Displaced Waukesha Condo Residents To Appeal Demolition Order

WAUKESHA, WI—Residents of a deteriorating Waukesha condominium retained a lawyer and are in the process of appealing a raze order.

The city of Waukesha issued a raze order on Horizon West Condominiums, after 65 residents were forced to evacuate the structure in December.

The Waukesha Fire Department ordered the Dec. 2 evacuation of the condo building, at 315 N. West Ave., because of deteriorating structural conditions at the building, the city said.

The raze order, dated Jan. 5, is addressed to the Condominium Association and individual unit owners of the condo, which gives 120 days to demolish the structure. Residents have 30 days to appeal the order.

"At this point, there's no fingers being pointed or anything like that. It's just to so that we can explore any legal options that we might have, and to figure out what we as an association want to do, rather than just having the city bring down the building on our behalf," said condo resident Alicia Halvensleben.

Exploring Options

The next step is to decide what residents want to do with the building.

"There were some people who said they just want this done and over with. There are also people asking if there is a way to refurbish this building,"Halvensleben said.

The six-story condo building, built in 1966, is described in the order as "so old, dilapidated, or has become so out of repair as to be dangerous, unsanitary or otherwise unfit for human habitation, occupancy or use, so that in the judgment of the undersigned said building must be made safe by the razing and removal of such building."

The raze order is based on on-site observations and engineer reports, the document said.
Construction work had been going on for months, Halvensleben said.

She added the point of appealing the order is provide a little more time to figure out the best option.

"We want to make sure we are doing what is best for everyone," Halvensleben said.

Another burden are financial costs associated with lawyer fees, mortgages and temporary housing costs.

A GoFundMe has been set up to raise money for the Waukesha condo residents/owners who were displaced.

There has been no financial assistance, other than emergency Red Cross services, according to the GoFundMe, which was created Dec. 23.

As of Tuesday, the GoFundMe has raised $10,345.

"We are struggling, we haven't really raised a whole lot of money," Halvensleben said.

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