COLUMBUS, Ind. — City officials are working to get an abandoned house cleaned up and secured to deter squatters.
The Columbus Board of Works approved a condemnation order for 2132 Maple St. on Tuesday.
“It’s a house that was bought by Carrington Mortgage in March of this year,” said code enforcement officer Fred Barnett. “Now the tenants that were in there abandoned it, and so since then, it has all sorts of garbage, trash, rubbish, you name it, inside.”
Neighbors have reported that the house has been broken into, and they’ve seen people going inside, he said.
He also noted that the home is across the street from Columbus Free Methodist Church, which tries to take care of some homeless individuals as a part of its ministry.
Barnett has been trying to reach Carrington for almost a month but has not gotten a response. The city previously had similar issues with the company over a property on Fairview Drive, he said.
“My only alternative is to condemn the property and order (the owner) that it be cleaned out within 30 days,” said Barnett. “And then if not, after 30 days the city would need to take legal actions to force that to happen.”
For the complete story, see Thursday’s Republic.
