Parkersburg City Council President Mike Reynolds, right, discusses property he’d like to see the Urban Renewal Authority acquire in the future during a URA meeting Tuesday as Councilwoman Wendy Tuck listens. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

PARKERSBURG – Members of Parkersburg’s Urban Renewal Authority this week agreed to give the owner of a home that had been proposed for acquisition by eminent domain more time to address its code violations.

“I don’t want to lose my house,” Melissa McMahan said during Tuesday’s URA meeting in Parkersburg City Council chambers.

City Code Enforcement Director Andy Nestor said the only reason the property on 36th Street had been referred to the URA, which consists of all nine council members, was that the owner had not been in contact with the Building Enforcement Agency over code violations including no electrical service and needed repairs to stairways, decks, porches, windows and trim.

“I don’t believe anybody on this board or anybody here wants to take anybody’s house,” Nestor said. “If we would’ve had some correspondence before this, it never would have made it to this point.”

Nestor recommended McMahan start a payment plan on fees owed to the city to make it easier to get building permits to make the needed repairs.

The URA voted 7-0, with Councilwoman Jesse Cottrille and Chairman J.R. Carpenter absent, to refer the property back to the Building Enforcement Agency.

In other business, the authority approved the sale of one lot to a developer but took no action on two other offers.

A 7-0 vote approved the sale of a lot at 1109 13th St. for $3,700 to Your Hut Inc., owned by O.B. Epling. Epling said in his application that he plans to consolidate the 2,613-square-foot property, acquired by the URA earlier this year, with an adjacent parcel to build a new single- or multi-family dwelling.

“He builds houses,” Councilwoman Sharon Kuhl said of Epling. “I think he’s proven himself to the City of Parkersburg.”

No motion was made on an offer from Leon Bayer to purchase a vacant lot at 806 Swann St. for $100. Bayer said in his application he has been mowing the lot for about 20 years and wanted to acquire it as an extension of his yard.

“I know Mr. Bayer, and he’s a great guy, but if we start selling property for 100 bucks, we may as well start giving property away for Christmas,” council President Mike Reynolds said.

Councilwoman Wendy Tuck noted the amount of time Bayer has been mowing the lot.

“That’s a pretty significant investment,” she said.

No motion was made on an offer from Harry Linsinbigler to purchase a lot at 1409 20th St. for $1,000. He had proposed using it as a staging area to build on an adjacent lot he owns and possibly as the site of a residence in the future.

Reynolds said there is a dilapidated property on the other side of the lot that he hopes the URA could acquire, consolidate with the one it already owns and sell.

“That’s assuming that we can acquire that house in the future,” said Councilman Zach Stanley, who presided over the meeting in Carpenter’s absence.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.