Atmore Officials Explain Housing Demolition

Home Atmore  City officials talk about why an Atmore woman’s house is slated for demolition.
by Chad Petri
Published: Fri, July 17, 2009 - 11:29 am CST Last Updated: Fri, July 17, 2009 - 12:42 pm CST
In a phone interview today, Friday, July 17, 2009 Atmore Mayor Howard Shell says the property in question on Rockaway Creek Drive has been a problem for at least 10 years. City officials say they’ve given the home owner, Carolyn Caraway, more than enough time to keep the property within Alabama statutes regarding nuisance property. Shell says the Atmore City Council is merely following the law.

Atmore Building Inspector Chris Black says the property will not be torn down Monday. Black says, because of an appeal and the possibility of this case going to circuit court, they will not reexamine the demolition issue until at least August 13th. Black says the house has not been occupied for at least three years, maybe longer. He says demolition is the last resort after repeated requests for the homeowner to fix the property. Black says Caraway appealed to the Atmore City Council Monday and the council decided to let the demolition order stand.

Homeowner Caraway says she will appeal to circuit court but hasn’t yet. In an interview yesterday, she said she couldn’t afford to keep the property in good condition because of health problems.
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and Atmoredad, oh believe me U r WRONG, cause i do know all the true facts. Because u know y? I AM HER DAUGHTER!!!!!! Now how u like that, i know way more than u do. I lived there ALOT longer than u ever have, so i know! That house has not been like that 4 as long as all of u r trying 2 say! And u know what, if it was like that when u moved there, then why in the h*** did u move there in the 1st place, uhh, thank u!! If u would have moved your a** somewhere else u wouldn’t have to be waisting your time right now, now would u. And same goes for the one across the street, your brother i think right, yea point made! Get a LIFE all of u, since obviously all yall seem to not have one, and would rather spend yall’s time trying to ruin someone else’s life and take someone’s house from them! But as u can see, IT’S NOT WORKING!!!!! HAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!! And for seller’s oh yes, believe me he stole from that yard and i’m pretty sure still is, but since your all for trying to take up for someone and something u know nothing about, u probably r and have been doing the same thing. and as far as reading the terms and all as u said, i had already did that, thank u very much! And don’t really care, im stating the facts and truth, and u know i don’t believe that is against the law or this site!

BamaBob and fla1,  neither of you know the true facts. Fences were damage during Iran, the drive way is city property (it’s a street Durant St)not my property to put up another fence. Stealing? Is that your response to Mr Sellers? please get your facts straight and slander someone’s name…I do believe that is a rule here.
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It is tough for one person to take care of a home even if you have the money to hire some help.  Add illness to that and it becomes a huge headache.

Not sure what the ultimate answer is for this specific situation, but I hate to see someone lose their property due to politics.

To bamabob, u are right and you know actually there was a fence there separating there yards and he actually took it down, same for the neighbors next door that shares the driveway, there was a privacy fence separating the driveways and they took it down too! So looks like they just wanted to look at it, but yet they have such a problem with looking at it and seeing it, huh! Doesn’t make alot of since to me either!

And also you know there are honestly SO MANY MORE properties in Atmore that are ALOT, and when i say alot i mean alot WORSE, and also when i say WORSE, i mean WWOORRSSEE than that house. But i don’t see them wanting to demolition those houses. And believe me that town is full of homes worse than that, just take a drive through the town and you will see what im talking about! I mean come on now, yea there are some really nice expensive homes in Atmore, but pretty much the whole entire town is all old houses that has damage, so stop harrassing one woman[ correct…female, older female for that matter, that does not have a husband to help! That should make all the men ashamed of thereselves for not offering to help a lady do things that she can’t do to save her home! I have completely LOST what little, correction tad bit of respect that i had left for Atmore! Now i know for absolute sure that i will NEVER go back!

I wonder why the old guy that shares the back property line with the woman and has been harassing them for 20-30 years never bothered to put up a privacy fence?  He looks like he could easily afford it, plus he looks like the type that spends most of his waking hours in his yard.  Wouldn’t that have solved his problem in one weekend instead of moaning for 30 years?

You know, i think everyone in Atmore that even voted or is saying that it should be torn down should be completely ashamed of thereselves!!! Honestly that just shows exactly what kind of people live in Atmore…sorry ones that has no compassion or sympothy for anyone but thereselves!! I am origanly from Atmore and luckily got out of that town and never plan to go back, because of these reasons. You know it looks like to me that she is trying and she deserves a chance. And to me the so called neighbors and ones that have commented on here negatively about the house would all get off there sorry butts and pitch in to help her if it is such an issue and problem to them. But we definitly don’t see them doing that now do we!! And also the city always wants to mess with and harass people like her that is not rich and snooty and doesn’t have all the money in the world to just up and put into the house! Everyone heard her say that she has health problems and i know for a fact that she does..ALOT for that matter. So can’t everyone realize that it is kinda hard on her and not that easy for her to do everything to that house. If everyone in the so called friendly and caring town of Atmore would all get together and help her it would be taken care of, she would still have her house and everyone around with a problem would be satisfied and could go back to there snooty and nosey little lives!

Monday morning quarterbacks?  I don’t guess you would want anyone to stand up for your rights, if a bunch of people decided to take away your property and leave you with nothing but a debt.

It came across as that because that was the way it was reported…..It’s big enough for a doublewide bring it on. Monday morning quaterbacks….geezz

Well, it does kind of come across like the angry villagers gathering in town square with their pitchforks and torches.  Then marching toward Dr. Frankenstein’s castle!

What does a lot sell for in that area?  How big is her property?  What if she had someone bulldoze the house and then plopped a double-wide on her lot?

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