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Firefighters, Deputies Respond To Fire, Dispute Over Abandoned Building
May 5, 2012
Firefighters and deputies responded a to reported building fire on Highway 97 in Walnut Hill Friday night.
About 8 p.m., someone reported the building in the 7400 block of Highway 97, near Ernest Ward Middle School, to be on fire. When the first firefighters from the Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue arrived on scene, they found a small pile of boards and other debris on fire directly next to the building, which housed a community store and served as a residence years ago. The building had been abandoned since it was heavily damaged by Hurricane Ivan.
The Escambia County Sheriff’s Office was called to the scene due to a dispute between individuals claiming ownership and rights to the building. One of those individuals claiming rights to the building began demolishing it with a tractor Friday evening and had started the small fire. Another person with a claim to the building told deputies that she did not want the person to tear the building down.
According to Escambia County Property Appraiser records, the building sits on different parcels of property, including the state’s right of way along Highway 97.
There were no injuries and no charges filed in connection with the incident.
Pictured above: Firefighters work to completely extinguish a small trash and debris pile next to an abandoned building in Walnut Hill Friday night. Pictured below: The building has been abandoned since it was heavily damaged by Hurricane Ivan. NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Comments
6 Responses to “Firefighters, Deputies Respond To Fire, Dispute Over Abandoned Building”
My parents owned this property from 1962 until 2000 or 2001. They bought it from Cary and Edna Shell. After my stepfather died in 1998, we had a sales contract on the property, but when the survey came in, it showed that the house did encroach on the neighbor’s property; however, deeds dating back to 1952 indicate that is not the case. The property appraiser’s records do not coincide with the actual deeds. In any event, the neighbors were not willing to deed the so-called encroached property, so the sale fell through. The property was then sold to the Shell’s daughter. My parents paid the taxes on this property, which included the assessment for the house, for almost 40 years and the current owner has been paying the taxes since she has owned it.
Adverse possession applies here, but court costs are expensive, and you would think that this could be handled in a reasonable, civilized manner.
It use to be the ol’ Shell Grocery Store many years ago. Mr. Church bought it and turned it in to a fast food joint for a while. Hurricane Ivan did the final blow to that old building. Mr. & Mrs. Shell lived in the back rooms, and so did Mr. & Mrs. Church.
This got me curious as to what that building might have been way back when. Seen it many times driving between here in Pensacola and Atmore. It looks as if it might have housed a gas station way back when due to how it’s laid out. Both of my Grandma’s were born and raised in the Walnut Hill area. They knew each other quite well growing up. One of them is still alive..so I will definitely be asking her.
The way I understand it, the lady has already made arrangements to have the building torn down. Some of the materials in the building are hazardous waste and have to be hauled to a hazardous waste dump. She’s trying to do it the right way.
From all appearances, it would have benefited the community to let the fire Department use it as a training burn. Apparently this is one of those situations where someone just doesn’t want the appearance of the community to improve.
Was this the little seafood place across the street from Ernest Ward??? It was years ago when I went and I haven’t been that way in a while but if this is the same place I am thinking about, in between school and basketball games we used to go eat there before they closed down. It was just great. Then I heard they closed down a couple years later.