OGDEN -- No additional vacant homes will be burned in the Ogden River Project area because it isn't economically feasible, Mayor Matthew Godfrey said Tuesday.
On Aug. 28, the fire department burned a brick home at 1948 Childs Ave. and a wood home at 1887 Childs for training purposes.
No more than eight additional homes in the river project area were targeted for possible burning to compare that removal method with conventional demolition.
There was never a plan to burn all 45 vacant homes in the river project area, Godfrey said. It also has been determined that burning is not a cost-effective way to remove the dwellings, he said.
"We burned two homes and from that have learned that there isn't much savings in burning versus traditional demolition," he said in a prepared statement. "We are planning on demolishing all the remaining homes."
City Council Chairwoman Caitlyn Gochnour said she's pleased no more homes will be burned.
"We have put so much effort into building our city's outdoor reputation and preserving our air quality and water quality," she said. "More burning would have impacted all three of those."
The city would save only about $30,000 by burning the 10 targeted homes as opposed to tearing them down through traditional demolition, said Jonny Ballard, the city's community development manager.
Ogden officials arrived at that figure by comparing asbestos removal and debris-hauling costs, as well as landfill tipping and compaction fees, he said.
The city council Tuesday night approved a request from the administration to allocate $545,150 for the demolition of homes in the river project.
The homes are owned by Ogden Riverfront Development Company, a firm managed by developer Gadi Leshem.
The city could recover costs associated with demolition through liens placed on properties owned by Ogden Riverfront Development or a value-for-value exchange for land belonging to the company in the river project, to be used for a public park.
The proposed mixed-use river project development encompasses about 60 acres straddling the river from 18th to 20th streets and Washington Boulevard to Wall Avenue.
In July, Fire Chief Mike Mathieu originally proposed burning many of the 45 homes in the river project area to provide training for firefighters and to remove the unsafe dwellings.
However, Mathieu's proposal was significantly pared back because of the cost of asbestos removal and concerns about the adverse impact on air quality.
Godfrey and Gochnour reached an informal agreement to burn two homes. They also agreed that no more than eight additional homes would be burned if that method proved more cost effective than anticipated.
Mathieu said he supports demolition because it will remove homes that pose a danger to firefighters and could become targets for arsonists.
"I want the problem taken care of with whatever method elected officials deem to be in the best interest of the community," he said Tuesday.
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