Lawrence Properties on the Auction Block
Twenty-one Richmond-area properties owned by landlord Oliver C. Lawrence and his Bayou Properties are being sold in a foreclosure auction next month.
Lawrence has been convicted of multiple property-maintenance violations and once was ordered by a judge to live for 40 days in one of his dilapidated houses. He also was fined $177,000 for 170 violations in October 2009.
The auction takes place on December 14 at 11 a.m. at the Richmond Marriott Hotel’s Capital Salon and includes some homes in our area: 105 Dundee Ave, 6000 Daytona Dr, 404 W 24th St, Richmond, 2418 Perry St, 3002 & 3002-A Semmes Ave, 3029 Forest Hill Ave, and 1306 Evert Ave.
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These 21 properties are only the tip of the iceberg for this guy. According to the RTD, the city estimated that he could own as many as 300 properties in Richmond. As of Aug., he owed back taxes to the city on 177 properties, and 31 more were tied up in foreclosures/tax sales. He’s done a lot of damage all over the city by letting his dilapidated properties drag down neighborhoods.
Lets hope that Bullifant does not buy up these properties and open up halfway houses for profit and tax breaks. Richmond needs responsible owners to take these properties. The city and our neighborhoods have more than its fair share of halfway houses thanks to Bullifant. Here’s hoping these properties don’t get dumped out of the frying pan into the fire.
I agree with “WH Resident”!!
And I also “second” that opinion from Woodland Hts.Resident. Thanks to Bulifant we have two halfway houses in a one block radius of Semmes Avenue ( 29th/28th ). Is this even legal??? So I, too, sincerely hope some responsible ownerS will buy these properites and turn them around into places people will want to live for a long time.
The Bulifant properties are apparently operated on the Oxford House model which enables them to avoid some of the legal issues affecting such establishments.
http://www.oxfordhouse.org/userfiles/file/
I too would prefer to see someone other that Bulifant acquire the property in question. I think that WH has reached (if not exceeded) the saturation point with halfway houses.