Times Telegram
When a February 2017 house fire in the Otsego County village of Cherry Valley killed the elderly homeowner, the village was left to deal not only with the tragic loss of life, but with the burned-out property that remained.
The owner did not have fire or homeowner’s insurance on the house and family members lacked the resources to clean up the property. The owner did not leave a will and the estate went into probate. That left a burned-out house in the heart of the village. Local officials saw it as a health and safety hazard, but since the village did not own it, there seemed to be no way to clean up the property.