Lalley: Land owner loses the long game against the City of Sioux Falls
Court-ordered demolition of buildings on the former MX Liquor site at 15th Street and Cliff Avenue is the ultimate penalty for years of nuisance violations.
There are holes where water and time have carved gaps from the cracks in the concrete foundation.
Inside, the walls are bare, the old-school plaster stripped away in advance of well-intentioned renovations that never happened.
Light peaks between the exterior planks, casting a mid-day glow as Keith Gilbertson explains the work he’s done over the years on the house at 1106 E. Prospect St.
Very soon it will all be gone, along with a half block of commercial buildings that many years ago was the home of MX Liquor and assorted other office and storage space.
On Monday, crews started the initial clean-up in advance of demolition, a rare instance of the City of Sioux Falls enforcing the ultimate penalty for years of nuisance violations.
Gilbertson, now in his mid-80s, was working to salvage what he could from the properties, which he has owned since 1983.
On a beautiful and bright Tuesday afternoon, he was a man busy staying busy in the face of the inevitable.
“There’s a lot of work that’s been done in here,” Gilbertson said during an abbreviated tour of the house, the middle of three he owns on Prospect, the street on the south side of the block that includes the MX Liquor site at 15th Street and Cliff Avenue.
The other two houses escaped the court-approved demolition, for now, and Gilbertson plans to bring them up to living standards and rent them out for the first time in many years.
Neighbors have long complained that the property is an eyesore. Indeed the houses are dilapidated, trees have taken residence in the walls and windows of a wooden storage garage and the main concrete building facing Cliff is dormant as a commercial operation.
The list of complaints and failed inspections is long, dating back years.
Gilbertson has played the long game in his struggle against the citations, bringing the buildings up to a minimum level to pass inspection, just to see them fall back beneath that threshold.
Trouble is, the City of Sioux Falls plays the longer one.
“In accordance with court orders issued, the city is preparing to demolish a dilapidated commercial building (address of 709/711 S. Cliff Avenue) and a residence (address of 1106 E. Prospect Street) based on the buildings violating code of ordinances in Sioux Falls for an extended time period,” Kevin Smith, assistant director of planning and development services, said in a statement to Sioux Falls Live on Tuesday.
City officials don’t like to talk about the specifics of an individual case once it hits the court system.
But I have talked to Smith about the process generally and tearing down buildings is not something they do often.
Of the 7,000 or so inspections the city did in 2022, for instance, about 850 led to a citation. From there a series of increasing fines usually leads to compliance. A few ultimately end up in court.
Only rarely does it lead to demolition.
On Jan. 31, a judge gave Gilbertson a Sept. 30 deadline to remedy the immediate issues at the MX Liquor site, which he was not able to meet.
“Property owner rights are sacred but we also have community standards to maintain,” Smith told me for a story in February. “That includes requiring that we keep lawns at a certain height and sidewalks clear of snow and ice in the winter.”
Lawns and sidewalks are one thing, tearing down buildings is another, and not something the city approaches lightly, he said.
“Those take longer,” he said. “We are aware of an individual’s property rights and we respect that… Our goal is compliance. Unfortunately, sometimes it’s a lengthy process to get there.”
Gilbertson didn’t have much time to talk when I got hold of him by phone after the trucks showed up on Monday.
“I tell you what, I'm real busy trying to save some stuff,” he said then. “I’m thinking that the government has got way too much power. That’s about it.”
He had precious little more when I stopped by on Tuesday, but took a moment to show me where he’d pulled out an old back stoop, revealing the holes in the foundation, and pointed out the reinforced beams in the ceiling.
The long game came to mind.
He’s had years to do the work, or get it done. Contractors are hard to get, he said, especially for foundation work. The house in particular could have been moved into the back yard to pour a new basement but there aren’t too many companies that do it.
Still, it was the obvious question, why hadn’t he been able to get the work done, given the years that had passed.
“There’s a whole story behind that,” Gilberston said, citing the lack of time he had to talk.
Given the state of the buildings, and the incredible scope of the work that would be required to bring them up to a minimum standard, it’s hard not to think that maybe the city was doing him a favor.
Gilbertson still owns a considerable chunk of land in a busy commercial corridor.
He doesn’t seem like a guy ready to move on, however, and maybe sell to an interested developer.
His plan for the lot between the two remaining houses?
“I’m going to build another house.”
Busy staying busy.
Content courtesy of Sioux Falls Live.
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Mr Gilbertson is a great man, have known him for years, this is a shame what the city is doing to his property. these old buildings are NOT an eye sore, and the property had plans to restore them, but the city government forced him to spend money now, rather than wait for him to save up the money. The two homes are in awesome shape, and should have been preserved. This is all b.s The Dakota Scout should have defended this mans property, NOT the city itself. This is what happens in a tyrannical system where government can just bulldoze your property. PROPERTY RIGHTS should be protected.
So, the next question is when is the property on the west side of Phillips Ave and the north side of 33rd St going to come up for review?
Nearly 40 years? the City of Sioux Falls is way to lax when it comes to code enforcement.