A ramshackled home on the edge of Bessemer still standing.

BESSEMER — The Bessemer City Council may “uncondemn” a ramshackle house at the west entry of the city.  The item on the agenda was identified as property at 915 W. Lead St., though its legal address is 915 E. Lead St., for reasons no one knows.  Bessemer is in line for a grant of up to $200,000 to help in razing condemned or blighted structures.  The property in question was atop the list of structures on the grant application, but the owner was unwilling to sign the property over to the city, which meant the grant wouldn’t cover demolition costs.  The deadline for filing the grant was Friday, and the house was taken off the list.  The building has a long history of being on the list for demolition.  City officials said the property taxes on the parcel are up to date, so the property won’t be lost via the tax sale route.  It will be costly to raze, since it isn’t solid enough to have anyone enter to perform an asbestos inspection. Thus, the entire building would have to be carted to a licensed hazardous waste disposal site.  City manager Charly Loper estimated the cost of demolition at $30,000.  Vacant for years, the property is a two-story house with a single- store rear addition. The buildings have separated from one another, and the mail portion of the house is leaning toward U.S. 2.  The roof of the addition is caved in, and there is a gaping hole in the roof of the main structure.  At the same time, city attorney Ray O’Dea has told the council it can’t proceed against the owner on the basis of blight, since the building already is condemned.  If the building is taken off the condemned list, presumably it could be cited for blight violations, thus pressuring the owner into action.  The council voted 5-0 to refer the matter to O’Dea in hopes of finding a legal strategy to resolve the matter. More details and comments in this weeks Wakefield News / Wakefield Pick and Axe.