OXFORD — Code Enforcement Officer Joelle Corey-Whitman informed selectmen Thursday, July 18, that a settlement agreement reached with Robinson Hill property owners over a zoning violation was in default.
The settlement agreement, reached in Paris District Count on May 29, states the property, 322 Robinson Hill Road, jointly owned by Irene Kimball and her granddaughter, Shannon Mason, would be brought into compliance by July 1.
The junkyard violation was brought to the attention of the CEO in 2017. A first notice was sent to the owners in May of that year. In August 2018, after several more notices, the board authorized Corey-Whitman to move forward with a legal action.
The property owners were ordered to remove unregistered and uninspected vehicles and trailers, garbage, trash, debris, appliances, scrap lumber, wood pallets, metal, tires, propane tanks, discarded goods, and all other materials. The agreement also states two dilapidated and uninhabitable mobile homes would be removed prior to the deadline.
The cost of cleaning up a property located at 322 Robinson Hill Rd could fall on Oxford taxpayers. Dee Menear/Advertiser Democrat
“July 1 came and went,” said Corey-Whitman. “The property is not clean. We have a judgement that says we can move forward as a town and clean this property.”
She explained the process to clean a property involved a bid process with contractors, who then clean the property. A lien is then put on the property to recover the costs of the cleanup.
“The problem with this property is we would be number two in the lien process,” she said. “There is a nursing home ahead of us and they will get paid ahead of us. It is a substantial lien and in all likelihood we would never see any money from the sale of this property, if and when it ever sold, to repay for the cost of the cleanup.”
“That is something you need to know and be considerate of for the taxpayers of this town. For two years we have worked with these people and gone through the process of paying our attorney and getting an order from the court that says ‘We will clean you up. We will not tolerate junkyards.’.”
Corey-Whitman estimated it would cost between $20,000 and $28,000 to clean the property. Approximately $3,000 had been spent so far on legal fees. She asked selectmen if they wanted her to proceed.
Chairman Scott Hunter noted one trailer had been removed. He asked if there had been any communication with the parties involved regarding plans to continue cleanup.
“They promised me they would clean it up,” Corey-Whitman said. “The trailer is the only thing that is gone. The tires are still there. The other trailer is still there with trash underneath it. Nothing has changed.”
Hunter asked if the property could be condemned. Corey-Whitman said it would be difficult because it has sewer and water hooked up. Mason currently lives in a dwelling on the property, she said.
“If we don’t follow through, what kind of precedent are we setting?” asked Selectwoman Samantha Hewey.
“The thing that makes this so much stickier is they are under court order to clean it up,” said Hunter. “As much as I want to see it cleaned up, I don’t want to spend that kind of taxpayer money to do it. On the other hand, we spent $3,000 to get the order to clean it up. I’d just as soon we not set the precedent of just letting it go.”
Rather than put the clean up out to bid, selectmen asked Corey-Whitman to get a legal opinion to see if it is possible to discover which company insures the property, and to see if the insurance company could intervene.
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