The collapse of a 102-year-old building at 1032 East Long Street on Monday raises many questions about whether the city has any responsibility when an old building falls.
Property owners in Columbus are responsible for inspections of their buildings and other structures and paying for necessary repairs.
鈥淭he city of Columbus does not have an inspection program,鈥� said Tony Celebrezze, Deputy Director of Building and Zoning Services Department for the City of Columbus. 鈥淭hat does not fall under our jurisdiction as this is private property.鈥�
Celebrezze said property owners need to regularly inspect buildings and hire experts to do the work when necessary.
鈥淚f they feel there are issues with their building, whether water has been getting in there, whether there are cracks, new cracks in the wall that are occurring or shifting, they need to reach out to a structural engineer that specializes in investigating what may be causing those cracks,鈥� said Celebrezze.
The Franklin County Auditor鈥檚 website shows that the three-story property at 1032 East Long Street belongs to Jafar Almahamid. He purchased it in 2016 for $90,500.
鈥淭hat building has not had a building permit issued or applied for in the last 10 years,鈥� said Celebrezze. 鈥淲e have had no reason to engage that owner from a building standpoint.鈥�
Celebrezze said his department does respond to residents鈥� complaints such as bricks falling from a fa莽ade.
He also said the city鈥檚 Code Enforcement Department had received complaints of minor violations at the 1032 East Long Street property, including trash, high weeds, and cars parking in unusual places.
星空无限传媒 reached out to Almahamid but did not receive a call back.
