On Monday morning in Scott County District Court, building owner Andrew Wold pleaded guilty to a civil infraction filed by the city, through his attorney, according to online court records. The infraction, which stated that Wold didn't maintain safe conditions at the building, carries a $300 fine plus $95 in court costs.
Davenport City Attorney, Tom Warner, has said the size of the fine is inconsequential. He says it prevents Wold from transferring the property and avoiding costs related to demolition.
So far, three lawsuits have been filed against Wold, the City of Davenport, and others saying negligence contributed to the building’s collapse.
Crews on Monday started demolishing the remains of the six-story apartment building in downtown Davenport. It partially collapsed more than two weeks ago, killing three people and leaving dozens homeless.
Workers were using large excavators to dismantle the 116-year-old brick, steel and concrete structure in a process officials said would take several weeks. It's a difficult task because the building is in the heart of the city's downtown and is believed to contain asbestos and other potentially hazardous material.
A section of the building fell away May 28, burying three residents in rubble at the base of the structure and forcing others to scramble out of the building. One woman was pinned under the debris and had to have a leg amputated to be pulled to safety.
The city said in a news release Sunday night that officials have been discussing how to tear down the building with structural engineers, regulatory authorities and the company doing the work. As a precaution, the city ordered that residents of nearby apartments vacate their homes during the demolition.
Since the collapse, officials have faced repeated questions about why tenants were allowed to stay in the building despite warnings that it had serious structural problems.
The day before the collapse, firefighters were called to the building because of concerns about an unstable wall. On Sunday, the city said in a news release that fire crews went to the building and saw work was being done and that there appeared to be shoring of the structure in place.
The release adds that a city building inspector also visited the site that day and “determined that the work appeared to be progressing in accordance with the plans and specifications previously submitted by a professional engineer.” The city said there were “no observable signs of difficulty or bowing in the external shoring.”
Previous version:
On Friday, an attorney for the owner of The Davenport apartment building appeared in court on his behalf.
Andrew Wold's six-story property at 324 Main Street partially collapsed nearly two weeks ago, killing three people, injuring several, and displacing around 100 households.
On May 30th, the city filed a civil infraction citation against Wold and his company, Davenport Hotel, LLC.
This morning, Wold's lawyer faced a judge in a Scott County courtroom. He filed a motion of "nolo contendere." That's similar to pleading guilty but without an admission of guilt. The judge denied it and continued his initial court appearance to Monday at 8:30 am.
(Corrected 6/10/2023: previous version stated Wold appeared in court when he did not.)
