PORTSMOUTH, Va. — A house in Portsmouth's Prentis Park neighborhood burned down one year ago. Now, neighbors want to know when all the debris will be removed.
Neighbor Brenda Porter-Rockwell looks at the pile of rubble every day.
"I'm frustrated, yes, because of the progress—or lack of progress—because it doesn't take six months for a house to get torn down," Porter-Rockwell said. "And I'm embarrassed because this is a good neighborhood and kids come out and play. We can't have kids playing on this street because we don't know what glass is out here; we don't know what nails are out here," she added.
Though the home on the lot burned down last April, demolition only started last December. Porter-Rockwell and her neighbors said that ever since they've tried to be patient, but work on the property has been sporadic and slow. Porter-Rockwell said while teardown started in December, it stopped after an hour of work. She said it resumed in February, but again stalled, though she said the city promised there would be progress soon.
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There’s a new headache on the lot, too.
"This has become a public dumping ground and now it's starting to infringe on my actual property," Porter-Rockwell said.
A spokesman for the city told News 3 that dumping trash or debris on a private property without the owner's written consent is a class one misdemeanor that results in hefty fines and has potential for jail time. He also mentioned that demolition for the property in Prentis Park is on pace. He said inspectors are out on-site every week to check progress. Since the permit was issued last December, he said demolition can last until this June.
"The city is actively managing this issue and working to ensure that the debris is removed. We are in communication with the property owner and their contractor. The demolition permit was issued on 12-3-2024, which is still within the 6-month time frame to be completed; thus, they are not in any violation of the demolition permit," the spokesman explained.
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Meanwhile, Porter-Rockwell has been vocal about the issue at city council meetings, wanting to know if the lengthy timeline is accurate and that the project moves forward. She hopes to see more progress soon and fewer blighted properties in the neighborhood she loves.
"At least the council members are on my side. They want to see what is going to be done about this because apparently this is not the only blighted property that's in the middle of a teardown. There's a house on Atlanta that was just renovated, but two houses over there's a blighted property. Then you go a block over and there's brand new construction. We want fresh, invigorated families in this neighborhood but we can't get there if they're taking forever on this," she said.
Despite a housing shortage, there are more than 16 million vacant or unlivable properties in the U.S., according to U.S. Census data. That’s roughly 10 percent of the nation’s housing inventory. Blighted properties—and associated costs and time lines—remain a challenge for cities.
