The residents captured images of the May 1 fire that damaged the vacant house at 1744 Wilton Place, which prompted the city to rave the building. (Photo gracked Jennifer Martinez)
The city of Los Angeles has demolished a vacant building in the 1700 block of North Wilton placed in Hollywood on May 1 which, according to the nearby residents, was a long -standing problem in the community.
The demolition occurred after a fire broke out in the house at 1744 Wilton placed shortly before 2 am on May 1, causing significant damage to the structure. The fire was the last of about seven fires on the site since the beginning of April, residents said.
City officials claim to have tried without success in the last month to reach the owner, Lindon Shiao, to force him to comply with orders to secure construction problems and solve. A hearing is scheduled for the next meeting of the Los Angeles Department of Construction and Security Commissioners on May 27 to determine which measures will then be taken with property, especially if it will be potentially declared public nuisance due to continuous problems on the site.
A representative of the Los Angeles city councilor, Hugo-Soto Martinez, 13th district, said on April 6 that the municipal councilor staff had tried to contact Shiao several times, and finally reached it this week. Shiao agreed to hire a private entrepreneur to remove the debris from the fire and the demolition of the buildings. If it does not release the site, the city will withdraw it and invoice the owner.
Residents said the property at 1744 Wilton Place and a similar second house next to 1755 N. Wilton Place, have been vacant for weeks. The two buildings seem to be part of a property, but have different owners, depending on the city. The owner of the building at 1755 N. Wilton Place works with the city, went on board the building and closed the property, and hired a security guard, said Soto-Martinez spokesman Nick Barnes-Batista. Soto-Martinez visited the site on May 4 and declared that it favors efforts to ensure that the property was safe.
“The neighbors should not have to pay the price of negligence owners, and we examine how the city can intervene urgently to eliminate these types of public security risks,” said Soto-Martinez.
Shiao, who was joined by telephone on May 7, said that the city's assertions that they could not reach it is false, adding that he was in regular contact with an inspector of the Department of Los Angeles of Construction and Security. He said he was ready to withdraw the debris from the site, but awaited approval from the air quality management district. Shiao also said that he would have demolished the site months ago, but had faced obstacles to the city of Los Angeles to obtain permits.
“It is not me, as owner of the property, who wants to support this. We are trying to do our part, we are trying to build affordable housing,” said Shiao. “There are a lot of obstacles that hinder the development process in Los Angeles. Part of the problem is the bureaucratic process of obtaining permits. ”
Shiao also said that homelessness in the region was endemic. He tried to keep the closed site, but people who are poorly donated find ways to get on the property.
“I understand the frustration of the neighbors. We have done everything we can to keep it closed. Whenever we erect a fence, it is violated an hour later,” said Shiao.
Residents near the property said that the city and the promoter did not do enough to solve the problems. Multiple vacant properties are located in Wilton Place block 1700, attracting independent people and causing a risk of public security. Resident Jennifer Martinez, who was captured on the video on May 4, urging Soto-Martinez to do more to solve problems in the neighborhood, said problems with the people incorporated on the Wilton Place section go back to the COVVI-19 pandemic.
“I repeat the way laws must be corrected, simply recognize that it is a problem,” said Martinez. “There are a lot of problems here. They should go back and review their license treatment and really apply more laws on the owners, because they do almost everything they can get away with it.”
Jeff Newton, a North Gramercy place resident who lives in the east of vacant properties, said he was fed up with inaction. He said he was planning to file a complaint on the situation.
“”[The owner] Put this fence, which says nothing. I mean, I could climb on that myself at 67, “said Newton.” The owner has on the city and actively interfered with the efforts to secure it and take out the squatters. It is intentional, not just benign negligence. »»
The resident of Wilton Place, Carolita Blythe, also said that the biggest problem is that it takes too long for the city to move projects through the authorization process, which leads to properties that remain vacant in neighborhoods for months.
“You cannot wait a license since June of last year, because what is happening is the minute when something is abandoned, squatters come in. And who can blame them? It is a roof above their head,” said Blythe. “We are not the only ones to face this. They drag their feet. I don't know what's going on with the city, but when you have repeated fires, how have you always done anything? What's going on? “
A stack of debris is located on the site of a formerly vacant house on Wilton Place. The city works with the owner to clean the site. (Photo by Edwin Folven)
