Appeals committee upholds cleanup order for 1140 Chula Vista after owner seeks more time to sell

Blount County's Public Services Appeals Committee on Tuesday upheld the building commissioner's determination that the property at 1140 Chula Vista in Friendsville must be cleaned up, voting to sustain the order after hearing from county staff, the property owner and a county commissioner.

The committee heard a presentation from Cameron Buckner, who summarized a packet of six citizen complaints and county correspondence dating to 2023. Buckner said the appealed 01/07/2026 letter included “the quote of the $30,800” as the lowest bid to clean up the property and described the house and lot as in visible disrepair and unmowed for years.

Owner and appellant Larry Crowell appeared at the podium and said he did not dispute the property condition but asked the committee for an extension to pursue private-sale offers. “I don't dispute any of this,” Crowell said. He told the board he had received multiple unsolicited offers and cited one offer “for $447,750,” and said he was working with a Knoxville realtor, Dave Campbell, though he had not yet listed the property.

A staff member advising the committee noted a statutory 60-day window for judicial review and said the statute generally does not permit administrative extensions because it requires prompt action. “There is under the statute ... the period runs 60 days,” the staff member said, and recommended the committee wait for that period to expire before taking enforcement steps.

Crowell told the committee the 60-day period would be acceptable and said he would use the time to pursue the sale and to salvage any remaining items from the house. County Commissioner Ron French (District 9, Seat A), who spoke during public comment, urged the committee to act, saying the owner had been contacted repeatedly since 2023 and that the committee was created to enforce the statute: “We've given him 3 years ... I just think it's time for us to take action.”

After discussion, a committee member moved to uphold the building commissioner's determination. The motion was seconded, the committee voted in favor by voice and the motion carried. The committee did not specify a secondary administrative extension beyond the statutory and judicial review periods; staff advised waiting out the 60-day window prescribed by statute before any county cleanup enforcement would proceed.

The committee's action preserves the building commissioner's finding that the property meets the county's standard for required cleanup; the owner may seek judicial review within the 60-day statutory window. The meeting adjourned after the vote.