LAST
LAST FIVE
LAST FIVE MONTHS MACON-BIBB COUNTY HAS STEPPED UP ITS EFFORTS TO BUST NEIGHBORHOOD
4@ BLIGHT. NOW COUNTY LEADERS
ARE STARTING THE PUSH ON
COMMERCIAL BLIGHT.. 4@MOSTLY
LARGE OFFICE SPACES THAT ARE
4@ VACANT AND DECAYING. THE
MAYOR'S OFFICE GAVE US A LIST
OF 10 BLIGHTED 4@PROPERTIES THA
THEY SAY ARE THE ONES THAT
CREATE THE MOST COMPLAINTS TO
THE COUNTY. FOR
13INVESTIGATES... ASHLYN WEBB
PULLED PROPERTY RECORDS TO
FIND OUT... WHO OWN'S MACON'S
4@ WORST
BLIGHT. NATS FOR YEARS THE SHIRLEY
HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD HAS WATCHED
THIS OFFICE SPACE DETEORIATE.
I SEE A DILAPIDATED EYE SORE.
4@
THIS OFFICE SPACE DETEORIATE. I SEE A DILAPIDATED EYE SORE. ESPECIALLY FROM THE OTHER SIDE
OF THE BUIL4@DING. 4@4@FROM THE
INTERSTATE. IT'S HALF WAY
BURNED. THERE'S 4@GRAFFITI ALL
OVER IT. IT LOOKS TERRIBLE.
KATIE WHITE PRESIDENT OF
KATIE WHITE 4@ KATIE WHITE
PRESIDENT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD
ASSOCIATION SAYS IT'S NOT
JUST THE 4@APPEARANCE. SHES
WORRIED ABOUT SAFETY....AND
4@ THE CRIME THE BUILDING
ATTRACTS. I DON'T LET MY KIDS
WA4@LK ON THIS SIDE OF THE
NEIGHBORHOOD AT ALL. THIS
BACONSFIELD PROPERTY MADE THE
COUNTY'S LISTOF THE MOST
4@ COMPLAINED ABOUT BLIGHT. ALONG
WITH AN OLD SCHOOL, A 4@VACANT
LODGE, A SMALL BANK, 4@AND MORE
OFFICE SPACES. THERE'S NO
WORK BEING DONE TO THEM. NO
MAINTENANCE 4@BEING DONE TO IT.
AND JUST A STEADY DECAY.
STANDUP DRONEBUT WHO OWNS THE
BLIGHT? WE PULLED RECORDS ON
THE 10 PROPERTIES. FINDING THE
OWNER'S NAME AND HOW LONG
THEY'VE OWNED THEM. IF YOU
DIG 4@THROUGH THE L-L-C-S AND
DIFFERENT BUSINESS NAMES LIKE
BACONSFIELD APARTMENTS, KUNJ
CONSTRUCTION AND KUNJ
INVESTMENTS 4@YOU CAN FIND THAT
3 OF THE 10 PROPERTIES TRACE
BACK TO A MACON BUSINESSMAN
ASHOK PATEL.4@UP UNTIL
JANUARY.... PATEL SERVED AS A
MACON-BIBB COUNTY PLANNING AND
ZONING COMMISSIONER. 4@ PROPERT
RECORDS SHOW THAT HE'S OWNED
THIS OLD SCHOOL ON ROCKY CREEK
ROAD SINCE 2009.. AFTER HE
PAID A THOUSAND DOLLARS TO THE
BIBB SCHOOL DISTRICT. HE'S
ALSO OWNEDTHIS VACANT LODGE
SINCE 2004. 4@AND HE BOUGHT
THAT LARGE BACONSFIELD OFFICE
PROPERTY... IN DECEMBER 2019.
4@ SINCE HE BOUGHT IT THE
PROPERTY 4@SUFFERED TWO FIRES.A
THIRD HAPPENED JUST MONTHS
BEFORE HE BOUGHT IT. AS A
NEIGHBOR TO PLEASE DO
SOMETHING ABOUT THIS PROPERTY.
@ MAKE IT LOOK BETTER. OR TEAR
IT DOWN. WHATEVER4@. JUST DON'T
MAKE IT LOOK BETTER. OR TEAR IT DOWN. WHATEVER4@. JUST DON'T@ LEAVE IT LIKE THIS. 4@TAX
RECORDS SHOW PATEL HAS NOT
PAID A4@NY TAXES ON THOSE THREE
RECORDS SHOW PATEL HAS NOT PAID A4@NY TAXES ON THOSE THREE@ PROPERTIES IN 2019 OR 2020.
MILLERTHAT'S PART OF THE TAX
BASE WE'RE MISSING OUT ON. WE
CAN BE PROVIDING MORE QUALITY
SERVICES TO OUR CITIZENS. AND
THERE'S MORE THAN JUST PATEL.
THIS OLD GAS 4@STATION ON
HARTLEY BRIDGE ROAD HAS BEEN
OWNED BY FREDDIE CRENSHAWA
REAL ESTATE BUSINESSMAN FROM
SAINT SIMONS... SINCE
2009. RECORDS SHOW HE'S NOT PAID
TAXES ON IT IN THE LAST TWO
4@ YEARS. THIS BLIGHTED STORE IS
OWNED BY KRUNAL PATEL OF MACON
SINCE 2013. AND A KANSAS 4@BASE
MENTAL HEALTH GROUP HAS OWNED
4@ THIS VACANT DOCTOR'S OFFICE
SPACE SI4@NCE 2003, BUT 4@THEY
NEVER MOVED IN. AND THEN
THERE'S THE JUST A BISCUIT
PROPERTY ON VINEVILLE
AVENUE. MAYOR LESTER MILLER SAYS HE
GETS CALLS ABOUT THIS DAILY. 4@
I SEE BLIGHT. I SEE DANGER. I
SEE A ROOF CAVING IN. IF YOU
LOOK BEHIND THE PROPERTYYOU
SEE WHERE IT'S BECOME A 4@MINI
DUMP. TAX RECORDS SHOW THAT
ALTAF AGAD FROM ALPHARETTA HAS
OWNED THE BUILDING SINCE 2007.
IT'S CURRENTLY ON THE MARKET
WITH NEARLY 400-THOUSAND
DOLLAR ASKINJG PRICE. 4@ MAYOR
MILLER SAYS THE COUNTY HAS
ALREADY SPOKEN TO MANY OF
THESE OWNERS. BUT NOW, THEY'RE
STARTING THE PROCESS OF
SENDING 4@LETTERS TO EACH--
SAYING THEY NEED TO FIX THE
PROPERTYOR ELSE THE 4@COUNTY
WILL ACT. REPORTING IN MACON,
ASHLYN WEBB, 13 WMAZ
NEWS. WE REACHED OUT 4@TO ALL
PROPERTY OWNERS MENTIONED IN
THIS STORY.4@ ASHOK PATEL
RESPONDED YESTERDAY AFTER WE
REACHED OUT MULTIPLE TIMES BY
PHONE. HE SAYS THAT HE IS
STILL WORKING ON THOSE THREE
PROPERTIES. WHEN ASKED WHY
HE HAS NOT PAID PROPERTY TAXES
ON THE THREE PROPERTIES, HE
DID NOT ANSWER... BUT SAID
THAT IT WOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF
BY THE END OF THIS WEEK.
YOU CAN 4@CHECK OUT THE FULL
LIST FROM THE MAYOR AND WHO
OWNS THOSE PROPERTIES ON OUR
WEBSITE... 13 WMAZ DOT
COM.