Cape Breton municipality's 10 worst buildings to be demolished

The Cape Breton Regional Municipality will put out a tender next week to demolish the next abandoned or derelict buildings on its list of worst offenders.

The municipality creates a top 10 list every three months, and issues 30-day demolition notices to the buildings' owners. An owner has the option of repairing the building to an inspector's satisfaction or tearing it down.

If the notice expires with no action, the municipality proceeds with the demolition.

Coun. Charlie Keagan represents North Sydney, where one of the worst offenders on the current list is located. The building was boarded up in 2012 under the Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act.

"It's a total mess is what it is," Keagan said. "There's no way you can do anything with it."

Paul Burt, a bylaw manager with the Cape Breton Regional Municipality, said those living near that building and most of the others are afraid the houses will become targets of arson or drug activity. Abandoned properties also drive down property values in a neighbourhood.

"We get a lot of calls and complaints here and people do sometimes get frustrated by the amount of time it takes and the fact that it's a dangerous property," he said.

"It still has to remain standing for some time until we can assess it and it makes its way to the top of our list."

That list contains hundreds of addresses, but council decided it could afford to deal with only a handful at a time. It has budgeted $120,000 annually for the demolition of as many as 40 houses.

Burt said dealing with the buildings is time consuming, since it's not always easy to find the people who own them.

"[They] may have left the area to find employment. The owners may be deceased. The owners may be in jail, so there's all kinds of problems," he said.

In the case of the latest top 10 list, two of the property owners have agreed to demolish the buildings themselves. The municipality will tear down the others by the middle of next month and charge the cost to the owner's tax bill. If that's not paid, the remaining land will be sold at auction.