Councilors aim to secure dangerous structures

12 years ago

By Natalie Bazinet
Staff Writer

CARIBOU — Agreeing with the sentiments of Caribou’s Code Enforcement Officer Steve Wentworth, the Caribou City Council sent two more properties to the city attorney’s desk in hope that action will be taken to rectify code violations.

One property, located at 20 Collins Street, was defined as an attractive nuisance while the other, at 876 Sweden Street, is in violation of the junkyard ordinance.

Much time of the Aug. 27 City Council meeting was spent discussing the Collins Street property because, as Wentworth described, the front door is currently left wide open.

“The property has been vacant for several years; at present, the current residents are raccoons, squirrels, cats, and I believe rats,” Wentworth said, adding that the raccoon is a big mean one.

Undoubtedly, the city has been receiving complaints about the property from neighbors.

Describing how the residents around 20 Collins Street have done an excellent job in keeping up their properties, Wentworth expressed his concerns to the council.

“I would consider this building being left in this condition an attractive nuisance to juveniles or the homeless,” he said. “Being left wide open definitely poses a threat of someone getting in there and getting hurt.”

The second property, at 876 Sweden Street, was also discussed during the meeting.     

“Junk cars, piles of debris, piles of old lumber — the place has become somewhat of a junkyard,” Wentworth described.

The council did agree to send both property issues to the city’s attorney to begin the legal process that should eventually result in improved facility conditions.

The council also discussed two tax-acquired properties that the city has not yet taken possession of — the former Bub’s Carpentry building on Water Street and the former Dan’s Living Center on Broadway Street.

“The properties are tax acquired though the city has not taken possession [of them], but if you take a look and you see the potential for kids getting into these buildings and potential for getting hurt, in the best interest of safety, it may be time for the city to step up to the plate and take some responsibility by either having these buildings dropped in their footprints so that kids and vagrants can’t get into them or to possibly take them down and haul them away,” Wentworth said.

The council also discussed the former Birdseye property, which has certainly seen better days.

“I think it would be in the community’s best interest to clean up that site, at least so that it doesn’t present that initial impression to someone coming in to Caribou that ‘this is what Caribou looks like,’” Wentworth said, and the council seemed in agreement.

As the former Birdseye property is privately owned, Councilor Philip McDonough suggested that Wentworth begin communications with the current owner to address the situation.

The council also discussed future meetings, including one held last night at the Caribou Inn and Convention Center with department heads.

As described by Interim City Manager Peggy Daigle, the workshop for the council and department heads was open to the public, though this was not the time for public participation.

Almost like a mini-retreat, Daigle expressed that a relaxed, friendly atmosphere with the department heads would help get the group back on track from the past budget season to develop a good working relationship going forward into this upcoming budget season.

When questioned when the public would get to meet with department heads to voice their concerns, Councilor Bryan Thompson quickly looked it up and suggested early October.

The next meeting of the Caribou City Council will inherently be historic, as it will be the meeting that the first deadline of the new charter applies. The meeting will be held Monday, Sept. 10 at 7 p.m. in the Councilors Chambers.