City threatens to demolish historic Columbus building that recently changed ownership

Former Georgia state Rep. Earl Davis, who bought the historic former school in Bibb City from the Muscogee County School District, has received a letter from the Columbus Consolidated Government threatening demolition — but it turned out to be an unnecessary scare.

Davis bought the dilapidated but beloved Bibb Elementary School for $15,000 after the Muscogee County School Board approved the deal during its February meeting.

A hearing concerning the property was scheduled for the deputy city manager’s conference room on the second floor of the CCG’s annex building, 420 10th St., at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The Ledger-Enquirer initially wasn’t able to reach the city’s inspections and code director, John Hudgison, for comment. But after the original version of this story was posted on ledger-enquirer.com Monday afternoon, Hudgison later called the L-E back and said the hearing was canceled because Davis emailed his office the required assurance.

“He sent the letter telling us what he intends to do with the property,” Hudgison said. “There is no need for the hearing.”

The demolition hearing notice from the city’s Inspections & Code Enforcement Division, dated Aug. 7, 2018, says “the building was found to be unfit for human habitation or occupancy and is so dilapidated, unsanitary and unsafe that it creates a serious hazard to the health and/or safety of the occupants or of the public.”

This was the first notice Davis has received from the city about the building’s condition, he said.

“It came out of the blue,” he told the Ledger-Enquirer in an interview on the property Monday morning. “It says the property is condemned. . . . I thought the city was in favor or preserving it.”

The director of planning and programs for the Historic Columbus Foundation, Justin Krieg, told the Ledger-Enquirer in a phone interview Monday afternoon, “We have talked with both parties and feel like the meeting on Wednesday will be productive, and we don’t feel that a demolition is an imminent threat.”

Krieg forwarded to the Ledger-Enquirer an email exchange he had Monday with Hudgison.

“The demo hearing is for the new owner to get all the information we have on the property and to hear from the new owner and their intent for their next steps,” Hudgison wrote in his email to Krieg. “I would invite Mr. Davis to come to the meeting and let us know the status of the property. We are in no hurry to tear the property down, especially with now a new owner to give him time to make repairs.”

The demolition hearing notice lists the dates of monthly inspections on the property since April 2017. The last one listed is Aug. 1, 2018.

Based on an April 6, 2017, site visit, the inspector described the building’s condition this way: “collapse of roof and internal components of the structure; complete dislodgement of second floor components which have also collapsed; interior exposed to rain; basement area is probably submerged in water.”

No standing water is in the basement now, Davis said.

The subsequent inspections listed in the notice don’t include any comments.

After the hearing, the notice says, Davis would have 45 days to repair or demolish the building. But he will have more time, Hudgison said.

“Even though the letter says 45 days, he just sent me a letter saying it will probably take 36 to 48 months,” Hudgison said. “So as long as we go by every 30 days, as long as he pulls the proper permits, he will stay in compliance and he will be done with this. For us, it was just protocol for property.”

When he read the notice, Davis said, he was “shocked and disappointed — extreme in both areas.” But after calling his lawyer and others, he is optimistic the situation can be resolved without demolition.

Davis, who represented north Columbus in the Georgia Legislature as a Republican from 1968-74, has been working to stabilize the building and keep the 103-year-old facade at 96 40th St. He estimated his expenses already amount to $25,000, with projected expenses totaling between $750,000 and $1 million to convert the school into apartments.

“I may even make it my home,” he said. “I have no firm plans. The zoning here is residential.”

This story was originally published August 20, 2018 at 2:51 PM.