Sauk Rapids Council To Deliberate Whether Private Home is a Public Safety Hazard

(KNSI) – The Sauk Rapids City Council is expected to determine Monday that a home in the 2600 block of Ocarina Drive is a hazardous property.

Minnesota law requires a city to declare a structure a threat to public safety and health. This residence has been on the staff’s radar since 2022. The front window is broken, exposing the inside to the elements, and it is no longer structurally sound.

The city sent notices to the property owner informing him of the violations between August and December 2022. They never heard a response, and no action was taken to repair the home. In November 2023, the city secured a civil abatement order, but it was still unable to reach the owner.

The city got a search warrant to inspect the residence earlier this month. Staff, the building official, and police went inside on April 11th. They found squalor. At least one of the interior walls was confirmed to be structurally unsound, but the waste that littered nearly every room of the home was more disturbing.

Mounds of trash are piled up in stairwells and on kitchen counters. Animal and human feces also appear to be present. Staff took 34 photos that it is submitting to the council in support of their position that the home is a hazardous structure.

It has already been deemed uninhabitable. If the council votes yes on the measure, five steps would be necessary to be completed to bring the property back to code. The front window must be replaced, beams and support trusses have to be stabilized and the warping present today cured, stained walls and carpeting will need to be pulled out, all waste and litter have to be removed, and a property inspector must examine the siding and sheetrock for damage. If necessary, the home could be slated for demolition.

After being served with the abatement order, the owner has 20 days to answer. The city council meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. at the Sauk Rapids Government Center.

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