Officials: Tasty Nut Shop building should be razed

WHITE PIGEON — The next step regarding the continuing saga of a White Pigeon landmark may involve a rarely used panel to potentially decide the fate of the historic building.

St. Joseph County District Court Judge Jeff Middleton and the parties involved in the case of the Tasty Nut Shop met Wednesday to compare notes and decide what happens next.

Through their attorney Roxanne Seeber, it was confirmed White Pigeon officials remain convinced the 150-year-old building that housed the Tasty Nut Shop and Silver Spoons Catering is a threat to the public and should be demolished.

Paul Morgan, an attorney representing its owner, Union Hall Block Building Inc., said a plan is in place to begin correcting architectural flaws. Those corrections, he said, would address the most-immediate public-safety concerns.

One correction would include erecting a 6-foot fence around the east, south and west sides of the building, which would force removal of barricades the village has had in place since spring. In addition, a cable and netting brace would be placed over the southwest side of the building to contain bricks that could potentially work themselves loose.

Morgan said the roof is leaking and is in need of repair.

“These are all things we think we could have done within four to six to eight weeks, but for various reasons, have not been able to obtain permission from the village to move forward with this fencing program,” he said. “The current situation is a lot less safe than the fencing we would be putting out.”

Middleton said the village is not seeking an order of compliance with codes and ordinances. Rather, it’s clear the village’s only position is that the three-story, brick building be razed, he noted.

Seeber confirmed Middleton’s assessment.

“The village is concerned perpetually about the safety of its occupants and the people that may or may not be using the sidewalk, as well as regarding falling brick and potentially asbestos release,” Seeber said. “There’s been a good, long amount of time in which really nothing happened and we just wonder about how serious they are about actually being able to move forward with this.

“At this point, the village would still be interested in getting an order allowing it to demolish the building,” Seeber added.

Middleton said he has reservations about Union Hall’s financial ability to rehabilitate the building — located at 100 and 102 E. Chicago Road in downtown White Pigeon. He quipped even the Colosseum in Rome can be renovated, albeit at an exorbitant cost.

Morgan said he understands concerns about the cost of renovating the building. Yet, he added, addressing immediate safety concerns is a starting point at which he would like to have a contractor in place to move forward.

Doug Kuhlman, village zoning administrator, said a structural engineer has already concluded the building has outlived its life, is beyond repair and is in a state of collapse.

Nonetheless, he said the next step will involve input staged during a Dangerous Building Hearing, a process he said he hasn’t been a part of in nearly 20 years.

He explained it involves assembling an unspecified number of people not from the area and with no personal or financial interest in the property. They will be overseen by an officer, also with no bias toward the situation.

Following the 90-minute hearing, Kuhlman said he would have preferred to see Middleton make a decision Wednesday, as Kuhlman said the result of the potential Dangerous Building Hearing is predictable.

“They’ll agree it’s a dangerous building, the other side will appeal and it will end up back in court, before Judge (Paul) Stutesman in Circuit Court,” Kuhlman said. “All that just to end up right back in court again.”

Kuhlman said he will have to refresh himself on the process of organizing and staging a Dangerous Building Hearing, reiterating it is not a commonly used procedure.

Middleton asked a series of rhetorical questions about such a hearing and those involved in the matter.

“This building-demolition board, which is comprised of private citizens who make the determination of whether the building shall be demolished or not … I’m not even clear because I haven’t even dived deep enough into it,” he said. “Who appoints the board? Where do we find these people? Who pays them? Who supervises them? Who sets out their procedural rules to determine whether this building is torn down or not.”

Former owner Marjorie Hamminga defied a condemnation order and continued Tasty Nut Shop operations until February. The 87-year-old Hamminga died in July. Through quick-claim deed, Tasty Nut Shop was put under the control of Union Hall Block Building Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Officials: Tasty Nut Shop building should be razed