FARMINGTON — The Board of Selectmen recently voted to pursue court action against three property owners.

The owner of a property at 130 Wilton Road has not complied with a Nov. 25, 2014, maintenance order of the board, Code Enforcement Officer Steve Kaiser said.

Two years ago, Andra Hutchins, owner Ted Gay’s daughter, proposed a plan to board up all windows and openings to discourage entry and vandalism and to mow the property regularly. She asked the board for a year to sell the property.

The board agreed but requested that a hole in the roof, where a chimney might have been, be sealed.

This past summer, Hutchins mowed the property and covered recently broken windows, Kaiser said. However, the opening in the roof has not been sealed and the area surrounding the house was not clear of brush, he said.

There has been no response to attempts to contact the owners by interested buyers who wanted to improve the appearance of the property, Kaiser said. It is west of Center Bridge, a gateway to Farmington.

Although this case does not rise to a public health issue, town attorney Frank Underkuffler suggested letting a judge decide on one of several potential options. These could include demolition by the town and paid for by a special tax on the property, he said.

Although owners of a property at 156 Dunham Road have made a good effort at cleaning up their property since June, there is still more junk and scrap to haul to come into compliance, Kaiser said.

A case against owners Betty and Josh Dunham would probably already be in court but police have been unable to serve Josh Dunham notice, Kaiser said. The next step may include serving him by newspaper publication.

The property is considered a junkyard. The town would ask the court to give the owners 60 days to clean it up. If not, the town does it, Kaiser said. 

Regarding a third property on the Holley Road, significant progress has been made , but there is miscellaneous junk in the woods, Kaiser said.

A complaint was filed in Superior Court by Underkuffler for the town in December 2015 against Steve Mahar for violation of consent agreement, auto graveyard and junkyard laws and nuisance statues.

Pursuing court action for the town would help recoup attorney fees and ensure it does not happen again, Underkuffler said.

The town would ask for a judgment that no more collection of items occur and if it does the owner would be in contempt of court, he said.

abryant@sunmediagroup.net

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