The owner of the Hotel Marysville alleges that the City of Marysville has been obstructing their efforts to cure the issues at the property and that the City has been engaging in continued harassment since the June 2024 fire that damaged the property.
According to the owner, the City has actively worked to prevent restoration efforts while wasting taxpayer dollars and defying court orders. “As recently as this week, the City again stopped a contractor hired by the owner for their clean-up efforts citing fabricated requirements that do not exist,” said Daniel Katz, of DJK Counsel, Ltd., attorney for the owner. “We urge the City to cease this harassment and grant the necessary permits so that investigations and expert assessments can move forward.”
The owner asserts the City, who has not yet conducted either fire or potential criminal investigations into the fire, has consistently pushed for the demolition of the hotel despite viable alternatives and legal obligations. “The City has made it clear that it will stop at nothing short of forcing the demolition, even before their own fire department deemed the building safe for inspection,” added Katz. In fact, the owners were made aware after the fire that the City had actively sought demolition bids a few months prior to the fire. This was publicly confirmed by a contractor during the City Council meeting held on July 2, when he stated that “[he] got a call from the City about two months prior to the fire to help with the budget to abate and demolish the hotel.”
A court ruling, which was issued after one of the City’s backfired attempts to seek judicial cover for its desire to demolish the building, denied the City the ability to demolish the hotel and instead commanded the City to clean up asbestos and shore up the building’s interior floors to prevent collapse. However, the owner claims the City has yet to act on this order.
Instead, the City continues to demand the owners “abate the nuisance” while delaying, obstructing and flat-out denying permits and access for the owner and its contractors to take action. The owner and its contractors have been met with hardened City officials who time and again have issued contradictory information as to the permitting procedures and have appeared on site multiple times to stop the contractors from assessing or cleaning up the property. Meanwhile, “the roads are still closed, causing congestion and frustration,” the owners noted.
“The City’s actions over the past months reflect a clear vendetta against the owner rather than genuine concern for public safety or the interests of the Marysville community,” said Katz. “Recognizing the impact on the community after the fire, the owner had been in communication with the City to donate the hotel to the City. The owner was negotiating in good faith with the intention of expediting the process so the community and traffic could be restored to their normal function and were pleased when the City accepted their offer in the evening on July 31. The owners promptly confirmed a settlement agreement was being drafted when they received word early the next morning that the City was rescinding its acceptance, after which the owners were immediately met with another violation notice. When the city rescinded its acceptance, not only were we disappointed but it became clear to us that the City is not interested in serving the community in either an expeditious or economical manner,” said Katz.
Prior to the fire, the owner planned to sell the property to Habitat for Humanity to provide affordable housing. However, the City’s redevelopment plans for the site seem to prioritize high-dollar rental income, raising concerns about the true motivations behind the push for demolition. To that end, the City, has also discouraged potential buyers who were interested in purchasing the property after the fire.
The timeline in Schedule 1, shared on https://hotelmarysville.com/, provides a glimpse into the city's nefarious actions since the fire broke out.
Together with their contractors, the owner is seeking to investigate the fire further and has engaged an independent engineer for a comprehensive report on the building’s condition. “The engineers, environmental specialists, and assessors we have hired to assist with our efforts have all been turned away from the site at least once, and all have been given inaccurate information with respect to the City’s permitting procedures which have caused multiple stoppages as well as overall delays in delivery of all reports and work at the site,” Katz said. “The owners have commissioned multiple reports, participated in court hearings, and responded to the City’s ever-changing demands and violation notices, yet the City has shown no interest in acting in good faith or engaging in constructive dialogue,” said Katz. “We will no longer participate in this charade.”
Schedule 2, shared on https://hotelmarysville.com/, is a copy of the letter DJK Counsel recently delivered to the City to that effect.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240927004681/en/
Contacts
Media Contact:
Press@hotelmarysville.com
