Millstone UPDATE
Update on the ongoing saga of Millstone:
There were two bids for the property; $137,000.00 by an interested party and 2.3 million dollars by Doug Lewis acting for the city of Painesville.
Guess who won?
Next round:
Will this sale be appealed?
When can the residents realistically expect to get their share?
posted by terminator1 @ 12:54 PM
17 Comments
17 Comments:
Now we will learn the real reason for the city manager to get involved in this land purchase. Watch and learn.
People to stupid to live in a flood plain without the proper insurance should lose everything.
The administration knows this is far from over.
City of Painesville is high bidder for Millstone Condominiums
Published: Monday, June 27, 2011
TRead@News-Herald.com
Members of the Millstone Condominium Association clapped and cheered Monday after the city of Painesville was the high bidder to buy the flooded-out property.
Donald Richer, attorney for corporate entity unit holder 270 Main Street, made the minimum bid of $130,000.
Then Doug Lewis, Painesville’s assistant city manager, immediately made the winning bid of $2,343,640.66.
“I’m happy for the homeowners,” Lewis said after the auction. “And I’ll be much happier when we finally get it closed out as far as the payments to the residents. We will be working with the courts as far as the payouts are concerned.”
Unit holders waited five years for the public auction that was held in the lobby of Lake County Common Pleas Court in Painesville.
“I think this will be a merry Christmas,” said Dan Nicholson, president of the condo association. “I appreciate everything the state and the city have done. It’s going to make most of the residents happy. Unfortunately, we have had a few residents that have passed away since this whole thing started. This has been tough on everybody for a long time. Some people have issues other than a place to live.”
On July 28, 2006, the Chagrin and Grand rivers burst beyond their banks — burying some parts of the county under up to 8 feet of water.
In January, Judge Richard L. Collins Jr. ruled the entire property must be sold at a public sale at not less than two-thirds of the $195,000 appraised value.
The city has been unable to tear down the 38 decaying units because of ongoing legal action between 270 Main Street and the condo association.
City officials had to buy the property at its pre-flood value because of conditions of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Hazard Mitigation Grant. The purchase was made possible through a $3.5 million FEMA grant. Continued...
After the property is demolished, city officials hope to turn the land into a park.
Richer’s client wanted to buy the land to restore and rebuild the condos.
Last week, Collins agreed to stop the sale as long as 270 Main Street came up with a bond of more than $2.3 million made payable to the co-tenants of the Millstone property by 10 a.m. Monday.
When that didn’t happen, the sale was allowed to proceed as scheduled.
However, the demolition of the condos is not a done deal.
An appeal remains pending before the Warren-based 11th District Court of Appeals on whether Collins erred by allowing a sale by public rather than private auction.
Meanwhile, the city must provide proof that all 38 liens have been cleared by the banks before any money can be paid out to residents.
It was unclear Monday how long that process might take.
Still, Steve Ferryman of the Ohio EMA called Monday’s sale good news for residents.
“It’s a definite step forward for the city towards mitigating this property and making sure the next time it floods that people and property aren’t in harm’s way,” said Ferryman.
Gibbs is a good person.. he should be given this property for free for all his trouble.. same on these people who had no insurance.. Robert is the one who is hurting!
Anyone wonder why the city got involved in the first place. The Millstone people were not the only ones that were hurt by the 06 flood....just the only ones that the city saw fit to help out. Why? Well, how 'bout the back story of 1 million in interest on a loan from the state to the city being forgiven? How come the banks holding mortgages didn't check for sufficient insurance? How come the condo association in charge of paying the insurance reduced the coverage to an almost useless amount? Oh, and what kind of park will it be? If the public is allowed access how are they going to use it? Once again the Newless Herald doesn't print the whole story....
5:38 That would be TOO (not to) stupid. If you're going to insult my intelligence, please do it in proper English.
Thank god Gibbs is hurting, wait until he gets his lawyer bill, Ha, Ha
To 8:19: 5:38's use of "to" instead of "too" could have been a flat-out typo. Either way, I'd rather not know the difference between "to" and "too" than to have such a lack of class that I would point out the error, like you just did.
These idiots moved into condos right next to a river that floods every spring and even one person feels sorry for them? Just goes to show that nobody ever takes responsibility for their actions. Boo-hoo!!! I moved next to a river and it flooded. SHOCKING !!! Then the rest of you idiots act like you MUST do something with the land!?!? I know you are city folks but damn, haven't any of you heard of woodlands or do you want ever inch of the city paved in concrete? Why not just leave the land be and let it go back to nature since it is unusable anyhow...get a life people.
8:19 - You ARE stupid...There is no debate about it. You moved in next to a river and now you want to pass the buck? Come on. You are a complete joke. Take some responsibility for your, and yours alone poor decisions...I assume you didn't learn a thing from this.
THE CITY TRIED TO STOP BOBBY GIBBS FROM BUILDING THERE, AND HE FOUND LOOP HOLES, SO STOP SAYING THE TENANTS AND OWNERS DID THIS, THEY THOUGHT IT WOULD BE OK, GIBBS, WHO SOLD THEM THE CONDOS TOLD THEM IT WOULD BE OK.
I agree that when someone buys a home/condo, they should have the right to assume that they aren't the ones that have to worry about being flooded out. By the time they have been built, I would assume that those problems were already worried about by all the people who should have done it. I would assume if the place has been built and is for sale, that that is something that does not have to cross my radar. Who all knows the complete lay of the land when they go to an area to look at a home. You can't blame something like that on the people who bought the homes to live in. That definitely has to go back to the people whose jobs it was to worry about it before they were built.
Whgen a builder decides to build he looks at the codes provided by the city or township he is located in. I willing to bet if it was Millstone Gristmill, Steele Apartments single family homes every builder was legally in his right to build.
If you live next to water that could potentially flood it seems like a good common sense to have the proper flood insurance. When Gibbs ran the association he had 3 million dollars of flood insurance on Millstone. He even had earthquake insurance. When the condos were turned over to the new condo association they renewed the flood insurance at only $300,000.00?
I believe they dropped the ball. Now who were the people that elected this bunch?
Buyer Beware, You are the most important person looking out for your investment.
This is 2:34: I agree with everything you said, Term. My only point was that if someone has been allowed to build homes/condos in an area, and they are built in an area that might flood, then the homeowners buying the homes shouldn't be blamed if they didn't know that. It was someone else's job to know that and to not allow building there. That should not be a buyers-beware situation.
In the case of Millstone, they WERE made aware that they could get flooded out, so definitely it was the condo association (and the tenants, too, if they knew about the insurance being dropped to such a low level) that dropped this ball. If they knew they needed flood insurance, then they knew they were in a flood area. My biggest question here, which was apparantly answered by 12:11, is why in the world was Gibbs allowed to build there? Seems like that should have never been allowed. If it's in a 100-year-flood area, that means that the floods do happen, so it is insane to think you should build there and assume even that you have 100 years. Even if you did, that would be stupid. And it is my understanding that he wanted to build there AGAIN.
I own a home in Painesville, and I do not have flood insurance, but I am not in an area that needs flood insurance. I do, however, have the add-on flood insurance on my policy for basement, etc. flooding that you need. I also have earthquake insurance, so I understand the need to be absolutely properly insured. (And in case anyone is not familiar, you need REPLACEMENT insurance. This just means that you pay a little more for your policy, so if something happens, you have enough money not just to be paid for what was ruined, but to actually replace it. Insurance companies do not always make this clear to people, and you can end up in a real bind without it.)
But getting back to Millstone -- has there ever been an explanation as to whose decision it was to drop the flood insurance to such a level, who all knew about it, and why they did it? Was it the condo association's decision alone? Did the tenants know? Has there ever been anymore details that have come out concerning that? And loopholes or not, the city should have fought Gibbs harder. Seems everyone was quite aware of what could happen there. If you have a builder who doesn't care about his buyers/tenants, then it IS the city's job to watch out for its citizens.
The city can only set zoning in the best way for the use of that land. You cant make an arguement that Gibbs shouldn't have built there look around at all the other buildings and streets down in that area.
Take another development in Painesville Asper Commons a "new" development 50 feet from one of the most used railroad systems in the Northeast CSX, and before them Conrail use that that east west track heavyly along with there also being what the railroad calls a "plant" [crossover] now if a train traveling at 60mph derails in that area and takes out those homes would you agree the city should have fought that development? Rivers overflow, trains crash, I wouldn't live in the glidepath of an airport either these are things homeowners should consider before buying. I commend you for properly insuring your property. YOU didn't trust a homeowners assocation, mortgage co.or bank.
Millstone residents put their trust in the wrong people.
Now the Painesville residents will see what kind of "park" they got.
I see the city "selling" this purchase HARD to residents.
'
Why doesn't the city (meaning Rita and Co) try telling the truth about this transaction? That would be refreshing and the least residents deserve. It wasn't underhanded or illegal but it wasn't done for altruistic reasons either. What I'd like to know is just how much money we REALLY saved by getting involved.
Let's see...we saved 1 million in interest. Ok...but I'm sure that grant money wasn't free...there are almost always matching funds included in order to get the grant. How much was our share? And then there is all the legal fees incurred: run-of-the-mill and the battle with Gibbs (and that meter is still ticking since its not over). And now we have a property that was formerly revenue producing and will now belong to the state. And it will not be a park per se...more like a preserve. So Ms. Rita annexes and Ms. Rita gives away.
The most valuable land is along water. rivers and lakes, this is where people want to live. If it's done right and properly insured it a great place to live in a community.
This dog and pony show was only for the benefit of the city.
What next? don't rebuild after a tornado?
If someone wanted to redevelop that area it should have been.
Rita McMahon has cost this city enough!
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