The Abilene Board of Building Standards voted unanimously Oct. 1 to declare the property at 1201 Mesquite Street a public nuisance and ordered the owner to demolish the structure or file an appeal in district court within 30 days.

Board members said the vote followed a staff presentation documenting structural hazards, hazardous wiring and plumbing, inadequate sanitation and extensive exterior dilapidation. Ricky Wright, property maintenance inspector for the City of Abilene, told the board the listed owner is Anna L. Valentine; staff discovered that Valentine died in 2013 and that a daughter identified as the owner’s next of kin said the family could not afford demolition. Wright said the owner “admitted she knows the house needs to be torn down and they can't do anything to afford it right now.”

Wright outlined the enforcement timeline presented to the board: an inspection on June 18, 2024 that found a large roof hole and a collapsed carport; execution of a code inspection warrant on June 25, 2024; an affidavit of condemnation filed with the county clerk on July 2, 2024; subsequent postings and notices; and a December 4, 2024 board order setting a 30–60 day period. Staff recommended finding the property a public nuisance and concluding that repair would be unreasonable.

Board member Allred moved to adopt the staff recommendation that the property be declared a public nuisance; McBrayer seconded. The roll call vote recorded Yes from Wyatt, Allred, McBrayer, McNeil, Turner and Beard; the motion passed. The board then voted, on a separate motion by Allred and second by McBrayer, to order the owner to demolish or appeal within 30 days; the roll call vote recorded the same six Yes votes and that motion also passed. The board noted that if the owner fails to demolish or appeal, the city may demolish the structure and bill the owner.

The board’s action imposes a 30-day deadline to file an appeal in district court or complete demolition; no additional funding or city-assisted demolition was approved at the meeting. The staff recommendation and the board order were entered into the record for enforcement steps to follow.