"Tear It Down," Sayeth the Councilman, Part 1: The rudderless newspaper squanders another 922 Culbertson opportunity, but an informative chat occurs, anyway.

Where to begin?

The newspaper's new web site is utterly atrocious, and we must wade through interminable human interest photos and vapid sports stories before coming anywhere near "harder" news, evidently because subscribers desperately need the fluff they want, rather than the facts they need -- but hey, we can't fix modernity, can we?

The worst part is that all previous newspaper links that might help tell the 922 Culbertson story are broken, and so we start from scratch, just like the city seemingly does with each and very decision it makes, all of which are taken in the void, divorced from previous experience, principled commitment or future planning, and never with the assistance of the very best in contemporary book-reading.

The newspaper's latest skim-over leads things off.

CLOSING TIME: Old Culbertson Avenue tavern likely to be demolished

NEW ALBANY – A former tavern along Culbertson Avenue that was constructed in 1880 is slated for demolition as early as Wednesday.

Last week, the Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County failed to take action on a $250,000 proposal to establish an endangered places revolving loan fund ...

... Mayor Jeff Gahan and New Albany Building Commissioner David Brewer said the structure would be salvaged if a new owner stepped up with adequate funding to refurbish the property.

How much such an undertaking would cost has been debated, as the estimates initially discussed by the city and Indiana Landmarks were a sizable range apart.

Then, as is its recent habit, the newspaper linked to its web site and asked a simplistic question, presumably designed to increase traffic flow and dribble farthings into the publisher's accounts.

Notice that the photo chosen (above) places the building in its worst possible light, and try not to act surprised.

A brief discussion began.

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Charity Codey Drake
Not worth it. May be historic or not. In the end if it were that important it would have been taken care of all along. NA gets goo hung up on historic.
August 23 at 9:46am · Like

Ann Breeden Reed
If the bones of the structure are good.....absolutely! If not, it comes down.
August 23 at 10:39am · Like · 1

Roger A. Baylor
Not before the mayor tells us (a) what happens to the vacant spot in terms of redevelopment and (b) who has shown interest in the vacant spot such that the building's removal suddenly has become so important that the mayor himself is involved with the decision. The public safety argument is a red herring. If public safety were the objective, we wouldn't have one-way arterial streets slicing through residential areas. City Hall runs from that one, and embraces demolitions. It's plainly hypocritical.
17 hours ago · Like

Jeff Gillenwater
Some fun facts about 922 Culbertson Avenue: Up until 2013, it was an active property like any other, with a single owner since 2004. At the time of foreclosure just one year ago, the loan amount in question was $86,700. The county's own assessor currently places the property's value at $138,200. Since June, the City has been the legal owner, able to sell it for any amount. Per the City, however, it's suddenly an eminent danger to the community and can't even be given away despite the fact that the City has purchased and held distressed properties for years in the recent past.
13 hours ago · Like

Jeff Gillenwater
Despite the City's dubious claims of diligence, this property has never been broadly and transparently marketed with clear, publicly knowable terms of sale and/or expectations. Review all the previous articles. Ever see the price or terms of sale listed anywhere? Ever see an explanation as to where the absurdly expensive $300,000 repair estimate came from? Any explanation as to what's actually wrong with the structure or what specifically is needed to address any code concerns? Nope. Does any of that sound like the actions of a group genuinely working toward reuse of the building? And, as Roger mentions, why are plans for the property being held secret if they expect, as stated, the neighborhood to be pleased? That doesn't make any sense, either.
13 hours ago · Like

Roger A. Baylor
Consequently, the questions that MIGHT be asked if journalists were not extinct boggle the mind.
13 hours ago · Like · 1

Roger A. Baylor
But from the start, the newspaper has chosen to frame this story like a wrestling bout -- who's winnin', who's losin' ... look at that, Verle, a folding metal chair is in the ring.
13 hours ago · Like · 1

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Part 2 is next.