ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, April 4, 1997 TAG: 9704040071
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DAN CASEY THE ROANOKE TIMES
Calvin Powers says a court summons caused him to tear down two houses in the Gainsboro historic district, and a legal loophole allows it.
For months, local businessman Calvin Powers has refused to explain why he ordered two homes in the Gainsboro Historic District torn down without getting approval from Roanoke's Architectural Review Board.
Now, in response to a lawsuit by the city, Powers says: The city of Roanoke made me do it.
And Powers has filed his own lawsuit against the city, placing blame for the demolitions on city officials, charging them with "misfeasance" and seeking $38,000 in damages plus attorneys fees.
His attorney, William Fralin Jr., said the city's actions "amount to the left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing."
City attorney Wilburn Dibling says: "Mr. Powers should be given credit for creativity."
Here's some background:
The legal squabble stems from the demolition of two boarded-up homes near the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center last November. The properties at 319 and 323 Jefferson St. N.E. are part of the Gainsboro historic district.
Powers applied for demolition permits for the homes in late 1995, before the historic district existed. The permits were approved, but he never picked them up because the city had talked him out of tearing down the houses.
In February 1996, City Council created the historic district. Demolitions in the districts are generally prohibited unless approval is obtained from the Architectural Review Board.
In March 1996, the city told Powers in writing that he couldn't demolish the structures until approval had been obtained from the ARB. Powers never sought the board's approval.
In September, Building Commissioner Ron Miller said, city building inspectors cited Powers for building code violations and ordered him to make exterior repairs to both buildings. Powers ignored those, Miller said, and was summoned to court Nov. 21. He was granted a continuance until Dec. 19. On Nov. 24, he had a contractor tear down the buildings.
The city sued Powers for tearing the buildings down on March 7, arguing that he knew he needed permission from the ARB.
Powers was unavailable for comment on Thursday. But Fralin said the summonses issued to Powers by the city are key to the case.
That's because the city's historic district ordinance contains a loophole. It doesn't apply, Fralin said, when the building commissioner certifies in writing that demolition "is required for public safety because of an unsafe or dangerous condition."
Both summons to Powers called the buildings "unsafe, unsanitary, or which constitute a hazard or public nuisance or is otherwise dangerous to human health, safety, or public welfare." Fralin says Powers' remedy was to demolish them.
"We intend to establish that's far from the truth," Dibling responded. "It's true that he was charged with maintaining unsafe structures. But the city didn't order the demolitions. The city only wanted [the buildings] to be made safe. The demolition was purely his option."
In a separate counterclaim against the city, Powers suggests that city officials intentionally delayed issuing the permits until the historic district was created, then issued them knowing Powers would innocently violate the law by tearing the buildings down.
Those actions constitute "misfeasance," which has exposed Power to fines of up to $38,000, the counterclaim states.
"We're calculating ... the amount of money we would have to pay out to the city if we're found in violation," Fralin said. "We're saying that some of the responsibility rests with the city. They're trying to have it both ways."
Dibling responded: "City officials are in the business of protecting housing stock, not in the business of tricking people."
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