The owner of a former barbershop and store is running out of time and options, and the Bladenboro Town Council has run out of patience.

Commissioners voted Monday to begin code enforcement action against Cecil Lewis' storefront at 109 West Seaboard Street.

The town has been in negotiations with various owners of the building since July 24, 1995.

"This is not a step we are taking lightly," said Town Manager Delane Jackson. "But eight years is long enough."

The building has changed ownership repeatedly since the first warning letter from the town, Jackson said. Each owner planned to renovate the 50-plus year old structure, but none have done any significant work.

Lewis was supposed to update Jackson on his progress, or attend the board meeting Monday night. He did neither.

The board will officially ask the county building inspector to inspect the building in the near future. If he judges that the building is a hazard, a hearing will be held at the town manager's office to gather comment.

After the hearing, condemnation proceedings will begin, Jackson said.

"We don't want to demolish structures in Bladenboro," Jackson said. "We want these places occupied, with businesses or retail establishments."

Jackson said the building was subdivided two years ago, and the rear portion of the building-the former Bladenboro Barber Shop-is in salvageable condition.

Keeping the building subdivided will likely be more expensive than removing the dividing wall, Jackson said, due to fire regulations. The partition wall does not meet guidelines for a fire wall, and would have to be replaced unless the building was used as a single business.

The Seaboard Street side is currently boarded in with plywood, and Jackson said commissioners fear the building may be a tempting target for vandals and arsonists.

"A fire in that building would seriously threaten the other businesses on the street," Jackson said.

The empty storefront is flanked by the New Wave Video Shop and Uptown Sign and Graphics on West Seaboard Street.

"The fact that we have worked with the owners for eight years should show that we have bent over backwards for the owners of the building," Jackson said. "We have done everything we can to keep the situation from reaching this point, but there is nothing else that can be done."

In an unrelated matter, the board also voted to instruct town attorney Leslie Johnson to seek a court order for the demolition of a dilapidated house on Butler Mill Road.

The house has been in deteriorating condition for several years, and commissioners voted to have it condemned earlier this year.

"Initiating code enforcement, and eventually condemning a structure, is not the way we like to do things," Jackson said. "There are always hard feelings afterward, but after a certain point the general safety of the public becomes a concern. Still, it is always a last resort."

In each building case, the cost of the demolition will be assessed to the landowner.

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