As a frequent driver in Montgomery, I often encounter various sights during my daily routines of shuttling my family to work and school. One thing that particularly stands out is the overflowing dumpsters that I come across. These dumpsters are not part of the regular city or county pickup services as they are placed on private lands, requiring private businesses to fund their removal. It’s disheartening to see the state of these dumpsters, left unattended by their owners and now overrun with pests such as rats, roaches, and other critters, both on two and four legs.
This year, we are facing an even more challenging predicament. We now have three massive hotels that are sitting empty, and to make matters worse, two of them have been deliberately set on fire. It’s clear that these fires were not accidental, given that the hotels were vacant. On top of that, there’s another hotel that was once a grand and impressive establishment, but now it’s falling into a state of disrepair and losing its former glory at an alarming rate.
Around two months ago, the enormous hotel located near the on-ramp to US 80 was engulfed in flames and now stands as a massive heap of debris. In fact, it appears that a strong rainstorm could easily bring it down.
On the South boulevard, you’ll find the old Governor’s House Hotel which was known for hosting various church banquets and pageants in the past. This place also had the distinction of serving the only escargot in town! However, the building is now fenced off and the weeds have taken over. The sorry state of the hotel has made it a target for rats and the homeless population.
The Countryside Inn and Suites, which had its sign removed recently, was shut down during the peak of the pandemic or at the beginning of 2019. The inn was quite impressive and usually accommodated out-of-town visitors from Korea. The establishment was under the management of a Korean family, but when they left, it was left abandoned and boarded up. In 2020, a fire broke out at the center of the building at 3 am, leading to its complete destruction.
As a concerned citizen, I urge the city, county, and state to take action in light of the property owners’ abandonment of their responsibilities. Although it may not be possible to hold the owners accountable, those who issued licenses and helped them obtain permits must take responsibility for the safety of the community. They paved the way for these owners at some point, and now that times have turned difficult, the owners have disappeared. It’s time for the authorities to step up and ensure that the community’s welfare is protected.
Unsightly sights are not only detrimental to the visual appeal of the city, but also pose a threat to its economic development, particularly in the west and east regions of Montgomery.
Kingdom Woman Ministries in Montgomery is led by the Rev. Rose H. McCall.
