Boone County Commission orders property cleanup nearly 2 years after fire

Two years after a home east of Columbia burned, the Boone County Commission has approved the removal of the debris left behind.

The home burned on July 6, 2018, but no complaint was made about the structure or debris until May 6 this year. The commission approved a plan for cleanup on Thursday.

The complaint originally came from a neighbor and was sent to State Rep. Sarah Walsh. She sent it to Southern District Boone County Commissioner Fred Parry. Parry sent the complaint to the health department which attempted to contact the property owner.

Parry said officials can do nothing about the structure but can clean up the piles of debris left on the property.

"Our powers are so limited, we have to go through the state legislature to get additional powers," Parry said. "So we don't have the right to go in there and condemn that property or tear down that structure, all we can do is clean it up."

The Boone County Commission received six new complaints about debris and property cleanup needed in the county. On Tuesday it approved three new property nuisance abatements, ordering cleanups of properties on Bethany and Bellview drives in south Columbia and Bethlehem Road southeast of Harrisburg.