After lengthy appeal, council gives owner 30 days to execute deed in lieu for dilapidated Waverly house

The council on Aug. 4 considered an appeal by property owner Jefferson Lee of a hearing examiner’s abatement order requiring demolition and removal of a severely dilapidated residence at 353 Southeast Waverly Avenue.

Greg Collins, the city’s special projects manager, presented photographs and a building-inspector report documenting water intrusion, missing and damaged framing, exposed electrical wiring, nonfunctional plumbing, vermin infestation and other conditions the city said rendered the structure unfit for human occupancy. Collins said the hearing examiner found the house to be a public nuisance under state statutory definitions and city code and issued an order requiring the owner to demolish and remove the property in 30 days or the city would do so and bill the owner.

Collins also presented a police-report summary showing 142 calls for service to the address since Dec. 2020, including assaults, burglaries and numerous disturbances. Collins advised council that the building-inspector had identified roughly 37 code items during a June 26 inspection and recommended demolition absent a full, code-compliant rehabilitation.

Jefferson Lee spoke to council, saying he had adopted relatives whose behavior contributed to damage in the home and that he had sought assistance from the Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Youth Villages and the Cherokee Nation. Lee said outside groups had verbally offered electrician and general-contracting support but had not committed funds while the abatement order stood. "I'm homeless. We're gonna be living on the streets," Lee said when asked what would happen if the home were demolished.

Council members probed timing, liens and enforcement options. The city attorney and staff explained the notice of dilapidation and lien is filed in county records as public notice but that no monetary lien has yet been calculated. Staff and council discussed a possible deed in lieu of foreclosure: the owner could transfer the property to a creditor, which would remove demolition risk if the creditor assumed obligation to repair and bring the house up to code.

After discussion the council voted to give Lee 30 days to execute a deed in lieu of foreclosure and to report back at the next regular council meeting; if the deed-in-lieu is not executed the demolition order would proceed. Several council members expressed concern for neighbors and the safety of occupants and said the deed-in-lieu provided a path that could avoid immediate displacement if the creditor acted promptly.