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Edmore manager directed to seek attorney involvement to address long-running blight at 315 S. Fifth Street
Summary
Council discussion and manager report on Dec. 9 noted 11 of 12 possible code violations have been contacted; the council directed Manager Mark Borden to contact the village attorney about 315 S. Fifth St. and to pursue court action if necessary after roughly six years of unresolved issues.
During the Dec. 9 Edmore Village Council meeting, Village Manager Mark Borden reported progress on a list of code-enforcement cases and highlighted a single property — 315 S. Fifth Street — that remains unresolved after approximately six years of efforts.
Borden told the council that of the 12 potential violations on the village's original list, 11 have been contacted and are either closed or have a plan in place to remedy the violation. He advised the council that the remaining property has not responded sufficiently to prior steps and recommended sending a formal letter from the village attorney and pursuing court action if necessary. Council discussion supported escalating the matter; the manager was instructed to contact the attorney to send a letter and to continue into court if needed. No formal lawsuit or timeline was recorded in the minutes.
Council members also discussed options for code enforcement and possible part-time, non-staff code-enforcement assistance. The council directed DPW staff to report observed blight to the manager and asked Borden to seek authority through the magistrate process to be able to write citations and obtain a citation book when appropriate.
The manager's report listed example addresses that had recent action: 319 N Fifth St., 219 N Third St., 114 E Forrest St., 526 E Gilson, 518 E Gilson, 219 S Fifth and 611 First St. The transcript notes a long-running effort to remedy the single outstanding property and a plan to involve legal counsel; it does not record a vote authorizing litigation or specify a court filing date.
The council's direction is a staff-level escalation and not a formal court action recorded in the meeting minutes. Follow-up items include the manager contacting the attorney, DPW reporting ongoing blight observations, and manager pursuit of magistrate authorization to issue citations.
