Codes board allows Myra Avenue resident to return if four rooms are made sanitary within 30 days; neighbors raise pest concerns

The East Ridge Codes Enforcement Board on Thursday granted resident Myra Trotter 30 days to clean four specific areas of her home at 3406 Myra Avenue — the bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and hallway — and allowed her to return if code staff deemed those spaces sanitary and safe.

Codes inspector Tori Holder told the board that, because of sanitary concerns, staff’s immediate focus should be those four rooms. Holder said if those rooms are “completely top notch” staff could allow Trotter to return while cleanup of the rest of the house continues. Board members emphasized that the return would be conditional on staff’s inspection and any structural or sanitary hazards being absent.

Trotter, who told the board she had been hospitalized for psychiatric treatment in August, said she is working daily on debris removal, has scheduled an exterminator and that “I don't wanna lose my home.” She also said she has limited family support but that some church members might be able to help.

The board adopted a motion to allow Trotter 30 days to finish the four specified areas and to return the matter to the board on Oct. 8 for review. Members warned that if staff reports insufficient progress, the board has authority under city ordinances to order a city-contracted cleanup, the cost of which could be placed as a lien on the property.

During public comments following the hearings, neighbors described pest infestations they said originated at the Myra Avenue property. Neighbor Valerie Ballard Hayes said animal-control officers found multiple pest species at the property, including German cockroaches, and that a dumpster placed at the site had exacerbated pests coming onto adjacent driveways and into homes. Ballard Hayes said she and family members have had to pay for pest-control supplies and storage for items removed from the house.

Codes staff explained that the city's fire department had concerns about using a tenting fumigation method on a property in its current condition because an enclosed tent can increase fire hazard if the structure contains combustible debris. Staff said any fumigation option would need the house cleaned to a safer condition before tenting could be considered.