Knoxville public officer orders repairs or demolition for six properties after safety inspections

Nicholas Bradshaw, the public officer designated by the mayor, found multiple Knoxville properties out of compliance with city building and property-maintenance codes at a March 27 hearing and ordered owners to repair or demolish structures within set deadlines.

Bradshaw opened the hearing by listing the adopted codes that inform enforcement, including recent International Code Council editions, the National Electrical Code and the city’s property-maintenance provisions. Scott Elder, neighborhood codes enforcement manager, then presented inspection findings across the docket, citing collapsed retaining walls, roof openings that “you can see daylight through,” fire burnouts, and repeated nuisance calls.

For 3119 Woodbine Avenue, Elder described severe roof failure and a partially collapsed retaining wall that he said had caused bricks and walls to shift. Owner Arianne Kitchen told the hearing she bought the property in 2023 for $32,000, said she secured financing in February and that a contractor applied for permits in early March. “I acquired this property back in 2023. I paid…