Hey, it can happen. You get all balled up in electing a Republican majority and some details of your private business slip through the cracks.
So it is that Arkansas Republican Chairman Doyle Webb finds himself under pressure from the city of Benton to have four houses he owns fixed or else they’ll be demolished. Saline247.com reports on the issue. It reports:
In February, Webb received an official e-mail from Benton City Attorney Brent Houston stating that he had until July 31st to make improvements to the homes before they were declared a nuisance by the city. Webb had made an initial proposal that Houston stated was a generic one, however the city countered with it’s own proposal that outlined the improvements it demanded.
As of Friday, Webb had posted a construction permit for the remodeling project on at least one of his residences.
Webb has managed Republican affairs better than his legal and property businesses, as noted here. The properties targeted for potential demolition are owned by the same Webb-run LLC that turned up with 10 tax-delinquent properties in 2013.
These are NOT the Webb family flower shop and office building Webb once owned downtown. I learned recently that those properties — subject of a city complaint to the state over potential asbestos when demolition began — were sold to Fikes Holdings prior to being demolished in February. Webb retained salvage rights on the flower shop, which had asbestos in its linoleum flooring, The Department of Environmental Quality reported that the demolition was completed without violations.
ADEQ, by the way, is now run by Webb’s sister-in-law, Becky Keogh, appointed by Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson. Webb’s wife, Barbara, was appointed by Hutchinson to head the state Workers Compensation Commission, which meant a raise in pay from her staff job from $98,852 to $126,572. Ought to help get that house rehab work done.