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Irondequoit Razes Zombie Home

Zombie home at 159 Montcalm Drive in Irondequoit
Zombie home at 159 Montcalm Drive in Irondequoit

A crew from Frederico Construction and Demolition tore down a vacant home at 159 Montcalm Drive in Irondequoit this morning.

Town Supervisor Adam Bello says it's a result of some new town laws and Irondequoit getting tough on vacant property owners.

Bello says the town has a registry of vacant properties and a certification of standards for so-called zombie homes.

"The house was in a state of disrepair, it was a risk to public safety, it could attract criminal activity there, nuisance wildlife, things like that.  And they had no choice but to demolish the house."

Bello says whoever owns the vacant homes are still responsible for their upkeep.

He adds the demolition cost about $10 thousand dollars, and the property owner, who abandoned it years ago, will be billed.

So far the town has assessed about 250 vacant homes, but Bello says only a handful will be demolished.

He says most of the vacant homes can be rehabbed and sold.

Here’s some raw video of the demolition of the home at 159 Montcalm Drive in Irondequoit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLQgGC1O1FU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLQgGC1O1FU