Crystal Surdyk, city development director, answers a city resident’s question while holding the list of homes to be demolished. P-J photo by John Whittaker

Eighteen more vacant properties are in the process of being demolished in Jamestown.

Those who attended the City Council’s Housing Committee meeting this week want to see more – and they want to see them faster.

“Five have been completed,” Crystal Surdyk, city development director, said during this week’s City Council Housing Committee meeting. “Six are in the process of environmental review right now. Nine are undergoing asbestos surveys. And three are out to bid for demolition, so three that will be coming down shortly. In all we have 18 in progres currently as we speak. As I mentioned, that’s roughly a four month timeline. They’re all in various places within that timeline.”

Scott Axelson, a Jamestown resident and business owner, asked Surdyk if there was anything that could be done to remove debris from demolished homes more quickly.

“The house that burned on Forest Avenue Extension a few weeks go, where they broke the water line on Smith right by my house, that house is gone, cleaned up and reseeded,” Axelson said. “I know in different places that goes along pretty fast. I understand there’s insurance involved. I have to carry insurance to work around (the area). Is there no state requirement at all that someone who is a landlord has fire insurance protection so if something happens the city can push back on? It could be almost a co-name on that policy to alleviate some of the problems.”

Surdyk said post-demolition or post-fire cleanup can be frustrating for city officials as well, but said there are two issues with requiring insurance the way Axelson proposed. Most insurance companies will end a homeowner’s coverage if the home is unoccupied, and there is no state requirement that a property is insured.

“If it’s condemned, and once they lose that insurance it’s almost impossible to get it back without showing some work toward (occupancy),. I think that’s us crossing a line legally,” Surdyk said. “I certainly think it’s something that should be brought to the state as a potential legislation. There’s a whole bunch of different things. … It’s frustrating to us too.”

Missy Paterniti, a Jamestown resident who advocates often on housing and neighborhood concerns, asked about the potential of using companies from Buffalo to speed the pace of demolitions in the city. Surdyk said Buffalo companies can bid on housing demolitions in the city already, but many choose not to do so. One of the reasons it takes so long, and so much money, to demolish houses is because most have asbestos that has to be removed according to state specifications that drive up the demolition cost.

Surdyk said it will also likely be more expensive to use companies from outside the area to do demolitions.

“Then your taxpayer dollars are paying for them to stay,” Surdyk said. “It’s going to cost more. Do you want more demolitions or do you want them done faster? That’s something you have to think about.”

“I say done faster,” Paterniti replied. “That’s my personal opinion.”

“And it’s still going to take four months,” Surdyk said.