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About the homes

Seven dilapidated homes located in the Marietta and Harmar historic districts are slated for demolition after the city completes a memorandum of understanding on the properties with the Ohio Historical Society.

• 603 Virginia St.., circa 1902, Rod Cody, owner.

• 401 Lord St., circa 1900, Peggy Bland, owner.

• 120 Ward St., circa 1920, Roger Clark, owner.

• 142 Franklin St., circa 1870, George McIntire, owner.

• 136 1/2 Harmar St., circa 1920, Theresa and Jason Erb, owners.

• 807 Front St., circa 1900, Tom Dillard, owner.

• 532 Fifth St., circa 1890, Cameron Collett, owner.

It's been a long time coming, but Jean Freeland, 82, of 805 Front St., will finally see the dilapidated house next door at 807 Front St. come tumbling down.

"It's just destroying the property values in this neighborhood," Freeland said. "When we moved here in 1971 it was in pretty good shape, but the family moved away and it's been broken into several times. Once we found a mattress on the floor with candles all around it and bottles where someone had been drinking all night.

"I'll be glad to see it go," she said.

The two-story structure, built around 1900, is one of seven blighted homes in the Marietta and Harmar historic districts targeted for removal through the Neighborhood Stabilization Program, a three-year, five-county initiative funded by more than $1 million in federal stimulus dollars.

Freeland noted that the 807 Front St. property has been on the city's demolition list for some time.

"The owner lives out of town, and is not interested in trying to keep the property up. It's a large house, but is not suitable for human occupancy and it's beyond repair," Emily Stewart, assistant planner with Washington-Morgan Community Action, said during a public meeting at Gilman United Methodist Church Thursday.

Community Action is an administrator of a $1,065,000 grant being budgeted over three years among Washington, Morgan, Athens, Perry and Hocking counties for blighted property removal.

Thursday's meeting was to receive any public comments or concerns about tearing down the seven structures in the local historic districts.

Stewart said the owners have given written consent for demolition of all seven properties.

Another home, a Queen Anne structure built around 1890 and located at 532 Fifth St., has fallen into so much disrepair that it has become a safety hazard, according to Stewart.

"There's a lot of structural problems, a hole in the roof, and issues with the soffit and fascia," she said. "Animals are also getting into the house and the property is overgrown, creating a health and safety hazard. And the neighbors are definitely in support of demolishing the home."

Wayne Rinehart, with the city engineering department, said due to financial constraints the owner of the Fifth Street property could not take the house down.

"If the property owner doesn't tear it down, the city can do it, but if the owner does not consent to that, the city has to take it to court to get permission, then demolish the property and charge the work back to the property taxes," Rinehart explained. "But this stabilization program allows the property to be taken down at no cost to the owner."

A two-story home at 603 Virginia St. in the Harmar district, built in 1902, is also slated for removal.

"The owner had planned to restore this house, but there was a fire and the roof is now completely gone," Stewart said. "I've seen inside the home and the damage there is remarkable."

She said siding, walls and windows are also missing.

"There's an empty lot next door, and with this house down there would be a nice large, level lot to develop," Stewart said.

"Most of these property owners are at the point they can do nothing else with the homes," she said. "And this program is a great opportunity for them, as well as a good way to restore the surrounding neighborhoods."

Jim Baker, director of planning and development with Washington Morgan Community Action, said the next step will be to develop a memorandum of understanding with the Ohio Historical Society to obtain final permission to raze the structures.

He added that requests for bids to tear down seven other structures, not located within historic districts, would be going out as early as next week.

Dawn Rauch with Community Action added that the timeframe for demolition of the historic district homes would depend on how soon the state historical society signs off on the memorandum of understanding.

Demolition of each of the 14 properties is estimated to cost around $12,000.