MANSFIELD – The remains of an abandoned building at 220 Park Avenue West were finally torn down for good on Thursday morning, thanks to funding from the city’s PRIDE tax.
The property sitting at the corner of Park Avenue West and Bowman Street has sat empty for years, and has been on the city’s radar to demolish for the last five years, according to Mansfield Mayor Tim Theaker. Page Excavating out of Lucas was on-hand Thursday to officially tear the building down.
Theaker stated the building was inspected and condemned by JR Rice, manager of the city’s building and codes department, in the summer of 2016. After it was condemned, the city began the process of using PRIDE dollars to tear the building down.
The property was originally scheduled for demolition in September 2016, until the owners of the property chose to sign the property over to the city of Mansfield.
“That stopped the whole process of bidding it out because we owned it, then,” Theaker explained. “My philosophy is, if we use citizen’s dollars to tear it down, we assess the property because the property owner should not benefit from other taxpayers.”
A company out of Florida was initially slated to purchase the Park Avenue property five years ago, but the sale fell through after concerns of underground fuel tanks were brought up. Later, it was determined fuel tanks may have existed at one time, but the void was filled using concrete rebar.
The fuel tanks were part of the original function of the property. According to local architect Dan Seckel, the property was built in the 1930s as an automobile dealership.
“I have the original construction drawings for this building, with all the little design sketches,” said Seckel, who resides just two houses away. “I was hoping maybe it could be restored or renovated, but I looked over it and it would’ve been a massive undertaking.”
Economic Development Director Tim Bowersock estimates the demolition of 220 Park Avenue West to cost approximately $67,000.
The PRIDE tax, approved by Mansfield voters in 2013, generates approximately $12 million over a four-year period. It supports safety services and parks and recreation, and it helps fund street lighting and demolitions.
According to Third Ward Councilman Jon Van Harlingen, in 2015 the PRIDE tax generated around $778,000 for parks and recreation, $283,214 for street lighting, $708,235 for demolitions and $1.77 million for safety services.
Since the passage of the PRIDE tax in 2013, more than 80 properties have been demolished, including a property at 69 W. Fourth St. using PRIDE money and two Clark/AP gas stations have been demolished using both grant funding and PRIDE money. This week, 11 more properties were bid out with demolition scheduled to take place within 90 days.
The Park Avenue property will transform into an empty lot by the end of next week, Theaker said. As of now, the city has no plans for the property’s future.
