"Eventually things do start improving:" Long vacant home between Carnegie Center, LCCAA Head Start torn down

LORAIN — A longstanding eyesore came down Friday morning. The long-vacant home at 1039 Streator Place, sandwiched between Lorain County Community Action Agency's Head Start on Reid Avenue and the Lorain Historical Society's Carnegie Center on West 10th Street, met the crunch of an excavator while local officials watched. Lorain Historical Society Executive Director Barb Piscopo was excited to see the property come down after years of looking at it out of the Carnegie Center's windows and calling Lorain police and fire for problems there. She said there have been a lot of improvement in the neighborhood recently, from other blighted properties on the block meeting the excavator to neighbors fixing up their homes and Streator Park getting new equipment. "Eventually things do start improving — it takes time," she said. "People have to be patient. Change just doesn't happen overnight. But as long as everybody is persistent and everybody works together, it happens." The red, two-story house was the last one left on a block that had been home to five single-family homes at one time. All five fell into states of disrepair and met the wrecking ball over the years, Lorain County Community Action Agency CEO Jackie Boehnlein said. With the final house gone, LCCAA's plan is to expand its footprint into the cleared lots by the end of 2025. The expansion will include additional parking for staff, an outdoor classroom and a sensory garden with flowers, vegetables and other plans for children to explore. "We know that there were homeless people that were using it at one point, we know that there were small fires in the house at different points," Boehnlein said. "So we're very happy to have it come down." The demolition and asbestos abatement cost $20,000, paid out of the city's general fund. Building, Housing and Planning Director Matt Kusznir said using the general fund money allocated for demolitions was quicker than waiting for Community Development Block Grant funds to be available. The property was transferred to the County Land Bank in May. Prior to that, the home was owned by Global Sustainable Technology and Development LLC. The California-based company received a demolition notice from the city in March, according to records obtained by The Chronicle-Telegram. At that time, more than $4,500 was owed in unpaid taxes. Building Inspector Andy Arocho said Thursday the property had a "laundry list" of violations, including damage to its interior and roof and missing windows on the first floor that left it open to the elements. Mayor Jack Bradley said the property was a haven for homeless people, and he highlighted the need for permanent supportive housing in the city so people aren't "living in dilapidated homes that are unsafe." Plans for supportive housing for chronically homeless individuals at East 21st and Broadway have stalled. Councilwoman Victoria Kempton, D-2nd Ward, thanked the city for clearing the lot. "Getting a house demolished is not a fast or easy process," she said. The property was on Lorain's previous demo list dating back to 2017, Chief Building Official Dave Faciana said, and added to its new list this year. The new list was created earlier this year after building inspectors canvassed the city to rate properties from worst to salvageable, Faciana said. His department has received quotes back on 23 other properties slated for demolition, and the house on Streator Placce was the fifth torn down in the past two weeks. He estimated an additional five or six will be down before the end of August. "A lot of these blighted homes, (the owners) are either deceased and the family wants nothing to do with them, or they're just absentee landlords or owners," he said, leaving the city to try to foreclose on those with back taxes and handle the blight itself. Alongside increasing demolitions the city plans to start a "clean and lien" program, he said. That program will allow city workers to clean yards filled with debris or junk and assess the properties for the work — similar to when city workers have to cut tall grass on private properties. "All it's going to do is help property values at the end of the day," he said. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.