A municipal board has dismissed an appeal challenging the demolition order for the Gastineau Apartments.
The City & Borough of Juneau had ordered James and Kathleen Barrett to demolish their derelict downtown apartment buildings in a May 28 letter because of dangerous building code violations. The Barretts were required to have applied for demolition and related permits by June 19; that’s the day the city received an appeal from James Barrett.
Friday, Juneau’s Building Code Board of Appeals puzzled over Barrett’s brief, one-page letter.
“It’s almost like he appealed to the wrong … I don’t think this is us,” said board member Brad Austin.
In the letter, James Barrett focuses on the city’s “extremely low” $50,000 appraisal value for the apartments. Barrett suggests that making that value public contributed directly to delays. He asks the city to squelch its public statements about the property that may discourage prospective investors, buyers or demolition contractors. He calls for an investigation of the city’s appraisal and another 6 months for an “independent” appraisal; the city’s valuation was handled by the head of the Sitka-based appraisal firm Horan & Company.
That said, the purview of the Building Code Board of Appeals is, of course, building codes.
“I don’t really see how the appraisal value has anything to do with the building code,” said board member Jeff Wilson.
After about 20 minutes of discussion, the board voted 4-0 to dismiss the appeal, because it didn’t contest building code violations or the validity of the demolition order.
The apartments have been uninhabitable since a November 2012 fire. The city declared the buildings a public nuisance soon after. Several deadlines for repairs or demolition have come and gone. City officials have been considering contracting for the demolition work independently and using a lien to recoup costs.
No one representing the owners attended Friday’s appeal meeting.
