Fate of Magee House Remains Uncertain
| News Flash! |
|---|
After years of neglect, the Magee house, at the corner of Stratford and Coral, finally has a new owner. On June 29, papers were signed papers were signed conveying the property from Marie Leyer Mahon to David and Daniel Williams. It is still unclear when the landmark property will have residents: as a condition of the sale, Mrs. Mahon retains a life estate, that is, "...during the term of her natural life, her use and benefit of the conveyed premises." The Williams brothers "... shall restore and maintain the conveyed premises in a habitable condition. If [the Williams brothers] refuse [to do this] this conveyance is null and void." The Williams brothers have also entered into an agreement with the city, in order to postpone the Sheriff's Sale that had been scheduled for July 2nd. The $50,000 lien on the property will remain in place until the Bureau of Building Inspection determines that substantial repairs have been made. The agreement also calls for the new owners to meet with BBI within 60 days to present their plan for bringing the property up to code; and to obtain a building permit within 30 days after that meeting. According to Assistant City Solicitor Craig Straw, the Williamses had no problem with the time frame proposed and are quite anxious to begin clean-up and roof repairs. While neighbors of the house are disappointed that the house may remain unoccupied for years, we see any such action as positive. We hope that the most important issue, that of returning the property to habitable condition, will finally be addressed. For Mrs. Mahon, who has always stated her intention to one day again reside in the house, it is hard to imagine a better outcome; I commend her on arranging such favorable terms of sale. Even though we as neighbors can't welcome the Williamses as residents, we welcome them as stakeholders in the neighborhood. We hope that they share our vision of the Magee house becoming a source of neighborhood pride and a symbol of our shared success. |
In the east-end neighborhood of Friendship, a once-magnificent house sits vacant and neglected, as it has for nearly forty years. In a neighborhood that has celebrated many victories over blight and decay, it is a striking symbol of defeat in the community's effort to deal with an invalid and incapable owner.
The house is commonly known as the Magee house, in recognition of its ownership during the 20s and 30s by Patrick Magee, and sits at the corner of Coral and Stratford in the northeast corner of Friendship. Built in 1902, it was one of the grandest homes in the area, and had a colorful history before falling on hard times during the depression of the 30s. In 1940 it was purchased by the Leyer family; and in 1961, passed to the current owner, Marie Leyer Mahon, shortly before the death of her mother. It has been vacant since that time, though Mrs. Mahon lives less than a block away on Stratford Avenue. She has continued to pay the property taxes, but maintenance on the property has consistently been neglected. She has also consistently refused to consider selling the property, and deterioration has consistently undermined its value.
Over the past decade, the house has been cited numerous times for building violations, and been a major source of concern around issues of public safety. In early 1998, the city chose it for the "Operation Red" program, an effort to shame negligent property owners into action, but to no avail. In June of that year, one of the chimneys began to collapse, and was partially taken down by the fire department. This caused significant damage to the roof, and while some repairs were made in October, the contractor never completed the work and by the spring of 1999 the tar paper had blown off and part of the roof again lay bare.
In March 1999, the Bureau of Building Inspection executed a search warrant and condemned the property for both interior and exterior violations. This put in motion the only process apparently available to the city, demolition. This in turn brought a reaction from the neighbors and preservationists, united in the view that "Demolition is not a solution." The city had accepted a proposal for the demolition, but agreed to put it on hold pending the neighborhood's efforts at resolution.
Even under the threat of demolition, Mrs. Mahon continued to refuse to negotiate with potential buyers, and continued to insist that she was arranging for contractors to begin working on the house shortly. While some repairs were again made to the roof during the fall of 1999, overall deterioration of the house continued unabated.
During 2000, the city agreed that demolition was not an appropriate solution, and to instead try to bring the property to a Sheriff's Sale. Just in recent years, over $60,000 in unpaid Housing Court fines has accrued to this property; a lien would be filed to collect a portion ($11,000) of these judgements. The process took about six months, as the city and county got all the paperwork in order. Finally, the sale was announced. It was to take place January 2, 2001.
Much to everyone's surprise, Mrs. Mahon appeared before the sale to pay the fine and retain ownership of the property.
Shortly thereafter, the neighbors again met with city officials and it was agreed that the only apparent option was to go ahead and try to collect the additional $50,000 fine. The city is reasonably hesitant to foreclose on this property, but, unless Mrs. Mahon can be persuaded to sell it to a responsible owner, it may be the only option.
You are welcome to read my latest letter to Mrs. Mahon, and you are also welcome to read all of my previous letters to Mrs. Mahon.
If you are not on my Historic Magee House task group e-mail list, please e-mail me so that I can be aware of your interest and keep you informed.