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The Lansing Town Board unanimously declared a public emergency Wednesday that calls for the immediate removal of a home at 25 Sperry Lane that suffered a crippling fire over a year ago, but has been left to deteriorate since that time.  The home was under construction at the time of the May 13, 2018 fire that took 25 Lansing firefighters, joined by 40 more from neighboring fire departments, four hours to put out.  The board passed a resolution authorizing the immediate removal of the building and remediation of the dangerous site conditions and soil stabilization.

Town officials expected the house would be demolished once insurance claims had been settled, but say the insurance company demolished parts of the building and left a pile of debris adjacent to it, removing safety fencing.  That exposed the site, including an open foundation more than eight feet deep, plus building materials.  Officials say they have tried to get the owner to remove the building and dangerous materials for months, but no action has been taken.  Weather has further deteriorated the site, causing more building collapse.

At the time of the incident fire officials said the fire started in the basement, then quickly traveled through the rest of the house, which was mostly unfinished, open stud walls.  That enabled the fire to travel quickly, and the building collapsed quickly.  Heavy equipment was brought in to pull some of the sides of the house and the roof out of the way to complete extinguishing the fire.  One fire fighter was injured while trying to contain the blaze.

Officials also say they have received many complaints from neighbors, who fear their children will be attracted to what town officials refer to as a 'traditional attractive nuisance'.  Lansing Code Enforcement Officer Lynn Day issued Defective Conditions Notices and set a July deadline for the landowner to obtain a demolition permit.  But Day examined the building again and found that it had further deteriorated since April.  He submitted evidence to board members that the site is extremely dangerous to the public health and welfare, and said the building must be demolished and the site cleaned up immediately.

The Town Board voted 5-0 at a special meeting Wednesday to declare an emergency and directed Day to remove the house and do whatever is needed to make the site safe.

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