ELLERBE — Former Mayor Olivia Webb addressed the town council in March, raising concerns about the condition of the late Mary Baldwin’s home at 287 Second St., at the corner of Second and Church streets, across from the Rankin Museum.
“This is wrong. This is a dishonor to the memory of a good woman who shaped the lives of a lot of people,” Webb said.
Baldwin died Feb. 21, 2004.
Recalling Baldwin’s character, Webb added, “Ms. Baldwin had a saying she told me: it’s nice to be important, it’s more important to be nice,’ and I realize I’m neither… I know my email is pretty blistering.”
Webb said she emailed the town last week, including Town Clerk and Code Enforcement Officer John Ganus, to express her concerns and request time to speak.
The 2026 tax card for the property lists it as “Vacant, bad shape.”
To illustrate her concerns, Webb presented composite photographs showing multiple angles of the house.
“…to show that this is every single angle looking at this house from the Rankin Museum, what used to be Kemp Memorial Library, and the methodist church and the school Mary taught at. You can see it from everywhere. You can see it when you drive by the Quick Chek. It’s literally at the center of our town,” Webb said.
Webb said she first began speaking with Ganus last year to ask about the status of the property.
“It bothers me and if Mary were alive, this is the exact kind of thing she did. She saw a dog without some water tied up in a yard, she’d call the animal shelter. I mean, she just didn’t hesitate. If it had to do with children, animals, somebody that didn’t have a voice… she went to bat for them,” Webb said.
In March 2025, Ganus provided a code enforcement update that included the abandoned, substandard dwelling on Second Street. At that time, he said the owners had originally planned to relocate the house, but those plans changed.
“They decided to renovate it in place, and as of Saturday, they put a brand-new roof on it, which was the first step in doing the renovation. You got to have a good top on it or else you’re wasting your money underneath. So the first step is done, we’ve done the top on it, so they’ll be moving forward from there and I’ll stay in contact with one of them,” Ganus said at the time.
Despite the roof replacement, Webb said the overall condition of the home remains unacceptable and questioned who is responsible for it.
“I know that code enforcement is probably the nastiest business there is, but it is nastiest for the people who live here. Now, the sickest part of all of this to me, personally, living in a 28338 zip code, is that this tax card bills to 28207. Does anybody know what zip code that is? That’s Myers Park, and it is the wealthiest zip code in North Carolina,” Webb said.
She also criticized what she described as a lack of urgency from the owners.
“When I read that a code enforcement officer who is being respectful, trying to do everything he can, following up with the family, and they use words like ‘well, we’ll see what we can financially stomach,’ no, I’m sorry, they’re being deceitful and whatever the maximum penalty is for this, it needs to be brought down,” Webb said.
While she said ownership was not her primary concern, Webb expressed frustration over the home’s visibility and condition.
“I don’t care who it goes to [the house]. They said something about giving it to Rankin Museum at some point — it doesn’t matter to me,” Webb said. “It can come to the town. I think it needs to be controlled burned. I think it’s a health hazard. I think it’s sad that our kids walk home from middle school and pass that place every day. That place meant something to a lot of people — it still does.”
She contrasted the home’s condition with other recent town improvements.
“The museum, you got school buses pulling up for field trips and that’s what the kids see when they get out after they’ve passed by those cool murals, they get to go to the giant strawberry, we have all these things going on, all these improvements. Lee gets in office, the first thing he does is start renovating the building for food trucks. We’re doing stuff that little towns don’t do,” Webb said.
Webb also noted that a truck without tags has been parked next to the house. Councilwoman Heather Pack said her grandmother lives across the street and that the truck does not belong to the current owners.
“She said somebody just pulled up. She said they parked it, and they left. So, I’m not guaranteed that it is theirs,” Pack said.
Webb urged the council to be transparent about what can be done and said she would seek media attention if necessary.
“This is unfair on so many levels. It’s time for something to be done about it. If nothing is done about it, if somebody could just at some point… give me an ETA… Just tell me, just say ‘nothing can be done, we’re gonna let them go brick by brick until your son graduates high school.’ Just tell me that because I will start with the media, and they will come. It may take me a while, and I really don’t want to spend energy on it, because I don’t have a lot of that… this is a story of statewide interest. It reflects people that don’t have to face their town council and when they are out in public, that don’t live where, that are held accountable to their neighbors who are keeping their properties in good shape. This a good story, so that’s all I have to say,” Webb said.
“I appreciate everyone. I’m sorry I go hard, but this means a lot to me, and I think a lot of other people as well. And this means a lot to the future of our town,” she concluded.
Ganus then outlined the formal code enforcement process, noting he was assigned the case June 3, 2024.
“I sent a letter to the owners asking for inspection, and that’s where our communication started, that their plans were actually to move it out of town. They were talking to a house moving company and an engineer and all that. They were looking to see if the site that they wanted to take it was feasible and all that. So I worked with them on the timeline. They reported back to me, I checked in with them. It got to a point where they said that the logistics and everything else wasn’t gonna work out — they would have to basically tear half of the house off, you know, the top level, so that it could be transported, all these nice details and decided it was not logistically or otherwise favorable, so they were gonna do renovations,” Ganus said.
That decision led to the roof replacement, but “for the most part, they didn’t do much of anything else,” he said.
Ganus conducted a full inspection in December 2025.
“The bones of the house are strong. It is structurally sound. It is not pretty — we can all agree to that. There are repairs that need to be done. The bathrooms upstairs is in total disrepair. The kitchen has some problems. Most of the floors have no problems whatsoever. There’s a couple little spots where the floors are weak, and we talked about those. Long story short, this house does not qualify to be demolished,” Ganus said.
He said inclement weather delayed finalizing the report but confirmed the process is moving forward. A hearing has been scheduled for April 6.
At that hearing, the owners will be issued a written order outlining required repairs and a timeline. They are typically given about 90 days to comply. If repairs are not completed, the town may seek authorization to board the home for up to one year. After that period, further action — including possible demolition — could be considered depending on the condition of the structure.
“The process on this house is moving forward. I really don’t believe, based on my last conversation with them, that they’re not going to do the repairs, but, I also don’t get surprised anymore. When you’ve done this as long as I have, human beings don’t surprise me. That being said, there is a process in place. We are following the state law and housing code process on those steps. We always try to be not necessarily lenient, but yes, lenient with people as long as they’re moving forward, as long as they’re showing progress,” Ganus said.
Mayor Lee Berry asked about the ownership timeline. Ganus said the property is heir property still listed under the late Barbara Highfill, who died Feb. 4, 2025.
“From my understanding, she recently passed away within the last year… So, the deed did not change. There’s been no transaction, it’s still listed under her. When I sent it out today… I sent it out as Barbara Highfill heirs, and I sent it to the same address that’s on the tax card that they’ve been receiving mail at,” Ganus said.
Councilwoman Heather Pack asked how many repairs were needed, and Ganus said “there’s a whole list of them.” He added that repairs are required both inside and outside the home.
Ganus requested that Town Attorney Timothy Snead conduct a title search to clarify the estate.
Court records show John Highfill opened the estate of Barbara Highfill on March 12, 2025, and filed a final account with the Mecklenburg County Clerk of Superior Court on Oct. 31, 2025.
“There have been two deaths I think in family in the years relating to it. Like I said, the last known owner, and she was alive up until just a few months ago. All of the mail was going to her, but due to her health conditions, other family members were responding,” Ganus said.
According to Highfill’s obituary, she passed away a year ago on Feb. 5, 2025.
Addressing the truck parked beside the house, Ganus explained how a vehicle is classified under state law.
“Under the state law and under our ordinance, a junk vehicle that does not have a current tag display line and it has these other problems. If it’s a fully functional vehicle, it just doesn’t have a tag as far as it’s on their property, I can’t cite it as a junk vehicle,” Ganus said.
He said he planned to contact the owners March 3 to determine whether the truck belongs to them.