TheJoker, two years ago Grafft talked up his plan to convert it into luxury condos with a rooftop garden and perhaps a pool overlooking the Jeffris site, which would be an L-shaped parking lot. No surprise that financing has been an issue in this housing market, but that's not an excuse for the condition of the property.

He makes a deal he can't afford or complete and then complains about being a target and then pretty soon, the city is stuck to finish in some way or other, that which he started.

I wonder what training Stan Milam has in building safety that he is an expert on what should be required of a property owner. I wonder what would happen if someone got hurt in one of Graffts buildings-then who would be at fault?? I bet Stan would be the first one to say that the fire inspector should have done something about it.

His show is nothing more that a radio sound off show where facts don't need to be confimed. Ridiculous!

The photo of the rubble in back of the Monterrey and the theater was taken just a few feet from the back of an apartment building. Children live in that building.

Also, once city employees become aware of dangerous properties, the city instantly becomes liable for the harm to people that could come from the dangerous conditions.

This is true of Grafft's Monterrey and was true of B'moon's shack.

True, spikesmom.

City employees don't have the time to police every property in town. However they must respond to complaints about blighted properties and when blighted properties are clearly visible to everyone -especially city employees, themselves. This is the situation with the Monterrey as it was the case with B'moon's shack.

Does he have a plan for the Monterey Hotel? It seems like he started to work on it and then stopped.

bobb1951, the city council discussed quite a bit last year how code enforcement was going to be stepped up and they eventually budgeted for two inspectors (one part year full time, the other full year part time, I think) to do proactive inspections. Grafft is not being singled out as this property has been under scrutiny for some time and there's really no excuse for leaving it in the condition he has. An order to correct is simply that, a letter saying that they have documented a violation and it needs correction.

I think if this man actually cared about the city of Janesville, what that building used to mean to Janesville and what it could do to revitalize downtown, and Janesville, he would actually be putting in some serious time renovating it and less time whining about the city. If you took all that money you have spent fighting the city and put it into the building, it might be done now.

thanks Gatr.

Never mind.

I don't believe the city targets people. Grafft, like B'moon, are the sources of their problems.

Why is this story so hard to find now?

Local matters, he also owns the oldetowne mall with partners, fairview mall, the Nunn Busch shoe factory in Edgerton and other properties

e

It's too bad. A six story buildings downtown could have a lot of potential.

localmatters; How about the strip mall across from Jvl mall on Milton Ave, Cargill Bldg, Fairview Mall, old Jvl Med Center (Mke St), old Sentry Store (W Court), old HUFCOR bldg (Jackson st).... just to name a few.

Why not just spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair the building instead of battling the city?Its a to bad that that building is so dilapidated because that could be a key building in downtown development.Its to bad he just sits on that building.Guessing that its too much of an undertaking for him to repair and doesn't want to admit defeat to the city.

Briargrafft

No bash, just a question for more knowledge -- What has Mr. Grafft developed? I know he's mothballed the Monterey, partially knocked down the old theater and the city dozed the old jail. What has been rehabbed and developed into a sustainable and viable building?

Go Jimmie.

If you have ever owned some property/building by somebody who "thought" they knew what they were doing, you are glad for codes. I have seen some nasty, cheap, shoddy work in my lifetime. Jim should have saved his hundred of thousands he used battling the city, or given it to charity and just went along with the program. My only question is; what about the old Marling property at the corner of Beloit and Delavan drive? That place looks like a education facility for code violations....