A Georgia homeowner has taken legal action against Macon-Bibb County officials, accusing them of demolishing his property without a court hearing.
Eric Arnold bought the house in Macon, Georgia, in February 2022 for $15,000, which he planned to renovate for himself and his children. Arnold was renovating the property when a dumpster appeared on the site, and his house was labeled an “imminent threat to the community.” The house was demolished in November 2023.
Arnold’s lawyers argue that he was unaware of any demolition plans and found no public record of Code Enforcement against the property when he purchased it.They claim Arnold had paid his taxes and obtained the necessary permits to save the home.
Arnold expressed his frustration, saying, as quoted by the New York Post, “I did everything I was supposed to do. I thought I was okay. I wasn’t okay. They still knocked my house down.”
Attorney Christie Herbert claimed that the county fast-tracked the demolition despite Arnold’s requests to remove the house from the list. “While he still had work to do, the yard was neat, the exterior was clean, the house was locked up, and, most importantly, it was in a vastly improved state of repair compared to when he purchased it,” Herbert said, as quoted by the New York Post.
“Eric’s lawsuit isn’t just about one man’s house; it’s about protecting the constitutional rights of all property owners in Macon-Bibb County,” Herbert said during a press conference.
Arnold has sought compensation for the house’s purchase and renovation costs.
Macon-Bibb County officials said that they are aware of the demolition on Sunnyvale Drive. A letter was issued several years ago, designating the property as a Nuisance Per Se and blighted, with a notice that it would be torn down if not repaired, officials added.
According to officials, the property was marked as blighted before Arnold’s purchase, and they hadn’t been informed of any construction permits or repairs in the past 20 months.