Coaldale officials asked Schuylkill County Court on Wednesday to force a Carbon County woman to repair her former residence, which she still owns, in the borough.
In its lawsuit, the borough alleged that Lisa M. O'Brien, Lansford, left garbage in her 132 W. Ridge St. house and has permitted the property to deteriorate to the point where it is a threat to the public.
"(O'Brien) has allowed the property to fall into a state of disrepair which is unfit for human occupancy, an unsafe structure and found to be dangerous to life, health, property and safety of the public by the Code Enforcement Office of the Borough of Coaldale," the lawsuit reads in part.
The borough asked the court to declare the building to be both a nuisance and a dangerous structure, require O'Brien to eliminate the nuisance, allow Coaldale officials to do so if she does not, award it damages of $1,711.19 and bar anyone from living in the building until it is repaired.
O'Brien bought the property on Oct. 23, 2003, for $12,000 from Charter One Credit Corp., according to the lawsuit.
However, although O'Brien owns the property, she has done nothing to correct its problems, the lawsuit reads in part.
In addition to the garbage in the house, other problems include holes in the roof that allow rainwater to fall in the building and mold existing throughout the house, according to the lawsuit.
The borough code enforcement officer contacted O'Brien to remind her of the code violations and demand that she fix them, but to no avail, the lawsuit reads in part.
"No action was taken by (O'Brien) to abate the nuisance or correct the problems existing with the property," according to the lawsuit. "The property currently remains a nuisance, a threat to the safety, health and welfare to the community."
Coaldale already has spent $511.19 to patch the holes in the roof and estimates it will have to spend $1,200 to clean out the garbage, discard the furniture and eliminate the mold problem in the house, the lawsuit reads in part.