During a November 12 emergency meeting of the Marion Board of Health, Town Administrator Jay McGrail was present to advise the board to rescind its November 5 vote condemning a house on Wianno Road.
“I’m concerned about the order that you placed on the property,” said McGrail. McGrail said that after he was made aware of the board’s vote to condemn the house, he consulted with town counsel and Police Chief John Garcia after he reviewed the process Health Director Karen Walega followed leading up to her request last week asking the board to condemn the house.
“I’m recommending that you rescind the condemnation order,” stated McGrail. “There are some situations at the house that obviously need to be dealt with,” he added, but the process the board took in condemning the house was improper and “may make it harder to deal with the issue later on…”
According to Chapter 2 of the State Sanitary Code, local boards of health are authorized to enforce of the state’s sanitary standards and the enforcement process is quite specific. The process begins with an appointment for a representative of the board of health to inspect the dwelling with the property owner present in order to determine if there are any violations and, if so, what repairs or alterations must be made to bring the dwelling into compliance.
The board’s representative – in this case, Walega – must fill out an inspection report containing specific details mandated by the state, which must include a list of violations and a brief summary of the legal remedies available to the occupant or the property owner, and provide copies to the affected parties. The timetable for compliance includes a period for the owner or the occupant’s representative to submit a written request for a public hearing and an appeal period of the decision.
In this case, the occupant is an elderly woman with a heart condition that has resulted in at least two long-term stays in the hospital.
According to Walega, the home is infested with bedbugs and an accumulation of belongings has at one point impacted the ability to safely pass through the house.
On November 5, Walega asked the board to condemn the house while it was still vacant to prevent the woman from returning to “unsafe” living conditions. But, according to McGrail, the process by which Walega led the board in condemning the house was improper.
In a follow-up with The Wanderer, McGrail described the process taken in condemning the elderly woman’s home as “archaic” to a degree.
“You can’t condemn a house due to a bedbug infestation – you just can’t,” said McGrail.
The property owner’s son was not present for the November 5 meeting and was therefore unable to address the board on his mother’s behalf, but on November 12, he was at the Town House to discuss the matter and confirmed the insect infestation, as well as the presence of mold spores that have since been treated. The insect infestation has proven to be more difficult and costly than anticipated.
The property owner’s son described the duress he has experienced while trying to support his mother throughout her hardship and lamented the assistance state social workers have provided him and his mother, saying that he is “appalled” by their lack of compassion and he may seek legal counsel.
His mother remains hospitalized.
Board of Health member Dot Brown made the motion town counsel crafted for the board to rescind the prior vote condemning the house. The conclusion to the motion was cautionary: “We (the board) urge the homeowner to take prompt and comprehensive actions to remediate these public health conditions without delay.”
McGrail suggested that the elderly homeowner may qualify for emergency funding through the Marion Council on Aging and offered to assist her son in the process.
Public Health Nurse Kathleen Downey also offered her support without judgment, saying, “We’re trying to put your mom in a safe position now and we’re trying to work as a team.”
Brown regretted that the board was unaware it had not followed the proper procedure and offered her support as well. She asked Walega, should another case of a potential condemnation of a house arise in the future, to compile a list summarizing Walega’s visits and inspections for the board “to see it all in one place,” said Brown. “That would just be really helpful.”
Board of Health Chairman John Howard stated that during his tenure on the board he recalls having made at least one “walkthrough” of a house before condemning the property and suggested it be considered in the future.
“I think that’s fair if we’re putting a signature on a paper,” said Howard.
McGrail further suggested that town counsel be involved in similar matters that may arise in the future.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Marion Board of Health will be on November 19 at 4:30 pm at the Marion Town House.
Marion Board of Health
By Jean Perry