Saturday, March 16, 2019
Good, by god 4
Reprinting and adding to an earlier entry to mark a SIGN OF SPRING for this neighborhood!
Tracking recent developments...
= = = = =
Dec 30, 2018: The apt at 4001 W Crown, vacant and decaying for 20 years, was supposedly sold back in January of 2018. Supposedly the purchaser was required to tear the building down and build new houses or apts. Since the supposed sale nothing has happened; a few things were moved around, squatters continued squatting, a few more windows were broken or boarded.
[Not current picture.]
Now a PECULIAR thing has happened. The roof has been tarped neatly with tape around the edges.
The shingles are dry and crumbly but look intact, and the roof escaped damage from the windstorms of '14 and '15. The top roof isn't easy to reach, and the weather has been foggy and slippery. Why would you tarp the roof if you're REQUIRED to tear the place down? Did the purchaser get a variance to leave it as is?
Later thought: Variance forced by asbestos?
Feb 2019: The squatters FINALLY forced police attention by lighting a fire in the garage. After that, the owner FINALLY boarded up every opening on the house. Previously one door was unboarded, and it was obviously the squatter entrance as verified by Detective Snow.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =
MARCH 9, 2019 FINALLY SOME FUCKING REAL ACTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There's a temporary chain-link fence around the entire property, with a sign that says
DANGER CONSTRUCTION ZONE
Are they REALLY going to tear it down? Stay tuned!
= = = = =
MARCH 16, 2019: No, they're RENOVATING instead of tearing down. They've unboarded the windows and I can see drywall and insulation stacked inside. They took off the tarp and they're reshingling the roof.
[Current picture!]
Yay for renovation! This old building stood up remarkably well to the ravages of wind and snow, but it was surrendering to the ravages of meth-cooking squatters. Finally the building gets a chance to be civilized again.
And my seven years of prayerful walking have paid off. Life beats chaos occasionally.
April 8: Roof is done, and now they're clearing out the interior. Looks like they plan to leave it as apts, not open it into a single residence.
May 16: Not much action since previous. Still apparently clearing out interior, but I haven't seen any actual workers or trucks since previous.
June 26: Not much action since previous. Still apparently clearing out interior, but I haven't seen any actual workers or trucks since previous.
July 25: Real action at last. The big dumpster is gone, indicating that stripping is done. They've pulled out all the windowframes, and they've removed the old circuit breaker box.
Oct 15: The windows and doors have been out for three months. Windblown snow and rain is covering the bare subfloor. What was the point of fixing the roof if they're just going to let the whole thing flood and rot anyway?
Mar 11, 2020: A year after the previous start of action, another apparent start of action. Contractors with trailers have opened the fence and started doing something. Will they finish the teardown or finish the renovation? Not clear yet.
Mar 29: It's RENOVATION! YAY!
Jun 12: After years of fits and starts, they're working somewhat steadily. They've cased all the window and door openings, reframed interior walls, and pulled up old driveways and sidewalks. Formerly the bldg had 4 apts downstairs and 4 up. Now it looks like they're intending 3 down and 1 up.
Sept 3: After another 3-month gap, action suddenly started again. Now they're rewiring and replumbing.
Sept 11: WINDOWS!
Oct 10: DOORS! After many years partly open, and more than one year wide open, the building is finally dried in.
Dec 26: Now the siding is done. They're still finishing off outside details, and seem to be working inside occasionally. Who knows, maybe they can start renting in 2023 if they hurry. Strangely they haven't done anything about the foundation. The back shed wing is over a full basement, and the main two-story part is over sparsely scattered concrete blocks. This is the reverse of the usual arrangement. Judging from 1940 census data, the back wing was originally a single house, then the two-story apartments were built on later. So the apartments are really the 'shed'.
May 22, 2021: By March 2021 they had finished everything except the foundation. New windows, new doors, new siding, inner walls rearranged and drywalled, HVAC, electric. Then they paused again. Today they're back at work, doing something utterly absurd. They're replacing the new outer doors with DIFFERENT new outer doors, which look the same to my eyes. Probably forced by the utterly insane city zoning board, which exists for the sole purpose of impoverishing the poor and enriching the rich. This city was actively engaged in destroying its own people LONG before the "virus" holocaust.
Oct 2, 2021: After another long gap they returned to action. They added a patio on the back side, and now they've taken down the security fence. Still no fix on the foundation, and there are still doors and pieces stacked inside.
Oct 23, 2021: Looks like they're finally FINISHING, all at once. They've cleared the ground, wired up the porch lamps, turned on the power, and they're actually closing up the foundation!
Oct 30, 2021: Now that they're about finished, they're suddenly starting a NEW project. The house across the street from the apt, a fairly nice '30s Cape, has been vacant for a year. The developers are renovating it, and today they are digging a foundation for a brand new house next to it. Looks like they've subdivided the large lot of this house into three lots, and also subdivided the apt's lot into three lots.
[Not current picture.]
Now a PECULIAR thing has happened. The roof has been tarped neatly with tape around the edges.
The shingles are dry and crumbly but look intact, and the roof escaped damage from the windstorms of '14 and '15. The top roof isn't easy to reach, and the weather has been foggy and slippery. Why would you tarp the roof if you're REQUIRED to tear the place down? Did the purchaser get a variance to leave it as is?
Later thought: Variance forced by asbestos?
Feb 2019: The squatters FINALLY forced police attention by lighting a fire in the garage. After that, the owner FINALLY boarded up every opening on the house. Previously one door was unboarded, and it was obviously the squatter entrance as verified by Detective Snow.
= = = = = = = = = = = = = =
MARCH 9, 2019 FINALLY SOME FUCKING REAL ACTION!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There's a temporary chain-link fence around the entire property, with a sign that says
DANGER CONSTRUCTION ZONE
Are they REALLY going to tear it down? Stay tuned!
= = = = =
MARCH 16, 2019: No, they're RENOVATING instead of tearing down. They've unboarded the windows and I can see drywall and insulation stacked inside. They took off the tarp and they're reshingling the roof.
[Current picture!]
Yay for renovation! This old building stood up remarkably well to the ravages of wind and snow, but it was surrendering to the ravages of meth-cooking squatters. Finally the building gets a chance to be civilized again.
And my seven years of prayerful walking have paid off. Life beats chaos occasionally.
April 8: Roof is done, and now they're clearing out the interior. Looks like they plan to leave it as apts, not open it into a single residence.
May 16: Not much action since previous. Still apparently clearing out interior, but I haven't seen any actual workers or trucks since previous.
June 26: Not much action since previous. Still apparently clearing out interior, but I haven't seen any actual workers or trucks since previous.
July 25: Real action at last. The big dumpster is gone, indicating that stripping is done. They've pulled out all the windowframes, and they've removed the old circuit breaker box.
Oct 15: The windows and doors have been out for three months. Windblown snow and rain is covering the bare subfloor. What was the point of fixing the roof if they're just going to let the whole thing flood and rot anyway?
Mar 11, 2020: A year after the previous start of action, another apparent start of action. Contractors with trailers have opened the fence and started doing something. Will they finish the teardown or finish the renovation? Not clear yet.
Mar 29: It's RENOVATION! YAY!
Jun 12: After years of fits and starts, they're working somewhat steadily. They've cased all the window and door openings, reframed interior walls, and pulled up old driveways and sidewalks. Formerly the bldg had 4 apts downstairs and 4 up. Now it looks like they're intending 3 down and 1 up.
Sept 3: After another 3-month gap, action suddenly started again. Now they're rewiring and replumbing.
Sept 11: WINDOWS!
Oct 10: DOORS! After many years partly open, and more than one year wide open, the building is finally dried in.
Dec 26: Now the siding is done. They're still finishing off outside details, and seem to be working inside occasionally. Who knows, maybe they can start renting in 2023 if they hurry. Strangely they haven't done anything about the foundation. The back shed wing is over a full basement, and the main two-story part is over sparsely scattered concrete blocks. This is the reverse of the usual arrangement. Judging from 1940 census data, the back wing was originally a single house, then the two-story apartments were built on later. So the apartments are really the 'shed'.
May 22, 2021: By March 2021 they had finished everything except the foundation. New windows, new doors, new siding, inner walls rearranged and drywalled, HVAC, electric. Then they paused again. Today they're back at work, doing something utterly absurd. They're replacing the new outer doors with DIFFERENT new outer doors, which look the same to my eyes. Probably forced by the utterly insane city zoning board, which exists for the sole purpose of impoverishing the poor and enriching the rich. This city was actively engaged in destroying its own people LONG before the "virus" holocaust.
Oct 2, 2021: After another long gap they returned to action. They added a patio on the back side, and now they've taken down the security fence. Still no fix on the foundation, and there are still doors and pieces stacked inside.
Oct 23, 2021: Looks like they're finally FINISHING, all at once. They've cleared the ground, wired up the porch lamps, turned on the power, and they're actually closing up the foundation!
Oct 30, 2021: Now that they're about finished, they're suddenly starting a NEW project. The house across the street from the apt, a fairly nice '30s Cape, has been vacant for a year. The developers are renovating it, and today they are digging a foundation for a brand new house next to it. Looks like they've subdivided the large lot of this house into three lots, and also subdivided the apt's lot into three lots.Labels: Heimatkunde, infill, Patient things
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