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Cloverdale council taking action on former hotel
The former Midway Hotel north of Cloverdale has been an ongoing concern of the town council. The dilipadated building is unsafe, according to town officials.
CLOVERDALE -- The Cloverdale Town Council has voted to move forward with pursuing the former Midway Hotel north of Interstate 70 as an unsafe building.
The property at 2007 N. Main St., also referred to as the old Morrison property, has long been a discussion among the council and building inspector Mark Cassida. The former hotel and restaurant are currently owned by Bud Porter of Fresh Start Properties, who purchased the land several years ago.
In March, a soil study was performed by the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), which brought forward concerns from town officials about the condition of the property. Among the biggest issues were stacks of tires on the property, as well as Police Chief Mike Clark's report of his suspicion of people living in the dilapidated building.
At the March meeting, Redevelopment Commission president Wayne Galloway told the council, "We thought he (Porter) was going to do something with it, but basically it has gotten worse."
Cassida said while it appeared the tires had been removed from the property, in a recent sweep he found some of the tires previously complained about were placed into the rooms of the old hotel.
He noted excrement in what used to the be restaurant portion, as well as the building being stripped of any materials of value.
With the council's approval, Cassida will be reaching out to Porter once again to attempt action on the property. Town Attorney Alan Yackey said this first step will get the town in a position to move forward with the project.
Cassida said the end result of pursuing the Unsafe Building Law would hopefully be to demolish the structure. A rough estimate for demolishing the building and tearing out the concrete foundation would cost about $7,500. The building inspector added there is a good chance when a contractor learns about the materials inside the building either additional costs would be incurred or another route would need to be taken for removal. Cassida said it would be $7 to remove each tire and there are upwards of 50 throughout the south side of the hotel.
Cloverdale Police Chief Mike Clark said it appears people have been staying at the run-down building.
Yackey said the council should contact IDEM to inquire about assistance for proper disposal of the tires inside the building. Additionally, any extra costs incurred by the town having to remove the items if the property owner does not could result in a lien against the property.
Councilman Don Sublett noted the property has had 19 violations in the past three years, none of which have been dealt with.
"This is our town. This council has the power and authority to keep the town looking like it should," Sublett stressed.
Cassida also informed the council he spoke with Putnam County Emergency Management Director Tom Helmer Tuesday in regard to replacing the broken civil defense siren that had served as the town's tornado siren.
A grant has been secured to cover a large portion of the cost of the new siren and it is supposed to be installed at the park by mid-September.
Cassida said he has heard concerns from the community about there not being a siren in close proximity to the school. The other siren is located on the northern edge of town and cannot be heard downtown. He said this will ensure the school can hear the siren in the event of severe weather.
The discussion continued about the items left on the property of a barn on Stardust Way owned by resident Don Gedert. Last month, Jim Coy came to the council requesting a fence be placed around the property because it is an eyesore. He added recently there has been an addition of stacks of tires to the property.
Gedert countered the complaint with a settlement agreement from 2002, which allows him a 500-foot circumference around the barn to store items for his business. He said as for the tires, when people move out of one of his rental homes, they tend to leave behind tires. These items are stored until there is enough to take for recycling.
He stressed his refusal to place a fence around the property because he has already lost several thousands of dollars in materials to thieves already this year and a fence would only allow additional privacy to do so.
"All he has to do is look west instead of east when he drives up Stardust Road," Gedert said, referring to Coy.
Yackey said based on his understanding of the settlement agreement and photos provided of the property, the landowner appears to be in violation. He requested himself, the landowner, landowner's attorney and two council members meet to come to a resolution of the issue.
Cloverdale Township Trustee Dale Monnett came before the council again to request additional funding for the Volunteer Fire Department. In recent meetings, Monnett requested more money from the council to help with funding the department's equipment and materials.
Several years ago the department and a former Cloverdale Town Council signed a contract annually allotting $15,000 a year to the department. Monnett said the contract notes this would be a set amount unless the trustee came before the council requesting additional money. In the years since the contract was put in place, no trustee -- until now -- has requested additional funding.
The council said additional information was needed to request the funding, such as what the money would benefit. Clark offered help with future attempts to secure grants for the fire department.