City Closes Part of Willards Alley after Nearby Roof Collapse

AdminJuly 2, 2018Last Updated: July 2, 2018

1 minute read

LOCK HAVEN – The City has announced a temporary closing of a portion of Willards Alley after a further roof collapse at a deteriorating property along 47-51 Bellefonte Avenue. The long-vacated Town Tavern building, presently owned by Dave Mayes, has been the subject of recent letters from City Hall regarding safety concerns.

A member of the nearby Trinity United Methodist Church had heard a portion of the roof at the rear of the building give way on Sunday. Therecord-online notified the city code office Monday morning of his Facebook post.

Subsequently City Manager Greg Wilson released a statement on these most recent events:

After no written response was received from the initial notification to the property owner of 47-51 Bellefonte Ave, the City’s Code Enforcement Officer sent a second follow-up letter giving the property owner a second notice as well as a new timeframe for written response. Allowing for time for delivery and pickup of certified mail, the property owner would have had until Friday, June 29, 2018 to respond. The City did not receive a written response from the owner by that date.

Subsequently, it has been brought to the City’s attention and upon inspection by the Code Office, it is confirmed an additional portion of the roof has collapsed. As a temporary precautionary measure, the City is closing a portion of Willards Alley adjoining the property until a more in-depth assessment of the property can be completed tomorrow (Tuesday) by the Code Enforcement Officer. Following that inspection, the City will be discussing with its legal counsel the next appropriate steps the City may take on behalf of its residents to ensure public safety.

Willards Alley had been closed for better than a year after the Heilig-Meyers building on the east side of the alley sat empty and debris-strewn after a fire in December of 2016. The city moved in and demolished the building earlier this year after Mayes, the owner of that structure, did not act to clean-up the site.