Overview: Clock still ticking
The Mansfield Planning Commission voted Tuesday to give West Mansfield Realty, LLC, until Aug. 15 to provide the city with bonds to guarantee the demolition and clean-up of the deteriorating property along Park Avenue West.
MANSFIELD — The city’s clock continues to tick for the owners of the West Park Shopping Center.
After a nearly 2 1/2-hour hearing Tuesday before the Mansfield Planning Commission, members voted to give West Mansfield Realty, LLC, until Tuesday to provide the city with appeal bonds and performance bonds to guarantee the demolition and clean-up of the deteriorating property along Park Avenue West.
The meeting included testimony from a company lawyer and various city officials, including Mayor Tim Theaker.
The city ordered the New York-based company in November 2022 to demolish the former shopping mall.
The addresses are 1157 through 1243 Park Ave. West, which doesn’t include the former bank branch at the end of the L-shaped property.
The company appealed the decision and was granted a six-month extension to complete the work. That deadline was July 14 — yet the dilapidated strip of shops remains.
Acting on the advice of city Law Director John Spon, the Planning Commission voted July 25 to conduct Tuesday’s hearing to ensure both the city and the property owner have proper notice of when decisions regarding the company’s appeals will be made.
Community Development & Housing Director Adrian Ackerman said after the hearing Tuesday that West Mansfield Realty must provide her office a $50,000 appeal bond and a performance bond sufficient to cover the demolition and clean-up of the building and the parking lot.
That bond must include the cost of asbestos abatement, landscaping and topsoil work, according to Ackerman.
“We don’t know what the final cost will be,” Ackerman said.
Ackerman told commission members July 25 that West Realty’s $250,000 contract with Adams Construction would not be enough to cover all of the work needed.
“That would only cover the demolition of the building,” she said.
If the bonds are produced by Tuesday, Ackerman said her office would review them, as would the law director’s office. If approved, she said, the company would have until Nov. 7 to complete the work.
If the bonds are not provided by the deadline, or are not sufficient, Ackerman said the Planning Commission would likely meet again to confirm that that the city will take over the demolition and demand payment for the work from West Mansfield Realty.
The demolition order issued in November 2022 noted several problems, including structural issues, a roof that was rotting and collapsing in places, cracked walls, severe mold, a failed HVAC system and a non-functioning sprinkler system.