Residents seek help to restore century-old home; councilor seeks stamped engineering report on North Highland Park retaining wall

During public comment at the March 3 meeting, resident Jack William Warren Jones (who identified himself and provided an ID reference and address) asked the council to continue working with his family on repairs to a decades-old house at 1037 Seventh Street. He said tarping was in place but had blown back in strong winds and that a licensed structural engineer had provided an assessment; he asked the city to consider restoration rather than demolition and said his family had complied with prior requirements.

Neighbor Deborah Lane Taylor Robinson and other commenters urged the council to grant the family assistance, describing the Warren/Jones family’s long local legacy and asking for grace in the process.

Separately, Councilor Jackson raised infrastructure concerns about the green section of the retaining wall at North Highland Park. He said staff responses and a former city engineer’s written comments indicated no stamped structural engineering evaluation exists for that section — only a preliminary/visual letter. Citing visible vertical cracks in multiple courses, soil migration and the fact the wall retains public basketball courts, Jackson asked the council to obtain a stamped structural evaluation (including load calculations and drainage analysis) before making long-term decisions to retain the wall.

Councilors requested that existing structural documentation, if it exists, be provided to the council; if it does not exist, Jackson urged the city consider commissioning a stamped evaluation.