Property complaints shared at Chautauqua Town Board
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CHAUTAUQUA - Officials are going to see how much it will cost to demolish a dilapidated cabin in the town.
During the Chautauqua Town Board meeting, a resident came to the board meeting and voiced concerns about 5982 Fisherman's Lane.
In 2023, the Chautauqua Town Board approved a resolution ordering the property be cleaned up but the owner apparently has failed to do so.
The resident at the meeting said he lives on the road and believes mice, rats, skunks and raccoons have all gotten inside. There's also bad trees on the property.
"Three of those trees are leaning toward my property. One fell earlier this year but went the other direction. ... Two pines are adjoining my driveway and now have uprooted part of the driveway," he said.
According to the neighbor, the gas meter has been removed and a tree fell which took out the electric, so the property has no utilities.
"What I'm asking now is that the town enforce the resolution. Get somebody in there or your people in there, clean it up and make it a better living condition for the rest of the neighbors," he said.
Code Enforcement Officer Frank Watson, who was not employed by the town when the resolution was passed three years ago, said he has been working with the owner trying to get it cleaned up.
He said his office was taking the approach similar to the property on Beaujean Road the town cleaned up earlier this summer. In that situation, the property owner was taken to the state Supreme Court and ordered to clean it up. When they failed to do so, the town went back to court and was able to get the court's approval for the town to pay to have it cleaned up and place the cost on the property taxes.
Watson admitted that was a long process but it's the best way, especially if the town wants to get reimbursed for cleanup. He also said there's no guarantee how a court would rule.
Watson said the structure would be easily demolished. There's also a "pile of junk and a couple of boats" that need to be removed.
Town Councilman Tom Carlson said he feels the town should go ahead and start the process of getting the property cleaned up now.
He proposed having the town go out for bid to see what the clean up cost would be. The board agreed and unanimously approved a resolution to seek Request For Proposals to clean up the property.
Meanwhile, Supervisor Don Emhardt said he would talk to the town's attorney to see if the town can clean up the property using taxpayers' money.
The property is not behind on taxes so the town can't seek to take the property over and then resell it to cover its costs. Without a court order, it's questionable if the town can add the cost of the clean up as a lien on the property.
In a separate matter, another resident complained about a recreational vehicle that has been parked on Beaujean Road and it appears people are living out of it. He said this is not the same property that had complaints on it before.
Watson said he is aware of the camper but said they haven't exceeded staying there 30 days, which is the maximum allowed by the town's zoning code. He said if they do stay more than 30 days there, then the town can get involved.