Editor’s Note: This is the first story of a three-part series and explains the condemnation and demolition process for the city of Lake Charles The next article will explain succession, the transfer of ownership of property. The final article will explain the adjudication, redemption and/or purchase of adjudicated property.

 

The Lake Charles City Council has issued condemnation and demolition orders on 174 unsafe, unsecured structures from January 2021 through April 2024. The decision to condemn and demolish structures is not one made lightly, according to Luvertha August, Council District B.

“Much forethought and behind-the-scenes action goes into the process, and the process is quite lengthy,” August said.

The process to demolish a house tomorrow could have started years ago. City of Lake Charles inspectors made a sweep after Hurricanes Laura and Delta to assess storm-damaged properties. The unsafe were tagged red. Properties in violation of Lake Charles’ building codes – based in the state’s codes – were tagged yellow.

City Property Standards Supervisor Paula Broussard said burned structures might be demolished sooner than other properties, as they pose a hazard. She also stressed that her department does not condemn properties. Only the City Council is allowed to vote on condemnations. Property owners with minor issues appear in front of a hearing officer, not the City Council, Broussard said.

Every case is different. However, most go through the following: Finding the owners as listed on the tax assessors records. Sometimes a curator must be hired to find heirs or property owners, a challenge when the original owner died generations ago with a succession.

Succession is the process of filing documents with the court so that assets can be transferred from someone who has passed away to heirs.

“The city makes every attempt to contact property owners,” said a City official.

Sometimes one of many heirs wants to repair a property, but unless the other heirs are willing to sell their ownership in the property, this one heir cannot proceed with plans.

In addition to contacting owners of unsafe or beyond repair properties, notice of the public hearings for condemning and beginning the demolitions process, which allow the property owners to appear and state their intentions for the property – are posted in the City’s official journal of record, the American Press ahead of the Public Hearing date.

Between the owner’s notice; multiple council meeting proceedings, including the public hearing which is published in the American Press ahead of the hearing date; the decision to demolish the property; the job going to bid and the contractor obtaining his permit to demolish the structure – and he gets 30 days to use that permit – a demolition could take six months, giving citizens ample opportunity for owners to contact City officials and obtain a permit to make repairs within a certain period of time or redeem a property by catching up on back taxes.

The cost of demo is incurred by the City and a lien is placed against the property,

When taxes are not paid on a property after a certain amount of time, those properties might become adjudicated, placed back in the City’s hands. This still leaves time for owners to pay back taxes before properties are placed on a site and made available for purchase. It might also present an opportunity to purchase property.