The property at 330 N. Buffalo St., Warsaw, was purchased by the City of Warsaw and its case was dismissed at a Code Hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 26. InkFreeNews photo by Brianna Pitts.

By Brianna Pitts
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — A case against property at 330 N. Buffalo St., Warsaw, was dismissed during a Code Hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 26.

According to Code Enforcement Officer Dana Hewitt, the property has officially been bought by the City of Warsaw. The city has plans to demolish the structure and build something else in the future.

225 N. Fort Wayne Ave.

A Fort Wayne Avenue property owner was fined $500 for failing to address citations for three years.

In 2020, letters were sent out to KS&F Properties to notify them of violations at 225 N. Fort Wayne Ave. During COVID-19, this property was forgotten until recently when another complaint was filed.

On May 10, another letter was sent out and no progress or contact has been made since. Hewitt and Building Inspector Rob Hurford visited the residence on Sept. 25 to inspect the property and saw they were still in violation of the code due to  unfinished siding on the exterior and uncleaned gutters. Hearing Officer Thomas Earhart fined the owners of the property $500 and continued the property to the next code hearing, with Earhart expecting it to be finished at that time.

707 E. Center St.

Wise Properties Management could have a fine up to $1,000 if an outdoor stair project at 707 E. Center St. is not finished by Sept. 26.

The property has been discussed at the last three code hearings with promises made by John Wise to have this completed shortly; however, it has not been completed to code regulations. The property needs to have either a guardrail on the east side of the stairs or place dirt mounds to bring it up to code.

Hurford claimed he believed Wise was not taking this seriously enough and suggested a fine of $1,000. Wise said he had a couple of deaths in the family and was trying to complete the work the best he could without any contracting experience. Ultimately, Earhart decided to give him until the end of Sept. 26 to complete the work.

1508 Ranch Road

Two different complaints were received on the 1508 Ranch Road property about tall weeds, grass and many lawn mowers in the yard. Progress has been made since a letter was sent. The grass and weeds were taken care of and someone was scheduled to pick up the lawn mowers. This case will be continued at the next meeting.

Cases Dismissed

• Little Crow Lofts’ case was dismissed at the meeting as it had completed all the necessary renovations to be up to code.
• The case for 611 Austin Drive was dismissed as the previous owner sold the property and the new owner has acquired the proper building permits.

Other Business:

• The owner of 317 N. Union St., DeWayne Busz, received a fine of $500 for not continuing renovations after a case against his property was dismissed in September 2021. The new owner by land contract has attained the appropriate building permits and was given 90 days to complete the unfinished projects.
• Both properties, owned by Shafer Rentals, 212 Wedrick Drive, Warsaw and 1017 E. Ft. Wayne St., Warsaw are making progress and will be continued at the next Code Hearing.
• The 1340 Gable Drive property is currently in the foreclosure process by the mortgage company.
• The Economy Inn, 3521 Lake City Highway, Warsaw, has made significant progress in their five section renovation and will be continued at the next meeting.

The next Code Hearing will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, October 31 in City Hall.