A remodel of a Bradford house on the nuisance list is underway, and the owner and potential buyer were granted a reprieve by the Bradford City Board of Health on Tuesday.
Gary Dioguardi, owner of 18 Interstate Parkway, and Steve Deitz, who plans to buy the property, spoke at an appeal hearing before the board.
Dioguardi, who started off by explaining he’s had a health setback, said he knows there is a tree on the property that needs to be cut down and that there was water in the basement.
“I was in the process of selling it to another individual,” he said, referring to Deitz. When the electricity was off to the property, so was the pump keeping the water out of the basement. That’s been cleared up, he said.
“By the end of March the tree will be down,” he continued. “The moss that’s on the roof will be gone. The roof is in pretty good shape.”
And the house is getting all new water lines. “Mr. Deitz is going to buy the house from me and wants to have it move-in ready by March,” he said. “He’s able-bodied and I’m letting him do the work.”
Deitz said the timeline might change. “I gutted the kitchen completely out,” he said, explaining the room will have new wiring, lights, drywall, flooring and, after the water lines are put in, a new ceiling. “The rest of the house is pretty structurally sound.”
When asked about a garage on the property, Deitz said he plans to address that, but he does work full-time for contractors in town, and works on the property when he can.
“You’re going to live there yourself?” asked Mayor Tom Riel.
“Yes,” Deitz replied.
In response to a question from board president Fred Proper, Deitz said the house is heated by a boiler and baseboard heating. He estimated the timeline to be closer to the end of April.
Health director Brandon Plowman said he had been to the property in November, and again on Tuesday. He spoke about the large, overgrown dead tree that needs to be cut down, moss on the roof of the house, conditional issues with the front porch and with the garage, as well as an accumulation of garbage in and around the house.
Following the testimony, the board agreed to give Dioguardi and Deitz 90 days to work on the house, and ordered them to submit reports to the city regarding specific work and time lines. At the end of the time period, the board will meet and discuss how to continue.
