Turner Greenhouse Rd. complaint lifted after property sale, clean up

Oct. 31—The Cumberland County Health and Safety Standards Board has backed away from a directive to seek fines against a property owner after updated photos failed to show a clear health or safety risk to the rest of the community.

"I don't think a judge would fine them for what's in the photos at all," Cumberland County Attorney Philip Burnett said during the board's Oct. 19 meeting. "It has to be a health hazard that you can identify. If it's not that, then it's not finable."

The property on Oakley Dr. has been the subject of two official complaints by neighbors. The first, submitted in January, was resolved in March after the occupants cleaned up the property exterior. Neighbors returned in July, however, saying conditions were deteriorating at the residence.

While neighbors brought a laundry list of complaints, including what they termed an abundance of dogs, trash, and questions of resident safety, board members said their authorization by the Cumberland County Commission only permitted them to address conditions that create a health or safety hazard for the other residents.

"These rules are not based off beautification of a neighborhood or saying this home has to look like this home. It has to be a safety issue," Burnett said. "This group has to take the worst of the worst to court."

Photos show trash bags in the backyard, but it was unclear what they contained — a neighbor said it could be clothing. There was also discarded furniture and a refrigerator, which may or may not be operable. However, the backyard is fenced, and that could prevent access to the items, Burnett said.

The neighbor living directly next to the property said she has invited the committee to access her property to take photos. But that was not the issue, the attorney said.

"Things inside a fenced area do not create a hazard," Burnett said. "If I were the judge, I would be very reluctant to tell people what they could do inside their fences."

"Even though it's the length of their house with garbage, a mattress?" the neighbor said.

Burnett said evidence of smell or rodents could support a neighborhood safety or health issue. However, it depends on a number of factors.

"When I looked at the photographs, I couldn't see what was inside the fence," he said.

Board member Craig Clark said the board could reconsider if there is evidence of a health or safety issue — rodents, offensive smells, disabled automobiles leaking chemicals into the groundwater, or open pits that could cause injury to others. And they need evidence of those issues to present to court.

Board member Tom Isham said he voted to violate the property owners the month before, but had a change of heart the next day. He took a friend who works in real estate to view the property.

"He said if he were on a jury, he could not vote to fine them," Isham said.

Board member Sheryl Webb agreed.

"I'm just not seeing it," she said. "I drive around this county all day, every day. When I saw it, yes, it's not nice in your neighborhood. But that's where your restrictions come in. It's not our job to enforce that."

Board member Joe Koester suggested the neighbor continue to take photos documenting the condition of the property in case it should deteriorate further. Then, the board can reconsider seeking a lawsuit to force fines on the property owner, he said.

"We have not closed the complaint," he said.

The board itself cannot institute fines against property owners. That must be done through court.

"We have gone as far as we can with this," Koester said. "The only option I think you have is going to be a civil suit."

The neighbor said law enforcement has visited the home multiple times, as have other agencies charged with the welfare of the elderly and children. Yet, still problems persist.

"It's just very frustrating for everyone involved," the neighbor said.

"How can you have houses like that? How is that not finable?" she said.

Burnett explained Cumberland County has no zoning regulations and few property standards. The city of Crossville also does not have zoning, though it has enacted some standards that address beautification, like keeping yards mowed.

"The county does not have those rules," he said.

Burnett said the county has limited property standards. From 2005 to 2019, the board only dealt with abandoned and dilapidated housing. Trash and debris were added in 2019 so long as it caused a health or safety hazard to the community.

"What do we do? What if this was your neighbor and you have children and you just bought a house and you want them to be able to play in the yard? What do you do? Where do you go?" she asked.

The neighborhood does have property restrictions which deal with beautification. Those are enforced through civil suits, Burnett said.

The board also dismissed a complaint for property on Turner Greenhouse Rd. after neighbors purchased the parcel and quickly removed a burnt-out structure.

After the board met in September, Burnett reached out to the property owner, asking about the people staying at the site. Neighbors said there had been a large number of people camping on the property or staying in outbuildings still standing. But there is no water service to the site, and adjoining property owners worried about health and sanitation issues.

"The property owner agreed there was no one staying at the property any longer that should be there," Burnett said.

The owner had been staying in a local motel since her house burned at the first of September.

Burnett asked the owner to sign a statement stating the people staying at the property were trespassing.

"That's all that he [Sheriff Casey Cox] needed," Burnett said.

With the people gone, the neighbors then offered to buy the property. She was facing a potential $50-a-day fine if the board determined the property was in violation of the county's health and safety standards. She agreed to the sale.

Within weeks, the neighbors hired a contractor, and the remains of the structure were removed.

Koester thanked Burnett for his services to the board, which only began handling cases of occupied structures in the past few years.

"You're dealing with people's property," Burnett said. "There's all kinds of constitutional issues. I would not want you doing what you're doing without having an attorney pretty close by."

Heather Mullinix is editor of the Crossville Chronicle. She covers schools and education in Cumberland County. She may be reached at hmullinix@crossville-chronicle.com.