St. Augustine city commissioners raised concerns Monday about a historic downtown home that has fallen into disrepair — with some claiming it’s become dangerous for pedestrians.
The disheveled property in question, located at 46 Spanish Street, dates back to 1886 and was last purchased in 2016 by an LLC connected to a local business owner for $465,000.
Vice Mayor Barbara Blonder described the building as a hazard.
“I won’t even walk underneath that balcony,” she said during the meeting. “It looks like it’s going to just collapse. And I walk down Spanish Street a lot, so I would really love to have staff attention to that.”
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Blonder also cited two or three additional properties on Cordova Street that appear to be in similar condition. “They look like they’re about to just collapse as well,” she said.
City Manager David Birchim responded that he had spoken to the property owner two or three months ago about the condition of the home.
He said the owner had asked whether the city was interested in purchasing the property — a proposal Birchim dismissed as unrealistic.
Instead, the city is preparing to initiate a code enforcement process for demolition by neglect, a legal procedure used when a property owner allows a historic building to deteriorate to the point of endangerment.
“I just want to prepare you for that — it is a long and sometimes arduous and emotional and drawn-out process,” Birchim said. “But we will begin the process.”
Commissioners also discussed other enforcement actions at their disposal.
Officials noted that the city does have tools under its property maintenance code, which was updated a few years ago when St. Augustine adopted the International Property Maintenance Code.
