Thursday morning members of the Marshall County Unsafe Building & Premises Board met in the second-floor meeting room of the County Building.
The board conducted a hearing for the Eugene and Virginia Gruwell property at 16514 Sheryl Court in Plymouth. During the hearing it was stated that the Gruwells are deceased and the mortgage on the property is not held by a local financial institution. A notice of the hearing was posted in the newspaper and to an agency that collects this information and distributes it to mortgage companies but at this point no individual or company has stepped forward to accept responsibility.
County Building Inspector Steve Howard said the home is uninhabitable in its current state but could be rehabbed with some hard work.
The Marshall County Unsafe Building Board voted to assess a $100 daily fine until action is taken to make the needed repairs and improvements.
In other business the board was updated on several other properties.
17149 Lincoln Highway west of Plymouth is owned by Jerry Haeck. The structure has 4 or 5 apartments, and the septic has failed. During the meeting Faith Chapman from the Health Department said there is still someone living at the location. The case will be back before the judge again on August 24th for being in contempt.
17036 Tamarack Road in Culver is owned by George Hopple. The board has been working with the property owner for quite a while. Howard said he’s done a little more clean up but it’s progressing slowly. The Health Department is also involved on this property due to a septic issue.
590 West Jefferson Street in Culver is owned by Larry Boetsma. This property burned a while ago and no action has been taken to clean it up. Boetsma has obtained a demolition permit but hasn’t taken any action. The County Unsafe Building Board determined the building unsafe and implemented a $100 a day fine and will notify Boetsma of the fine letting him know to avoid it, demolition and clean up must happen.
16309 State Road 17 in Culver, Randy’s Bait Shop is owned by Randall Walter although he is deceased. His brother was on the property yesterday and did some mowing and cut some trees, but they haven’t made contact with the Building Inspector to get a resolution to the safety issues and clean up. A letter was sent in June accessing a $100 daily fine with no results.
15863 Cook Lake Trail in Plymouth is owned by Linda Ward. She no longer lives at the home and has turned off the gas and electricity. She has made arrangements with the County Building Inspector to do a walk through to assess the situation next week. She asked and was granted more time.
15762 Menominee Drive in Plymouth is owned by Herkie and Edna Swihart who are deceased. A soil scientist was hired by the sister and has been at the property and a preliminary design was received by the Health Department for the new septic. There will also need to be some site cleanup.
17915 Vine Street in Plymouth is owned by Terry and Susan Boswell. Faith Chapman from the Health Department said there is still ponding of sewage in the yard from the failed septic. The owners are evicting the tenants by the end of the month. They will then have the septic system evaluated after they move out and determine the issues.
Under New Business the County Building Inspector said he received a complaint from a neighbor about a barn collapse on Grape Road. The property is owned by Mishlers. A letter was sent this week to the individual and Mr. Howard will wait to see if it sparks any action.
