring the property up to safe standards through repairs. If not, to demolish the proceedings and secure the adjoining walls with property owners so that those structures will be safe. If that is not complied with by the defendants in this case, then the city according to the city code ordinance will have the right to step in and take that action itself following 60 days if it’s not taken care of.” 

Milledgeville Main Street Director Carlee Schulte said she is glad to see steps being taken that could down the road make the properties part of Milledgeville’s vibrant downtown once again. 

“After many complaints and fret about this building, it is wonderful to see movement in the right direction,” Schulte said. “The building has so much potential so I hope to see progress in the next 60 days, as given to the property owner, and if not, it’s nice to know there are steps in place to still make it stable and safe for the community.”