William “Bud” Wirick not only lost a storage barn, but personal property he says was worth several thousand dollars. Cars, motorcycles, mowers, tools, 15 rolls of metal roofing and roof rafters are all gone, he claims, after his storage barn was demolished after he was cited for allowing a dangerous building to exist next to his house.
On the other hand, Joplin taxpayers lost dollars paying for the time of city officials who say they worked with Wirick for nearly a year. Tax dollars also paid the cost of demolishing Wirick’s property.
Steve Cope, the city’s neighborhood improvement supervisor, told the Globe the city does about 75 building demolitions each year. Private contractors are hired, and they clear away the buildings and dispose of any contents the owners don’t remove.
That’s what happened on Nov. 2 when the demolition crew showed up at Wirick’s property some four months after he was cited in Joplin Municipal Court.
Cope told the editorial board that there are never any good resolutions in cases like Wirick’s. We agree. It appears that Wirick had everything he needed to fix his barn roof that collapsed during the 2007 ice storm. Everything, that is, except apparently the help to get the job done.
We are certainly not suggesting that the city is responsible for rebuilding or repairing anyone’s personal property.
But maybe there are people out there who would be willing to help.
The Public Works Department, the city department where Cope works, would welcome names and phone numbers of individuals and organizations willing to step in and lend a hand.
In our view, that contact list should be available to every city inspector and kept handy for cases such as Wirick’s.
That type of reference guide might save us all money and peace of mind.
