I just got home from work and, to my surprise, I heard voices in the back yard of the abandoned house next door to me – 32977 3rd Ave.
I ran outside to find a man, a woman, and a little boy who looks to be around eight years old inside the yard. They were walking around behind the blue fence that the district has put up, which has since been pulled back.
I said to them, “You shouldn’t be back there. That house is condemned and there are things that could definitely be harmful to you.”
The woman said, “Oh,that’s OK, we live across the alley and we wanted to check it out. We saw a guy two hours ago leaving this yard with a chandelier, so we came to see what’s up with this house.”
Now, I am to understand that we are waiting to hear about a possible sale of the property that may or may not reset the clock at 30 days before any demolition is required to be done.
Once again, I feel like I’ve been punched in the stomach, worrying about my family and my home. At the very least, this house is still very accessible to a recurring criminal element. When they are in that yard, they have a clear view of our house. We have put up with this situation for a very long time. Not only does it directly affect the value of our property, but it also has the danger of fire.
Mike Hamalainen
Mission
