Appeals for two properties were before the Bradford City Board of Health this week, and both owners were given more time to continue making improvements.

The properties were 71 Rochester St., owned by Majad Sultan of Long Island, N.Y., who is renovating the home to move to Bradford, and 44 N. Center St., owned by Ron and Emily Simmons, who are renovating the duplex to be a rental property.

Sultan, who joined the hearing via an internet call, had submitted photos to the city of the work he’s done on the property, including installing a new roof, gutting the interior of the home and working on the kitchen and living room.

When asked why he purchased the house, he said he plans to relocate here with his family, adding he visited Bradford and loved it here.

Health director Brandon Plowman agreed that he had observed improvements at the property, but said there remains work to be done. He hadn’t gone inside the structure, but could see from the exterior that no flooring was visible. There are no utilities to the house and several structural issues remain.

Sultan said he intended to continue working on the property, and agreed to put together a timeline for the improvements, and to revisit the appeal when he’s further along with renovations.

Regarding 44 N. Center St., Ron Simmons said he had bought several properties at tax sale and from the repository without knowing about the city’s orders against them or timelines for renovations. “I didn’t quite understand the rules in Bradford,” he said, explaining he’d purchased multiple properties and had a buyer lined up for one. “The people were going to purchase it, but couldn’t because of the nuisance thing.”

His goal, he explained, is to improve these properties to have quality housing available for people to rent. “My intent is to create some affordable housing that is clean, safe and hopefully not problematic.”

At the North Center Street property, he’s had the sewer replaced, as well as the electrical system and the windows. “The entire thing has been cleaned up. We had a whole family of skunks relocated,” he explained. “I still have to rebuild the front porch.”

The duplex is an upstairs/downstairs, and Plowman said historically, the upstairs has had electrical problems. He mentioned the skirting is pulling away in places, the siding is broken and in poor condition, some of the window frames should be replaced, and the front and rear porches are in poor condition.

Simmons said he’s working on correcting issues, but added he’s working at several places simultaneously and asked for more time.

Board member Kris Goll said, “I’m encouraged by what you’ve had to say. Do you plan to bring the entire structure up to code? We want it to code entirely.”

Yes, Simmons said, “I’ve been building for a long time. My goal is to put siding on it, eventually.”

Board member Tom Riel said, “We need more people to do what you’re doing. We have a housing shortage. You’re making progress.

“There are still issues that make it a public nuisance,” Riel added. “I would recommend you come back to us in a few months.”

The board agreed to reconvene in 90 days for an update on where Simmons is with work on the structure.

Also at the meeting, the board declared a public nuisance at 23 Charlotte Ave., which is owned by Cody Hennard.

Plowman explained the house has been vacant for a long time.

“It was recently owned by Tor Swanson. Cody Hennard had interest in the land behind it but not in the structure itself,” Plowman said. “It’s not something he wanted to acquire but it was part of the package for the old city barns behind there.”

He said the front porch is entirely deteriorated, windows are missing, the property is unsecured and in poor condition.

The board declared it a public nuisance.

The next properties, at 6 and 8 E. Main St., owned by an Olean, N.Y. resident, are above the retaining wall on East Main Street and are in poor condition. Both were considered dangerous structures. The owner agreed the properties were a public nuisance and signed a waiver, indicating they did not have the means to abate the code issues or demolish the structure, and giving permission to the city to abate the issues or demolish the structures.