NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, November 16, 2022
A5
Owner objects to home’s demolition
Baker City offi cials
issued numerous
warnings about
‘dangerous’ structure
By JAYSON JACOBY
Baker City Herald
BAKER CITY — The man
who owned a home that Baker
City had torn down in early
August after the city’s build-
ing offi cial deemed it danger-
ous says the experience has
left him in a “crippling state of
depression.”
Lucas Buddy Lee Gwin,
37, whose home was at 1975
Birch St. in east Baker City, at
the corner of Birch Street and
Washington Avenue, wrote
in an email to the Baker City
Herald that he’s been “looking
at what I do have and trying to
learn to let go of the pain and
anger of what I’ve lost.”
Gwin’s home was the
fi rst to be deemed a “chronic
neighborhood
nuisance”
under a 2019 revision to the
city’s property maintenance
ordinance.
Brent Kerns, Baker County
Justice of the Peace, made the
chronic nuisance judgment on
Jan. 11, 2022.
Gwin appealed that deci-
sion, but the appeal was dis-
missed July 19.
Although the city paid to
remove trash and other debris
from outside Gwin’s home
four times from 2017-21, the
recurring violations of the
city’s property maintenance
ordinance, culminating with
the chronic nuisance designa-
tion, are not the reason Gwin’s
home was torn down, said
Dawn Kitzmiller, the city’s
building offi cial.
The structure was taken
down because she deemed
that it had multiple structural
problems that clearly made it a
dangerous building, Kitzmiller
said.
The 950-square-foot home,
built in 1900, had a market
value of $3,740, according to
the Baker County Assessor’s
Offi ce, which last appraised
the property in 2019.
The lot, which covers
almost 5,000 square feet, has
a market value of $31,330,
according to the Assessor’s
Offi ce.
Contributed Photo
Lucas Gwin with his pet pig.
“At some point that struc-
ture would have failed,” Kitz-
miller said in August. “It was
in terrible shape.”
Kitzmiller said she met with
Gwin soon after she inspected
his home on April 7, 2022, and
told him she would be sending
an offi cial letter declaring the
home unsafe to occupy.
She gave him until mid
May to submit a plan for either
repairing the house — which
Kitzmiller said she didn’t
think was feasible given the
likely cost — or dismantling it.
“I’m sorry for Mr. Gwin,
but he’s been given so many
chances,” Kitzmiller said.
In an email to the Herald,
Gwin said he had “requested
to purchase the necessary per-
mits to demolish the house
myself” but that city offi cials
didn’t give him a deadline.
Gwin also contends that a
shed on his property was not
supposed to be torn down, but
it was, along with the house.
Gwin also wrote in his
email that the city took a trailer
he owns and that was parked
on the street, and that he has
not recovered personal doc-
uments, photo albums and
other items that were inside
the trailer.
Gwin pointed out that
a 2019 state law requires a
72-hour notice before a city
or other government agency
removes personal items from
public property.
Gwin said the city also took
his utility trailer, which was
also parked on the street. He
said his cellphone was inside
the trailer, and because he lost
his phone he wasn’t able to
attend a hearing with the Social
Security Administration related
to his application for disability.
“I have no money, am
homeless, have mental impair-
ments that make employment
diffi cult to sustain,” Gwin
wrote in an email to the Her-
ald. “I don’t have the means
to acquire phone service so I
don’t have a telephone number
and can not get another hear-
ing for disability consideration
without one.”
Baker City Police Chief Ty
Duby said he believes the city
has been “more than fair with
Lucas.”
Duby said if anything, the
city was more lenient than it
could have been, including
repeatedly paying to remove
items from Gwin’s property
before declaring his home
dangerous.
“He just never came into
compliance” with the city’s
property maintenance ordi-
nance, Duby said. “At some
point it’s not fair to the
community.”
Gwin acknowledged that
he accumulated a lot of mate-
rial on his property.
“I’m messy, I’ve never
denied this fact, I’ve always
plead guilty to my property
maintenance issues,” he wrote.
“But I am a good human, I am
a tax paying citizen and a hon-
est man.”
post 150.
ical alarm on Valley View Drive in
John Day.
4:40 p.m.: Responded for an
elderly woman who fell on RNR
Ridge Road in John Day.
Nov. 8
8:51 a.m.: Ambulance transport
at Blue Mountain Care Center, Prai-
rie City.
3:46 p.m.: Dispatched with Long
Creek Ambulance to an elderly
female with chest pain on South
Eagle Street in Long Creek.
• Prairie City Ambulance
Nov. 6
10:23 a.m.: Ambulance call on
South Main Street.
Nov. 9
5:24 p.m.: Dispatched with John
Day Ambulance for a medical alarm
on Dixie Creek Road.
• USFS
Nov. 2
7:47 a.m.: Fire burn information
at Black Butte.
Nov. 3
8:20 a.m.: Fire burn information
at Summit Prairie.
Nov. 7
8:06 a.m.: Fire burn information
at 16RD/1662 RD.
Nov. 8
7:41 a.m.: Fire burn information
at 16RD/1662 RD.
• Long Creek Ambulance
Nov. 5
9:24 a.m.: Dispatched with sher-
iff ’s offi ce, OSP and John Day Ambu-
lance for a rollover accident on High-
way 395 North, milepost 75B.
• ODOT
Nov. 4
5:29 a.m.: Report of a big rock in
the highway on Highway 19, mile-
post 116.
5:43 a.m.: Report of hazardous
road conditions on Highway 395B,
milepost 95.
5:51 a.m.: Report of whiteout
conditions on Beech Creek and Long
Creek mountains.
7:24 a.m.: Report of a boulder on
the highway on Highway 26, mile-
post 93.
• Dayville Ambulance
Nov. 9
8:17 a.m.: Dispatched with John
Day Ambulance for a subject with a
back injury on Ervin Street.
COPS AND COURTS
Arrests and citations in the Blue
Mountain Eagle are taken from the
logs of law enforcement agencies.
Every eff ort is made to report the
court disposition of arrest cases
Circuit Court
Nov. 14
Christopher C. Boyer, 33, pleaded
guilty to failure to appear in the second
degree as well as criminal mischief in
the fi rst degree. Boyer was sentenced to
55 days in jail for each count, and the
sentences can be served concurrently.
Justice Court
The Grant County Justice Court
reported the following activity for the
week ending Nov. 9:
Misdemeanors fi led: 5
Traffi c citations fi led: 25
Small claims/civil fi led: 2
Hearings held: 7
Suspensions: 11
Cases on probation: 16
Community service hours per-
formed: 4
Violation of the basic rule: Jer-
emy Wayne Loud, 49, John Day, Sept.
24, 71/55 zone, fi ned $165; Adrienne
Erin Wilson, 34, Donnely, Idaho, Oct.
8, 67/55 zone, fi ned $165; Alexandria
Nicole Wachtel, 24, Baker City, Oct. 9,
74/65 zone, fi ned $165; Michael Shane
Taylor, 54, Redmond, Oct. 9, 73/55
zone, fi ned $165; Brandon Lawrence
Knoll, 39, Springfi eld, Oct. 16, 71/55
zone, fi ned $165; Jose Kikahunanui
Gaceta III, 53, Sweet Home, Oct. 24,
75/55 zone, fi ned $165; Douglas Alan
Vandenborn, 52, Bend, Oct. 26, 75/55
zone, fi ned $165; Michael E. Warren,
58, Prineville, Oct. 30, 71/55 zone,
fi ned $165; Larry D. Wood, 78, Spring-
fi eld, Oct. 30, 74/55 zone, fi ned $100.
Exceeding speed limit: Aaron
D. Klefman, 27, Sept. 30, 35/25 zone,
fi ned $115; Genevieve Violet Perdue,
32, Oct. 8, 45/35 zone, fi ned $115;
Quinten Michael Hallgarth, 19, Oct.
9, 75/65 zone, fi ned $165; Mandi Lou-
ise Loud, 47, Oct. 11, 50/35 zone, fi ned
$165; Kathryne Lucia Scott, 34, Bend,
Oct. 16, 35/25 zone, fi ned $115; Wal-
ter Paul Lorence, 59, Halfway, Oct.
22, 37/25 zone, fi ned $165; Carolyn
Zanotto, 51, Redmond, Oct. 29, 62/35
zone, fi ned $265.
Driving with suspened or
revoked license: Brad Lee Hartwick,
46, Oct. 19, fi ned $440; Mathew
Walker, 39, Oct. 19, fi ned $440.
Driving uninsured: Brad Lee
Hartwick, 46, Oct. 19, fi ned $265;
Mathew Walker, 39, Oct. 19, fi ned
$265.
Failure to wear motorcycle hel-
met: Brad Lee Hartwick, 46, Oct. 19,
fi ned $115.
Exceeded permitted weight
limit: Anthony I. Reeves, 55, Oct. 10,
fi ned $200.
Oregon State Police
Nov. 4
9:01 a.m.: Dale Dwane Voetberg,
46, of La Grande was cited for careless
driving with an accident involved on
Highway 26, milepost 174.
11:48 p.m.: Callie Gill-Deford,
23, was arrested for DUI on Highway
26, milepost 162. Gill-Deford’s breath
sample reportedly measured 0.18%.
She was also cited for speeding and
lodged in the Grant County Jail.
Nov. 5
9:55 a.m.: Dionico Rafael
Pereyda, 19, of Milton-Freewater was
cited for careless driving with an acci-
dent involved. Pereyda reportedly
fell asleep at the wheel and struck an
ODOT road refl ector, culvert grate
and gravel embankment. Pereyda’s
car went airborne and struck a tree
stump head-on before rolling onto its
side on the shoulder of the northbound
lane. Pereyda was transported from the
scene by ambulance prior to the arrival
of the citing offi cer.
Nov. 7
2:45 p.m.: Joseph Scott Baker,
24, of Gladstone was cited for driving
while suspended, driving uninsured
and no/improper mudfl aps. Baker
was initially stopped for an equipment
violation.
Grant County Sheriff
The Grant County Sheriff ’s Offi ce
reported the following for the week
ending Nov. 9:
Concealed handgun licenses: 12
Average inmates: 11
Bookings: 6
Releases: 6
Arrests: 3
Citations: 1
Fingerprints: 9
Civil papers: 7
Warrants processed: 7
Assist/welfare check: 2
Search and rescue: 0
Dispatch
Grant County dispatch worked
154 calls during the week ending Nov.
9, including:
• Grant County Sheriff
Nov. 2
7:50 a.m.: Responded to a report
of an abandoned vehicle at Keeney
Fork.
9:39 a.m.: Transport to Umatilla.
7:39 p.m.: Report of a driving
complaint and domestic incident at
West Main Street in John Day.
8:07 p.m.: Report of a mental sub-
ject on West Brent in John Day.
Nov. 3
10:21 a.m.: Responded to a com-
mercial panic alarm at Rocky Mtn.
Dispensary.
11:56 a.m.: Responded to a civil
issue on Brent Street in John Day.
2:48 p.m.: Conducted a welfare
check on 12th Street in Prairie City.
6:39 p.m.: Responded to a juvenile
problem on Aslin Avenue in Mount
Vernon.
6:54 p.m.: Overdue motorist/
missing person at Camp Creek.
Nov. 4
9:21 a.m.: Responded to a hit and
run at The Outpost in John Day.
10:31 a.m.: Attempted warrant
service at the Elkhorn Apartments in
John Day.
2:06 p.m.: Parking complaint at
the Blue Mountain Hospital in John
Day.
4:09 p.m.: Responded to a 911
call for a dispute over a car on South-
west Brent Drive in John Day.
11:13 p.m.: Report of kids throw-
ing rocks at houses on Northwest 7th
Avenue in John Day.
Nov. 5
11:19 a.m.: Responded with
BLM law enforcement offi cer to a
dispute in Chester’s parking lot
2:24 p.m.: Information about
elder abuse at Marks Creek.
11:59 p.m.: Deschutes County
served local warrant on South Can-
yon Boulevard in John Day.
Nov. 6
5:29 a.m.: Advised of a missing
person in Grant County.
9:16 a.m.: Burglar alarm at Little
Dog Creek Lane.
11:20 a.m.: Theft complaint at the
Mini-Mart in Dayville.
11:29 p.m.: Advised of an acci-
dent on South Canyon Boulevard in
John Day.
Nov. 7
12:56 p.m.: Responded to dogs
that killed chickens and ducks on
Highway 26.
1:06 p.m.: Responded to suspi-
cious circumstances on Highway 395
South.
3:18 p.m.: Welfare check at East
Riverside Street in Mt. Vernon.
5:40 p.m.: Report of a suspicious
vehicle at Eastern Oregon Realty in
John Day.
6:07 p.m.: Offi cer contact at
Grant Union High School.
7:22 p.m.: Traffi c stop. Driver
Austin Catron arrested for DUI.
Nov. 8
7:29 a.m.: Dispatched with OSP
to a motorist assist on Highway
395B, Milepost 113.
8:17 a.m.: Traffi c stop at Keeney
Fork, driver warned for speed.
9:40 a.m.: Suspicious vehicle on
North Canyon Boulevard in John
Day.
1:18 p.m.: Found property at
ODOT.
3:39 p.m.: Dispatched to a report
of trespassing on West Main Street in
John Day.
4:07 p.m.: Offi cer contact at Prai-
rie City School.
Nov. 9
11:58 a.m.: Robert L Crosby II
was arrested on a Grant County war-
rant on North Main Street in John
Day.
1:07 p.m.: Report of a theft from
a cargo container at Carter Rest Area.
4:18 p.m.: Kevin H. Wong, 44, of
Portland was cited for driving while
suspended on Highway 395C, mile-
post 1.
7:58 p.m.: OSP was requested to
contact a Dayville resident regarding
a roadstruck deer at the South Fork
Mini-Mart.
• Oregon State Police
Nov. 2
10:32 a.m.: Advised of a non-in-
jury accident on Highway 395, mile-
post 15.
8:42 p.m.: Report of a non-in-
jury accident on Highway 26, mile-
Nov. 3
5:53 a.m.: Report of a semi-truck
in the ditch on Highway 26 near
Antone Ranch.
11:00 a.m.: Responded with sher-
iff ’s offi ce to a report of theft of ser-
vices at Chevron.
Nov. 4
4:45 a.m.: Report of a logging
truck on its side on Highway 26,
milepost 174.
Nov. 7
4:16 p.m.: Report of an injured
elk calf on Strawberry Road in Prai-
rie City.
6:37 p.m.: Dispatched with sher-
iff ’s offi ce to a report of a calf on
the highway on Highway 26, mile-
post 136.
Nov. 8
6:21 p.m.: Dispatched to a vehi-
cle vs. cow accident at the Blue Basin
Trailhead.
Nov. 9
6:45 p.m.: 911 call reporting a
dead deer in the highway on High-
way 26, milepost 151.
• John Day Ambulance
Nov. 2
6:44 p.m.: Responded to a female
having chest pains on Cottonwood
Street in Mt. Vernon.
7:02 p.m.: Responded to a female
with unknown symptoms on West
Main Street in John Day.
Nov. 3
7:28 a.m.: Responded to an
85-year-old male with heart problems
and high blood sugar on Sunset Road
in John Day.
11:45 a.m.: Responded to a bed-
ridden female patient on Moon Creek
Lane in Mt. Vernon.
12:33 p.m.: Responded to a
91-year-old female with bloody
vomit on Valley View Drive in John
Day.
1:50 p.m.: Responded to an
84-year-old male who had a fall on
Valley View Drive in John Day.
Nov. 5
4:56 a.m.: Responded to a female
that had fallen on West Main Street in
John Day.
3:16 p.m.: Ambulance service at
Dollar General in John Day.
Nov. 7
10:45 a.m.: Dispatched to a med-
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