BZA counsel, building commissioner warn of court referral if demolition plans not filed by July 1

During the hearing on Docket 5-26-07B, Legal Counsel John Castele told the board the matter could properly be sent to court if the demolition and code compliance work were not completed before the board could consider a variance request. "If on July 1 there are no plans in place for the garage to come down, we will file in court. The court will have assistance in what we want to achieve," Castele said.

Building Commissioner Walter Maynard added that an illegal structure cannot be transferred, sold, or used to secure loans and confirmed the garage has been under citation for about two years. Maynard said staff had attempted to identify funding options for the owner, including heritage home loans and HELP loans, but that those programs did not work for the applicant's finances. He also noted that a basic building approval for new construction is valid for one year and that, if demolition occurs and a replacement is approved, the owner would have six months to build a new garage.

The board did not direct an immediate alternative compliance pathway at the meeting; instead it denied the variance as premature because demolition had not been completed. Staff listed a planned follow-up task to verify demolition compliance with a target tied to the July 1 court timeline.