MEDINA, Ohio -- The Medina Kmart, which has been closed since December 2011 and has mostly sat empty ever since, has been deemed unsafe.
“I want to make council and the public aware of a recent property maintenance code enforcement action that the building department had to take against the vacant Kmart building located at 1105 N. Court St.” said Dan Gladish, the city’s building official.
“Last Friday, June 17, the building department had to condemn and post the building as an unsafe structure.”
He explained that signage has been put up and the building has been locked and secured to prevent unsafe entry.
“This had to be done due to excessive mold growth on the interior surfaces of the entire building. The air inside the building is contaminated and is not safe to breathe,” Gladish said.
The state of the interior was brought to the building department’s attention after a recent break-in.
The exterior isn’t in good shape, either.
“There is currently an open court case against the out-of-state property owners for exterior maintenance violation. This case dates back to February of 2021 -- one year and four months. This is not typical,” Gladish said.
He explained that several extensions were granted because the building owners claimed that they were close to signing a lease agreement with a new tenant, which would require a new building.
“This appears to be nothing but broken promises and a way to delay making the repairs,” said Gladish. “Estimated exterior and utility costs for the existing building exceed $400,000.”
In other news, Mayor Dennis Hanwell discussed the turnout for the recent Juneteenth and Great Race events.
Juneteenth was planned with the Medina Diversity Committee, Second Baptist Church and the City of Medina.
“It was well attended and very positive comments were received,” Hanwell said of the June 19 event.
He also shared that there was a good turnout for The Great Race -- a cross-country road race for antique cars -- on Tuesday (June 21). Medina was a scheduled lunch stop on the nine-day journey.
“This was great exposure for our community,” said Hanwell. It was also announced that race participants voted Medina as the best lunch spot throughout the event.
“Some of the drivers and participants that were there told me that (at) most lunch stops, nobody comes out (to see the cars). They stop and have lunch and get back in their cars and leave,” said Hanwell.
“In Medina, they were lined up along Weymouth Road when they came past (Interstate) 71 all the way into the square, and the square was literally packed.”
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