The long-abandoned home is the first of three structures slated to be destroyed within the month.
“I am really pleased to see that the efforts of our planning and development departments regarding addressing the issue of substandard structures are finally being realized,” said Kenny Smith, Griffin city manager.
Smith took part in the demolition, swinging his sledgehammer near the beginning of the process to visibly show how committed he was to the project.
For years Griffin has been plagued with substandard housing and the inability to deal with it. Finding the homeowners and tangled court cases have caused Griffin officials problems with effectively eliminating the structures in the past.
In the case of the Crawford Street home there were six owners of the dilapidated structure, according to Frederick Gardiner, director of the Griffin Planning and Development Department.
“There are six entities that have ties to this home — three are banks and mortgage companies — some are out of Florida,” he said.
The Planning and Development Department has identified 600 homes within the city limit that can be classified as substandard structures.
Gardiner said that “severe neglect” has caused the homes to be in this situation.
The city has requested funds in the fiscal year 2007-08 budget specifically for the demolition of substandard structures.
“I am confident that if the budget is approved as presented on June 12, that we will be demolishing several more substandard houses during the next 12 months,” Smith said.
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