City officials on Tuesday agreed to remove an order to demolish a property on Maple Street to clear the way for a potential buyer to get permits needed to fix it up.
Columbus Board of Public Works and Safety members removed an order to demolish the property at 2007 Maple St. A previously approved order to condemn, vacate and take legal action on the home remains in place.
Code Enforcement Coordinator Fred Barnett told board members that the owner of the home is in jail and his brother, who is acting as power of attorney, is looking to sell the home.
Barnett indicated there is a potential buyer interested in the home, however the order to demolish would prevent the potential buyer from getting the building permit required to make needed repairs.
“(The power of attorney’s) intent is to sell it, but if he couldn’t sell it, he was going to demolish it,” Barnett said. “But now he’s got someone who is a potential buyer, and I’d much rather it be bought by someone who is going to fix it up than someone that’s going to demolish it.”
The house is still not suitable for dwelling, Barnett said, adding that the action the board is taking is similar to one they took in the past month on a home on Franklin Street.
The idea is that the potential buyer would make needed repairs to the property and then sell it again, Barnett said, although it may take three or four months for the renovation to begin if the sale does in fact move forward.
The property is currently owned by David Frank, according to online property records.
