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Photo by Len Emery This abandoned house on Chester Road in Springfield will be torn down by the town.
Published April 27, 2016 in the Rutland Herald
Springfield to tear down dilapidated house
By Susan Smallheer
SPRINGFIELD — A house at 87-89 Chester Road will be demolished.
The Select Board voted unanimously Monday to have the dilapidated building knocked down. The town will have an environmental assessment done on the property in hopes of selling the lot or converting it to a solar facility.
The town became the owner of the building via a tax sale, according to Town Manager Tom Yennerell. He said the town had earlier attempted to sell the building, but had no bidders.
The building has been controversial, with neighbors claiming owner George Tallman was operating an illegal salvage yard at the Chester Road location.
Tallman eventually abandoned his property and gave it up rather than pay his overdue taxes. Tallman, a convicted sex offender, had been charged with violating the town’s zoning ordinance from 2008 to 2011, but in 2014 the town’s zoning officer ruled Tallman was legally operating a business.
Edward and Gloria Larow, who live directly across from the Tallman house, had complained to the town about Tallman’s salvage activities.
Yennerell said the building had been checked for asbestos in anticipation of its demolition, but the assessment came back clean.
“The building is in very poor shape,” the town manager said. “It’s probably not inhabitable. Aesthetically, it has no redeeming qualities.”
He said the 2.8 acres of land could be used as a solar facility, at the suggestion of Selectman George McNaughton. The idea was sent to the town’s Energy Committee for review.
The Select Board approved spending up to $10,000 to demolish the building, and an additional $3,200 to do the environmental assessment. Yennerell said the cost of demolishing the building could actually be lower once it is put out to bid.
He said the state Public Service Board, which controls the permit process for solar facilities, would give the solar project priority if it was on contaminated land.
But he said the town’s top priority was getting the land “back on the grand list.”
Money to pay for the demolition and environmental assessment will be taken from the $100,000 fund approved by voters at the 2015 town meeting to pay for the Select Board’s efforts to rid the town of dilapidated and abandoned properties.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20160427/NEWS02/160429561
Very pleased to see this mess cleaned up. Solar farms are great, but not in front of a residents home. Just my 2 cents. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWHAT?? That is a part of Springfield's dilapidated history. You can't demolish that.
ReplyDeleteIt takes a certain mentality to appreciate a wind power or solar farm.
ReplyDeleteOne guy I know was hoping to have 25 wind turbines go up on Glebe Mountain so that when he enjoyed the view from his camp, he'd be able to tell which hill was Glebe Mountain. And of course tourists love to take pictures of the old windmills of Europe.
If I poked my head out of my house every morning and saw banks of solar panels covering the north face of the Springfield river valley, I'd be very happy to know that enough power was being generated to power 300 homes without a bit of greenhouse gas emissions or inevitable nuclear waste problems.
Yes Chuck it does take a certain idealistic, naïve mentality to advocate the wholesale expansion of wind turbines and solar panels in VT. Neither are VT's answer to ECCONOMICAL energy necessary for modern industry and the desirable jobs it brings. But with liberals it's all about the selfish motivation to feel good about yourself regardless of the impact on those of us that fuel the economy. Look around Chuck, you have a absolute total progressive governance. Springfield should be a utopia in your mind. What's happened?
DeleteYou really need to monitor local politics, Machinist. Springfield is NOT noted for "absolute total progressive governance." I happen to serve on a town commission where I proposed that the objectives we state should have a specific action and a due date for accomplishment. The feedback I got-- which was supported by a large majority-- was, "if we do that, then somebody will expect something to be done, and if it isn't done, they might sue." That same board also voted against protecting and enhancing Springfield's economic life. That same board also voted against letting neighborhoods turn vacant lots into neighbor-created and -support parks. The school board was invited to see for free a movie that visited the best school system in the world-- only one member showed up. I suppose there are other examples of "absolute total progressive governance" I could trot out, but you get the idea.
DeleteSolar and wind power are just about dead in Vermont. Not in my backyard, not in my front yard, not in your backyard, not in your front yard. We will just continue to purchase fossil based energy from out of state. Gosh, I miss VtYankee.
ReplyDeletewhat does Tallman being a convicted sex offender have to do with anything about this property,does this make the property more valuable or is it you need to put something in the article to make a bigger deal out of it
ReplyDeleteThanks for bringing this up 3:54PM; I, like you, read the article and immediately wondered what is the relevance of this information? I think that writers and their editors need to stay "on topic" just like we are encouraged to do on this website.
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