Rotten Awning on the Square Draws Attention

A rotten awning on the building at 235 W. Travis in La Grange is about to fall to the ground. The awning got a lot of attention last week after an insurance agent who works next door posted a picture of it on Facebook.

“Just curious ... how does the city not get involved in this horrible mess in our town square in La Grange?” Holly Morrill wrote on the Fayette County News Facebook page. “This is right next to my business and this has been in worsening shape for years and looks extremely unsafe.”

The post went viral with more than 100 comments from folks around La Grange.

“It’s sad, this historical building on the square, there should be certain conditions to maintain, considering how picky they are with other people’s businesses and what you have to go through,” Morrill told the Record in an interview on Tuesday.

City Manager Fred Bell took notice and visited the vacant building last week.

“Code enforcement made contact with property owner,” Bell said. “We are working with her to address and get it resolved as soon as possible. It’s private property, so its not as simple as we take it down and bill you. We have to follow the ordinances. Our ultimate goal is voluntary compliance. We’re here to work with our community and property owners to get voluntary compliance. But the process can be slow.”

Morrill said the awning presents a safety hazard to pedestrians walking underneath. She told the Record about problems with the building that go back years.

“We’ve been watching the awning rot over the years,” Morrill said. “We had issues with rats from the property coming into our building. The tenants who have been in there have had the same complaints for years. I hope they push the owner to do something.”

Bell said the property owner told him that she would fix the awning.

“The property owner wants this building to be operational again,” Bell said. “It doesn’t look like they are ignoring us. I went by and looked at the awning myself. I get it. It’s something we need to address. We also want our property owners to be good stewards of the community. We want them to flourish.”