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Four Applewood Apartment buildings still ‘unfit,’ not vacated, attorney says

Posted at 1:26 pm July 13, 2014
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Applewood Apartments at 105 Hunter Circle

A city board declared four buildings on Hunter Circle to be unfit for human occupation or use in November 2010 and, after a Tennessee Court of Appeals opinion, reaffirmed the decision in March 2013. The case has been appealed back to the appellate court.

KNOXVILLE—More than three years after they were declared “unfit,” four dilapidated Applewood Apartment buildings have still not been vacated, an attorney said Thursday.

The Anderson County Chancery Court and the Tennessee Court of Appeals have both affirmed a November 2010 decision by an Oak Ridge board declaring the dilapidated buildings on Hunter Circle to be unfit for human occupation and use—and calling for them to be vacated immediately, attorney Dan Pilkington said.

The 2010 decision was reaffirmed by the city board, the Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, in March 2013, Pilkington said.

“We believe that this order is final,” he said in a 15-minute oral argument before a three-judge panel of the Tennessee Court of Appeals in Knoxville on Thursday. “Despite that, the buildings have never been vacated.”

The 2010 Oak Ridge board hearing was held after notices were issued citing multiple deficiencies that were hazardous to tenants, said Pilkington, who works for Knoxville law firm Watson, Roach, Batson, Rowell, and Lauderback. That company represented the City of Oak Ridge in Thursday’s oral argument before a three-judge panel that included John W. McClarty, D. Michael Swiney, and D. Kelly Thomas Jr. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Government, Government, Oak Ridge, Slider, State, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Chancery Court, Applewood Apartments, codes enforcement, Corum Engineering, D. Kelly Thomas Jr., D. Michael Swiney, Dan Pilkington, Hillside Road, Hunter Circle, Jim Odle, Joe Levitt, John W. McClarty, Ken Krushenski, Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, oral arguments, Tennessee Court of Appeals, Watson Roach Batson Rowell and Lauderback

After board declares them unfit, city posts ‘Danger’ signs on four Applewood buildings

Posted at 12:55 pm March 28, 2013
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Applewood Apartments Danger Signs

The Oak Ridge municipal staff has posted yellow “Danger” signs on units at four Applewood Apartment buildings on Hunter Circle.

A few days after a city board declared them unfit, the Oak Ridge municipal staff posted yellow “Danger” signs on four Applewood Apartment buildings on Hunter Circle, officials said.

Posted on Tuesday, the placards say the 48 apartment units have been deemed unfit for human occupation or use, said Denny Boss, Oak Ridge code enforcement supervisor. The notices cannot be removed until the structures are repaired or demolished.

Joe Levitt, the Knoxville attorney who owns the apartments, disagrees that they are dangerous.

“The buildings are in satisfactory engineering and architectural condition,” he said Thursday. “There’s no question about that.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Government, Oak Ridge, Top Stories Tagged With: Applewood Apartments, code enforcement, Corum Engineering, danger, danger signs, demolition, Denny Boss, Hunter Circle, Jim Odle, Joe Levitt, Kathryn Baldwin, Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, Oak Ridge Community Development, Tennessee Court of Appeals, unfit, unfit for human occupation or use

Board reaffirms decision to declare four Applewood buildings ‘unfit’

Posted at 12:19 pm March 22, 2013
By John Huotari 6 Comments

Applewood Apartments Board Hearing

Jim Odle of Odle and Young Architects in Knoxville shows a picture of a repair during a Thursday code enforcement hearing on four Applewood Apartments buildings. Also pictured at front center is Joe Levitt, owner of the apartment complex.

With no objections from members, a city board on Thursday reaffirmed a decision from more than two years ago to declare four Applewood Apartment buildings unfit for human occupation and use, and declare them nuisances.

Joe Lee, a member of the Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, said the board’s November 2010 decision on the four buildings on Hunter Circle has already been upheld by the Anderson County Chancery Court and the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

It wasn’t immediately clear what might happen next, including whether apartment owner Joe Levitt, a Knoxville attorney, might appeal the decision, and whether the city might issue an order to vacate the buildings. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Government, Oak Ridge, Top Stories Tagged With: Anderson County Chancery Court, Applewood Apartments, code enforcement, demolition, Hillside Road, Hunter Circle, Jim Odle, Joe Lee, Joe Levitt, John Russell, Kathryn Baldwin, Ken Krushenski, nuisance, Oak Ridge Board of Building and Housing Code Appeals, Oak Ridge Community Development, Odle and Young Architects Inc., repairs, Tennessee Court of Appeals, unfit for human occupation and use

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