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Wrecking balls and bulldozers can’t arrive soon enough for the people unfortunate enough to live near Woodland Meadows. For the even more unfortunate, those who live in the troubled apartment complex, its demise only can bring better circumstances.
The 52-acre East Side landmark finally has reached the end of a long, miserable road. Its history of neglect, decay, poverty, crime and fear should come to a merciful end this summer with the razing of its 122 buildings.
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The place should be torn down.
Amen to this. Vacant lots are ugly, but this just goes to show that it can always be worse. Never mind that the parcel will be worth much more as a large whole than piecemeal.
By Barbara Carmen and Mark Ferenchik
The Columbus Dispatch
Tuesday, November 28, 2006 11:43 PM
Landlord Jorge Newbery has been arrested by fed-up city officials who accuse him of failing to fix his blighted, storm-damaged property.
But the arrest wasn’t here, where the Woodland Meadows owner is fighting city efforts to tear down his vacant 122-building complex.
It was in Beaumont, Texas, where tenants of Pear Orchard Plaza Apartments complain of vermin infestations, water running down walls and collapsing ceilings. And, just like Woodland Meadows, many buildings lack doors and windows.
Beaumont officials said Newbery didn’t appear in court earlier this month on charges that he allowed his property to fester and decay, despite collecting more than $300,000 in insurance for hurricane damage.
In Columbus, Newbery is to appear Dec. 18 in Franklin County Environmental Court to fight a city lawsuit to use public dollars to raze the vacant Woodland Meadows.
On Monday, Mayor Michael B. Coleman branded Woodland Meadows, situated between the airport and Bexley, as Public Enemy No. 1.
City and federal housing officials shut the complex in the spring, citing health and safety hazards. Newbery hopes to redevelop the 52-acre site, but city officials say he first faces a $2 million demolition bill and $15 million in liens. So they want to tear down the 122 buildings and slap a lien on the property.
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Is the rundownedness the fault soley of the landlord?
I think NOT. Surely theres some blame to place on the “inhabitants” that lived there not being the best renters around.
Well, a shitty property attracts shitty tennants. Also, it is primarily the property-owners responsibility for the condition of the property.
Seriously? The owner bought the run-down property in 2002, got $13 million in bonds from Franklin County to help renovate it in 2003, and now it’s almost 2007 and the place is untouched.
The place is vacant. There are no “bad tennants” there causing problems. It’s totally the fault of the landlord.
Actually, it is. Property owners are just that, owners. Property ownership is a responsibility, and people who aren’t prepared to shoulder that responsibility should not be owners, particularly on such a large scale.
Also, keep in mind that this is not a black and white issue. There are shades of grey in terms of “neglectful” property ownership. Property owners who simply don’t repaint the trim or re-gravel a parking lot as often as they might are, shall we say, a rather chalky light grey. We don’t, and shouldn’t, bother them. They’ll make a little less in rent than they might, but otherwise, no harm, no foul.
Woodland Meadows is at the other end of the spectrum … black if you believe in black and white, and so dark grey as to be damn near indistinguishable if you believe in just shades of grey. The place is a pit. It’s literally worth less than $0 … the liabilities are greater than the assets. This is why Columbus isn’t just condemning and confiscating the property, but trying to get money out of Newbery as well. They would actually be giving him a net benefit if they merely took the place off his hands.
Listen, Paul (if thats even your real name) I’m not going to get into a dispute about which came first, the shitty lowlife tennants or the shitty landlord. So what now? New build construction there, filled back up section 8 style, only to be so heavily abused by undeserving tennants that the landlord can’t keep up and so it turns into Woodland Meadows Redeux? I’m not for that, Paul.