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Hurricane Street property shows exterior improvements; hearing continued to April 16
Summary
At a Franklin City unsafe-building hearing, the property owner reported exterior repairs and the city agreed to an interior inspection; the hearing was continued to April 16, 2025 at 2 p.m. The hearing officer will review whether a $200 assessment converted to a tax lien can be vacated.
Judge Mark Lloyd, hearing officer for Franklin City, continued the compliance hearing for a structure on the 500 block of Hurricane Street to April 16, 2025 at 2 p.m., after city staff reported exterior repairs and the property owner described ongoing work and a recent payment of a $200 assessment.
Senior Planner Alex Schedchel of the City of Franklin told the hearing the property has “significantly improved,” that the owner pulled a remodel permit a few months ago and that the city has not yet completed an interior inspection. Schedchel said the city wants an interior inspection to confirm the structure’s condition before removing the unsafe designation.
Owner Stephen Laycox said he paid a $200 cleanup fine during a tax payment and provided photographs of the property’s condition when he acquired it and subsequent repairs. “I went ahead and paid it,” Laycox said, and asked whether the assessment could be vacated in light of his cleanup efforts.
Schedchel said the clerk treasurer’s office had transferred the assessment to Johnson County as a tax lien, limiting the city’s administrative ability to remove it. Judge Lloyd directed Schedchel to gather the clerk treasurer’s documentation about the $200 assessment and to provide that information to the hearing officer so Lloyd can determine whether the hearing process can address reversal of the assessment.
Laycox described remaining work: windows and an odd-sized door still on order and interior cleanup. He estimated roughly three months, with a possible week delay for scheduled personal travel, to finish exterior and interior repairs. The city agreed the owner’s timeline was reasonable but asked to schedule an interior inspection “sooner than later,” ideally within the next month or a few weeks, to determine structural soundness.
Judge Lloyd stated the parties were in agreement that the matter will be updated on April 16, 2025 at 2:00 p.m., and that the owner and the city will coordinate an interior inspection within the next 30 days. The city planner will also attempt to provide a mailing address for the property owner by the end of the week and will send the clerk treasurer’s documentation about the $200 assessment to the hearing officer for review.
The hearing record includes photographs the owner supplied; Judge Lloyd admitted the photographs into the record as Hearing Exhibit A (eight parts).
