Officials Declare 4 Joliet Houses Public Nuisances

JOLIET, IL — Joliet City Council members voted on Tuesday to declare four Joliet properties as public nuisances, according to the meeting minutes. All four properties are private residences, all uninhabitable for different reasons.

The four ramshackle homes' addresses are: 563 E. Clay St, 208 S. Ottawa St., 1603 Richmond St. and 1526 Burry St. City officials want the houses demolished or rehabilitated, according to a City Council memo.

Here are the four properties and what is wrong with them, according to the memo:

563 Clay St.

The house has been vacant since May 2010 and has numerous code violations. Joliet police have been called to this house "on numerous occasions" on theft and vandalism reports as well as a sexual assault. The city has lost over $2,000 maintaining this property.

208 S. Ottawa St.

This house has been vacant since around June 2009. The house has roofing issues and water damage. City officials secured the building in 2015 as vandals had entered the property. The memo notes unpaid fines concerning the property, dating back to 2013, and there's an outstanding utility bill for over $1,400.

1603 Richmond St.

This house has a broken sewer line, raw sewage in the basement and lacks other utilities, according to the memo. Joliet police and fire found unsanitary living conditions in the house and Neighborhood Services inspectors found feces-stained walls, urine-soaked furniture, pads and carpeting and no heat.

1526 Burry St.

The wood frame structure of this home is in poor condition, the memo says, and has life safety issues like a ceiling collapse, no water or gas services and burst water pipes. The property is condemned and the owner, who lives in New York, refuses to make repairs, according to the memo. Local agencies found hoarding and deterioration in the home as well as somebody living there. The city filed a court case against the owner for allowing occupancy of the house.

Article images provided by City of Joliet Neighborhood Services Division