On Thursday, November 2nd, a Notice of Abatement was attached to the abandoned building at Ebers and Greene streets by the City of San Diego, ordering the owner, Curtis Nelson of Nelco Properties, LLC, to take “immediate actions” to clean up the site and secure all the openings on the building. The owner was given until November 17th to comply with the legal order.
It stated:
Immediate Actions Required of You
A. You are required to remove all litter, rubbish and debris from the property. You shall board and secure EVERY UNSECURED OPENING IN THE STRUCTURE and clean the site by November 17, 2017. You must secure the property to the following specifications:
All waste and rubbish and all accumulated debris that pose a fire or health hazard within or upon the property or premises shall be permanently removed.
Photo taken Nov. 16, 2017 by Frank Gormlie
It is now November 17th and the owner has failed to comply. In fact, neighbors say the conditions at the site are even worse than they were when the owner was cited.
Nov. 16, 2017
It was a month ago, on October 17th, when representatives of the City’s Code Enforcement Division and the Development Services Department inspected the property. They found it to be a vacate building with graffiti and lots of trash. The inspectors found enough threats on the property to the public ‘s health and safety that they declared it to be a public nuisance pursuit to a number of Municipal and State codes.
The action by the City was prompted in large part by numerous complaints by local neighbors, pressure on Councilwoman’s Zapf’s office by citizens and most recently, a letter from the OB Planning Board chair demanding the site to be declared a public nuisance and dealt with.
This project, of course, has been in the OB public eye for awhile, as the OB Rag has been following the ups and downs of the controversial construction project. See this background post by Geoff Page.
For one, the owner/ contractor of the project, Curtis Nelson, had his contractor’s license suspended on March 23, 2017 “for failure to comply with an Arbitration Award.” Hmmm.
What happens next?
The city could fine Nelson daily until he complies, or it could place a lien on the property, or both.
But, it still stands there, an eyesore, a dangerous and unsightly place, filled with trash – and evidence somebody’s living there.
Hey, call Councilwoman Lori Zapf’s office, to let her know nothing has happened. Phone: (619) 236-6622 | Fax: (619) 236-7329, and email – loriezapf@sandiego.gov
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
I just saw a homeless guy digging through the trash inside the building.
This is not the preferred gateway to OB.
Seems like a lot of free wood and electrical bits now available. Planter boxes, backyard forts, plywood for upcoming winter storms?…what”s the phrase? Lemons to lemonade? :-)
I saw workers at the site this morning cleaning up.
I heard it was in foreclosure so I thought maybe it was bank owned but I guess not.