By allowing ads to appear on this site, you support the local businesses who, in turn, support great journalism.
Kallembach houses: Four sold, two sales approved
Placeholder Image

Four of the 12 houses formerly owned by landlord Darrel Kallembach have been sold with developers’ agreements approved by the Platteville Common Council.

Two more houses’ developers’ agreements have been approved, but the sales of those houses aren’t final yet. The remaining six house sales are still in the works, including one whose highest bidder sought an extension, but decided to go ahead with the purchase.

The four houses whose sales are final are at 235 N. Third St., 260 S. Chestnut St. (both by Rigafellers Enterprises LLC), 375 Irene St. (Dave and Judy Irish) and 310 W. Gridley Ave. (John and Dustan Duggan). The two approved sales are at 185 Center St. and 430 S. Chestnut St., both by Droessler Enterprises LLC.

Assuming all 12 sales go to closing — the bids require an Offer to Purchase document and a developer’s agreement — the city will receive $322,109.76 from the sales, which will go most of the way to recoup the estimated $350,000 the city has spent on satisfying liens and maintaining the houses until sale.

The one house whose sale was up in the air is at 1536 County B. The high bidder, Duane Wagner, sought an extension because that house is one of three whose sale is being contested by Leonard Kallembach, Darrel’s father.

According to City Attorney Brian McGraw, Leonard Kallembach claimed he didn’t receive notice of the sheriff’s sale, preventing him from bidding on the houses on County B, 430 S. Chestnut St. and North Third Street.

Dane County Circuit Judge David Flanagan, who issued the injunction in favor of the city against Darrel Kallembach in June 2011, denied Leonard Kallembach’s motion May 23.

McGraw said at the Nov. 11 Platteville Common Council meeting that Leonard Kallembach is appealing the decision, and the case could take six to seven months to be completed, adding, “I don’t want to be optimistic in that.”

McGraw said if Leonard Kallembach’s appeal is successful, those houses would have to be resold with a new bid process.

“I don’t know how you unscramble this egg,” he said, adding that it is an “unlikely event that the city does not prevail.”

“The subcommittee did not come up with a recommendation about an extension” for Wagner, said at-large Ald. Amy Seeboth-Wilson, who served on the committee that scored the bids. “The subcommittee did not come up with a consensus.”

The council approved a motion to give Wagner until Tuesday at 5 p.m. to go ahead with the sale. Community Planning and Development Director Joe Carroll said Tuesday morning that Wagner decided to go ahead with the purchase.

In case any of the remaining house sales aren’t completed, the committee that scored the bids, including Seeboth-Wilson and at-large Ald. Mike Denn, will reconvene to reaward bids. The city also has a deadline of Dec. 31 to close on the houses so they don’t go off the property tax rolls.

Droessler Properties, LLC plans to demolish its two houses and replace them with single-family rental houses, according to the bid documents.

Rigafellers Enterprises plans to renovate and repair its two houses for sale or rental, according to the bid documents.
Wagner plans to renovate the County B property “for sale as a single-family home, or for a rental if selling proves difficult,” according to bid documents. The Irishes plan to replace the Irene Street house with a four-bedroom rental house, according to bid documents. The Duggans plan to “renovate and restore” the Gridley Avenue house, according to bid documents.

The city received 88 bids by the July 31 Request for Proposal deadline, 69 of which met the minimum bid price for that property. The city also got two bids to purchase all 12 properties, one of which met the exact $236,000 of all 12 houses’ minimum bids.

The city used $288,341.96 of the $366,765.38 of fines and interest on Darrel Kallembach’s 19 properties in successfully bidding on 15 of them in the January 2013 sheriff’s sale. The fines and interest came from more than 100 citations Kallembach was issued for violations of city ordinances between 2008 and 2010.

Kallembach’s houses at 605 and 605½ Southwest Road and 465 Division St. were purchased by Laufenberg & Larson Properties, LLC, which also placed bids on three of the houses. The houses at 390 W. Pine St. and 540 E. Mineral St. were purchased by R&M J&S Rentals, LLC.