by Geoff Fox
Former Mayor Dan Murphy came before the current mayor and council to discuss a couple things about the beautification of Hancock and concerns expressed to him for other people.
Murphy started out by praising the town’s parks and their upkeep.
He said the town had been praised in the past for their parks and how the county gave allotted amounts of tax benefits back to the town for the parks.
He credited the town’s Public Works crew and commended them for the work they do in the upkeep of the parks.
Murphy then asked officials what the current policy of mowing unkept yards is and how the town manages those.
Mayor Roland Lanehart, Jr. said the town has a Public Works employee riding around monitoring properties.
From the time the property is “posted” with notice about unmown lawns, the owner has seven days to get it mowed. If not, the town hires a contractor to mow the property and a fine is added to the water and sewer bill.
Lanehart did mention there have been properties already posted within the last couple weeks.
Murphy also revisited the subject of blighted properties in town.
Town Attorney Ed Kuczynski said the town had received service on the two property owners regarding the High Street and Main Street properties.
He added that he still would have to file the paperwork with District Court.
Murphy also inquired if there were any attempts to identify the next set of properties the town would look to submit to the county as needing remediation.
Lanehart said officials are trying, but it’s the first time the county has gone through this process.
He also added they’re trying to get in touch with the owners, but some of the properties have changed hand a couple of times.
Lanehart then asked Murphy what he and his council did with these type of buildings during his administration.
Murphy admitted he didn’t recall any buildings collapsing under his administration, noting the building collapse on Main Street a couple years ago being the first he remembers.
Both Lanehart and Murphy agreed about the safety being the number one priority.
Murphy said the current situation is a culmination of years, not saying it’s Lanehart’s fault.
Both also praised Main Street Hancock for the work they are doing to revitalize the town and getting people to come to Hancock.
By addressing the problem properties before the other two are resolved, Murphy said it might get the other property owners to sell the property before it becomes their problem.
Kuczynski said it’s a chicken and egg thing – do you spend thousands of dollars chasing the other ones if it turns out the other two don’t go anywhere.
“We don’t know how the District Court is going to respond to this,” Kuczynski said.
There was talk several years ago about an ordinance that would give the town the ability to send registered letters to property owners about issues with their property.
Town officials at the time decided not to approve it as it could have led to too much interpretation.
Kuczynski said it might be beneficial for town officials to actually go back and revisit that ordinance.
Murphy did mention the burned-out house on Main Street not being torn down, but Councilman Richard Strong told him Columbia Gas is installing new gas lines along that section of Main Street.
While the gas company is there working on Main Street, the contractor can’t get to the property, but Strong said once they’re done, the house will be torn down.
Murphy also brought the attention of the officials to the C&O Canal and how it has become overgrown.
Knowing the town officials have no control over what happens in and around the canal, Murphy suggested that as the president of the Hancock Historical Society, he would start making contacts with the higher ups to get the canal cleaned out.
Lanehart agreed and gave Murphy permission to act on behalf of the town to make the appropriate contacts to get the canal cleaned out.
Councilman David Kerns said not only would it be an economical and historical cleanup, but also a safety one as well, saying the canal has become a cesspool for mosquitos.
