Bellevue Fire Department officials say two teens are suspected of setting a fire at Paradise Lakes in December that engulfed two homes abandoned after area floods pushed residents out earlier in the year.
It's not a surprise to Cathy Yost, who lives nearby. "There's young ones going down there, because you know they're teenagers . . . starting fires," she told 6 News.
Yost thinks the City of Bellevue is taking too long to get the contaminated homes torn down. "Oh, the smells, oh my God, when the wind hits a certain way . . . yeah they just need to get rid of it," Yost says.
She and her neighbors are concerned about their health and the health of others "That thing was totally flooded with all the sewage and waste. It wasn't just water and you know we worry about all that," Yost tells 6 News.
After the fire in December the city said it would start tearing the homes down in early January if nobody else stepped up to do it. But Bellevue Mayor Rusty Hike says he wants to give it a bit more time, if necessary.
"We want to work it out with someone who will assume the responsibility and put their own residential development in there, Hike told 6 News. He says there is a potential buyer for the property who would take on the cost of the demolition.
"I know the owner has a buyer and they're talking about it," Hike says. "They've talked to the city and it's a good company."
But the mayor said there's a limit to how long the city will wait before taking action. "if a couple of months go by that's a different story we'll have to do something."
The mayor also noted they have a contractor ready to go if it comes down to the city tearing down the approximately 200 homes.