City takes civil action to recover demolition spending on ruined 'nuisance' house
Apr. 22—LOCKPORT — The owner of now-demolished 96 Locust Street failed to pay his fines for building code violations cited prior to the apartment house being by fire last fall. Consequently, the City of Lockport is taking civil action to recover the money it spent having the house knocked down.
In the spring of 2023, Michael Howe, who does business as MBH Development, was cited for approximately 30 building code violations at the 12-unit house on the northwest corner of Locust and Genesee streets. In December, Howe failed to appear for court proceedings and City Court Judge Thomas DiMillo declared him guilty by default. In early February, DiMillo levied fines on Howe adding up to almost $35,000.
A portion of the total fine, $7,800, was due April 11 and the rest, $27,000, was due April 18. As of Wednesday none of the balance had been paid, according to the city court clerks' office.
City prosecutor Anthony Serianni said he recommended the grand total of fines to roughly equal the low bid received by the City of Lockport to have the ruined apartment house torn down. The fine money was to go to the city as reimbursement for the $35,000 it spent on demolition, Serianni said.
Because the fines were not paid by the due date, the city is putting a lien on all properties owned by MBH Development.
The lien will ensure that, in the event any MBH Development-owned property is sold, the city will be first in line to receive sale proceeds, up to the amount of the lien, for a 10-year period. The lien also will muddy the waters for the company in the event it tries to purchase more property or borrow money, Serianni said.
Legally, the city could try to force Howe to sell one or more of his properties to satisfy the lien, but not without going to court.
"I would expect (that) to be a very lengthy process," Serianni said.
Code violations at 96 Locust while it was occupied last spring included excess garbage, no carbon monoxide or smoke alarms, interior damage, exterior damage, roof damage and lack of handrails. The citations followed inspections by the building inspection and fire departments. Simultaneously, the city tried to have the apartment house declared a "nuisance" property due to it being the subject of 79 calls to police in a 12-month period. The prescribed penalty for operating a nuisance property is a 12-month ban on tenancies.
Following a series of monthly appearances in city court as the code violation and nuisance cases proceeded, on Oct. 10, Howe's attorney told the court that his client would vacate the building of all tenants, but he wanted assurance that he could begin renting units again in less than 12 months.
Nine days later, a fire broke out in the house, and Lockport Fire Department officials determined the cause was arson. Building Inspection condemned the property and the Common Council ordered it demolished. When Howe did not respond to the order by hiring a demolition contractor, the city did it for him with the understanding the bill would be passed on to him.
Howe, who also owns the vacant house at 88 Olcott St., is due in city court next month to negotiate a resolution to the city's code case over that property.
