The city may tackle the worst property on its ever-growing blight list with a wrecking ball, City Administrator Thomas A. Palamar said Monday.
The property in question is 674 N. Second St., a row home sustaining constant damage from exposure because its front door is broken off its hinges. The owner is Said Attalla, Mississauga, Canada, according to Leo Schwartz, the city's business privilege tax administrator.
"We're at the end of the road. As frustrating as it is, sometimes you have to know when you're at the end of the road," Palamar said at the September meeting of The Pottsville Blight and Nuisance Task Force at City Hall on Tuesday morning.
The city is planning to demolish "nine or 10" blighted properties in 2014 and Palamar said he will unveil the list at the council's regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. Monday at city hall.
The task force is dealing with the worst of the 383 properties on the blight list. At Tuesday morning's meeting, Schwartz expressed frustration in dealing with 674 N. Second St.
In June, the task force sent a certified letter to Attalla, asking him to contact the city by July 5 to schedule a meeting to discuss the future of the property. Attalla did not respond.
While the task force considered issuing Quality of Life tickets, Schwartz said it might not be worth the trouble.
"From a legal perspective, there isn't much we can do. He's someone from out of the country," Schwartz said.
"It doesn't amount to a big enough offense to bring out Interpol," said police Capt. Steve Durkin.
"Even if it were, the cost to extradite him for that property would be absurd. We'd bring him down here, fine him something like $200 and he'd go back to Canada," Schwartz said.
According to the online Schuylkill Parcel Locator, Attalla bought the property in June 2008 for $8,750. And according to the website for the Schuylkill County Tax Claim Bureau, $3,591.79 in taxes are owed on the property for tax years 2010, 2011 and 2012.
The city plans to demolish several blighted properties in 2014, Palamar said.
"The plan is to lien the cost of the demolition to the owners of those properties. In other words, we're going to make them pay for it," Palamar said.
Attalla could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
"Do we want to spend our money to take the property down necessarily? No. But we may not have any other recourse," Palamar said.