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Willows to demolish burned, condemned building at 143 North Yolo using weed-abatement funds
Summary
City staff told the council the burned multi-family structure at 143 North Yolo is a total loss and poses a life-safety hazard. Staff recommended using existing weed-abatement grant funds (about $30,000 quoted) to demolish the structure; council approved the consent calendar that includes related abatement authority.
Willows City staff said a recently burned, condemned multi‑family building at 143 North Yolo will be declared an immediate life‑and‑safety hazard and removed, with staff planning to use current weed‑abatement grant funds to pay for demolition.
"The structure is pretty much, like, total loss at this point," the Fire Chief told the council, describing fire, smoke and water damage and saying there were no injuries. The chief said the burned shell now poses a larger hazard than the pre‑fire condition.
City Manager Martie Brown told the council the city received a contractor quote of about $30,000 to bring the site into compliance and remove the hazard. Brown said the city has roughly $50,000 left in a weed‑abatement grant and that staff will try to amend the grant or reallocate salary funds to cover mandated abatements: "I would recommend that we go ahead and use the grant money for January so we can demolish it as quickly as possible," she said, while warning the council the grant may run short later in the season and staff might return for additional funds.
Council members and the fire chief discussed recovery of costs through liens or receivership. The chief said the city would record additional liens and pursue recovery but cautioned the city is unlikely to recover all costs; an auction or tax foreclosure could be years away.
The matter was discussed in the period before the consent vote. Council approved the consent calendar — which included a weed‑abatement contract (a not‑to‑exceed figure was on the consent calendar) — and directed staff to proceed with abatement and demolition using available grant funds, with the understanding staff will return if the grant cannot be amended and further funding is required.
The council did not adopt a new ordinance or change municipal code in tonight's action; staff said the abatement will proceed under existing code authority and with contractor work ordered to remove the immediate hazard.
Implementation details: staff said the city contractor quote was approximately $30,000; the city has about $50,000 remaining in the weed‑abatement grant but acknowledged that using the money now could reduce funds available for the rest of the season. Staff said they will record liens for cost recovery and explore grant amendments or future council requests for supplemental funding.
