CLEVELAND — Shauntae and Timothy Lymas are Cleveland parents concerned about the safety of neighborhood children because of the vacant, vandalized home they've been living next to for more than a year.
The couple is raising a six-year-old son who has autism, and told News 5 they've reported the home to the City of Cleveland and police, but little has been done.
"I'm concerned our son will run out somewhere and we’ll have to run out and catch him, and what we're afraid of is him running into this house," Shauntae Lymas said. “It's completely hazardous, there’s sometimes we’ll wake up in the middle of the night and we’ll hear crashing and smashing, and we’re wondering, OK, is someone getting hurt, should we call the police?”
Lymas said she has been concerned about vacant homes and child safety ever since 14-year-old Alianna DeFreeze was kidnapped and killed inside an abandoned home on Cleveland's east side in Jan. 2017. Lymas said she was hoping Cleveland's Safe Routes to School Program, launched by former Mayor Frank Jackson in May, 2017 would continue to keep track of and take down vacant homes that are within 500 feet of school.
“I have a disabled child, somewhere at some point, the city is going have to commit to helping our children," Lymas said. “Look at what happened to Alianna DeFreeze, it’s not fair if someone loses another child. I’m not trying to lose my child over something that is completely preventable.”
Lymas pointed to video posted on Facebook by Cleveland community activist Ed McDonald, which documented a vacant, unsecured home on Harvard Avenue. The house is located right next door to Miles Park School, with Pre-K through 8th grade students walking past the house every school day.
McDonlard reported the unsecured house to the City of Cleveland and is hoping the city will follow through on its Safe Routes to School initiative.
“There needs to be some accountability from the city government, or from somewhere to make sure this doesn’t happen," McDonald said. “I was very upset because this shouldn’t be happening. I thought we learned this lesson seven years ago.”
McDonald said it's crucial residents report vacant and unsecured homes to the city and be part of the solution.
News 5 contacted the City of Cleveland about this case, and it responded quickly and issued the following statement:
We just received this complaint today and will be sending out City personnel tomorrow to board up the property in an effort to restrict access. Unfortunately, this isn’t guaranteed to prevent individuals from gaining access as they may still choose to do so via illegal means – which is why it’s so important for residents to report suspicious activity to Police and also to call 311 if they see a boarded up vacant house has been vandalized and/or entered. It is difficult for us address issues we’re not aware of because they were never brought to our attention.
We know that board-ups are just a temporary solution, but – thanks to Mayor Bibb’s Residents First legislation that was passed just 2 weeks ago – there is now a renewed sense of hope for Clevelanders. For years, the City’s Building & Housing Department has operated essentially in a linear process.
With this legislation, we now have tools and guardrails in place that will allow us to address this systemic issue holistically. Having multiple options is key – which includes violation notices, fines, prosecution, and demolition or moving a salvageable property to new ownership by requesting a tax foreclosure. We are excited with the ability to now pursue different avenues, which will ultimately help us provide the results our community deserves.
News 5 is committed to following through on this developing story.
