ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, December 3, 1996 TAG: 9612030088
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAN CASEY STAFF WRITER
MEMO: ***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on December 4, 1996.
An incorrect photo accompanied a story Tuesday about two houses being
torn down in Gainsboro. The house on the right burned down some time
ago. A contractor leveled the two homes to its left last week.
Roanoke will search building inspection files for hundreds of historic properties to ensure that no more structures are torn down before demolition permits are properly reviewed, city officials said on Monday.
Meanwhile, after the razing of two Historic Gainsboro houses last week, the city attorney is reviewing any possible civil or criminal actions it could take against the buildings' owner, Calvin Powers.
These actions, presented by City Manager Bob Herbert and City Attorney Wilburn Dibling, resulted from Powers' demolishing the homes at 319 and 321 Jefferson St. NE on Wednesday.
The city maintains that Powers was told in writing in March that he could not tear down the houses without first going before the Architectural Review Board, which oversees residential and commercial construction in the city's historic districts.
But Powers ignored the board and demolished the houses anyway after getting demolition permits from a building inspections clerk. One council member described the issuance of the permits as a ``procedural fluke.''
"We've got options that we have to review," Dibling said. "I'm very much appalled by what has occurred and will take whatever action is in the public's interest to attempt to deter similar actions in the future."
As he did last week, Powers declined to comment Monday.
Although the buildings weren't demolished until Wednesday, Powers first applied to tear them down a year ago. Officials in various city departments approved the razings because no historic district existed in Gainsboro at the time.
But the city succeeded in talking Powers out of tearing the houses down and they were boarded up instead. In February, City Council enacted a historic district that included the properties.
In March, when building inspectors noticed preliminary demolition work occurring at the properties, Powers was sent a letter warning him that he could not lawfully tear down the properties without taking the issue before the Architectural Review Board, city officials said.
The work was halted and no action was taken on the buildings through the summer. In September, a building inspector ordered exterior repairs to the structures, according to Building Commissioner Ron Miller.
Powers ignored those orders, and the city took him to court on Nov. 21. During the hearing, Powers asked for a continuance until Dec.19.
But on Nov. 26, contractor Alan Amos showed up in the Building Inspections office and requested the demolition permits. Because the earlier demolition application had all the necessary approvals, the clerk issued the permits. Employees of his tore down the houses the following day.
Although Amos got the permits, language on them indicates they are good only if all work is performed in accordance with all applicable laws and ordinances.
To prevent future demolitions under similar circumstances, ``We're going to go into each one of those files for historic district properties downtown, in Gainsboro and in Old Southwest, to make sure there's nothing in them to indicate a previously approved demolition permit,'' Herbert said.
Clerks in the city Building Inspections office also will be instructed to be careful when granting any permits on structures in a historic district, Herbert added.
The buildings' demolition concerned some council members, although the topic didn't come up at Monday's meeting.
Vice Mayor Linda Wyatt described it as a "procedural fluke" and added: "They may need to look at the order in which the permits are issued."
Also concerned are members of the preservation community.
Robert France, chairman of the Endangered Sites Committee of the Roanoke Valley Preservation Foundation, said the group had considered including both of the wood-frame houses on a list of the "10 most endangered sites" the foundation issued in October.
Ultimately, the committee decided against including the houses on the list because members believed they were protected under the historic district enacted by council, France said.
"We believed there were safeguards in place, just like everyone else thought there were safeguards in place," he said. "Quite often there have been [demolition permits issued] for buildings that other people in city government have plans for. That's a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. This is a case of the left hand not knowing what the brain [City Council] is doing."
Dibling declined to say exactly what legal action the city may take. In a letter to council last week, Herbert promised to take "any possible and appropriate legal action" against Powers as a result of the demolitions.
In general, zoning-code violations may be civil or criminal, depending upon their nature and severity, Dibling said. The criminal sanction is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000.
City officials believe Powers, who owns a fencing company, a carpet outlet and vast amounts of commercial property in the Williamson Road corridor, wanted the buildings torn down in order to build a small parking lot.
Powers also owns the the old Stone Printing building, which is catercorner from where the houses stood. He has leased that to the Social Security Administration for its new downtown offices.
Powers may be in for a rough ride in building parking spaces for Social Security offices, however. The land is zoned for homes, not parking. One City Council member has vowed he won't vote to allow parking on it.
"I'll never vote to rezone a screw-up, let me put it that way," Councilman Jim Trout said. "It would be nice if the owner would donate it to the city and we could name it Calvin Powers Park."
LENGTH: Long : 108 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: WILLIAM B. PILLIS. These two homes on the 300 block ofby CNBNorth Jefferson Street were demolished on Wednesday. They are less
than a block from the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center. color.