The Jennings City Council did not take action Tuesday on an order calling for the demolition of a vacant former nursing home on South Louise Street.

A demolition order requesting that the property of the former Jennings Guest House at 203 S. Louise Street be removed and the area cleaned up failed due to a lack of a motion from the council to move the project forward.

Newly hired City Attorney Wendell Miller the issue was not taken up at Tuesday;s meeting because no council member made the motion to discuss the matter. However, he said it is not a dead issue.

‘It has been passed for now,” Miller said. “It would have to be put back on the agenda at some point in the future if the council decides to do that.”

The council’s decision comes a month after it rejected a request from The Way Training Center to rezone the property from a single family zone (A-1) to a transitional zone (A-6) for a training and drug rehabilitation center.  The request was also denied by the city’s Zoning Board in January.

“As publicly stated on numerous occasions, the city has great respect for the mission of The Way and the valuable benefit it can provide to members of our community struggling with addiction,” Mayor Henry Guinn said in a written statement. “Nevertheless, given the A-1 zoning of the subject project which precludes the proposed use by The Way, the public nuisance and hazards of the dilapidated structure as detailed in a report by (inspector) Rodney Richard, and the lack of any substantive plan to rectify these conditions, there is no viable remediation path for the property at the present.”

The property, which is located in a residential neighborhood near the city’s golf course, has repeatedly been declared unsafe and in need of condemnation by the city’s building inspector Rodney Richard due to the state of disrepair and severe dilapidation of the structure.

The property was previously owned by Acadiana Concern for Aids Relief, Education and Support (CARES), but was donated to The Way Training Center after last month’s council meeting. The donation relieves Acadian CARES of any liability related to the property’s condition and any future condemnations or demolitions.

The property was first condemned in August 2017 at which time Acadian CARES appealed the decision arguing that it was in good condition.

The property remained idle until April 2018 when Acadiana CARES said it planned to demolish the dilapidated structure and develop a housing project. The city waived the demolition permit to allow Acadiana CARES to work with local developers, but funding for the project was not received and the building continued to sit idle.

Additional condemnations were issued in July 2021, March 2022 and again in March 2023 after electricity was disconnected. A fifth condemnation was issued in June 2023, but Acadiana CARES told the city it was being used for storage.

In August 2023, Acadiana CARES agreed to demolish the property after unsuccessful attempts to sell the property. The demolition was set to begin in November 2023, but Acadiana CARES entered into a buy/sell agreement with The Way Training Center in October 2023. The agreement was contingent upon the property being rezoned from a single family zone (A-1) to a transitional zone (A-6) for a training and drug rehabilitation center.

The Way is now  the legal owner of the property according to courthouse records, Miller said.