Time has run out for a former Scotia antiques shop owner who has been out of business but still occupies his Mohawk Avenue location.
Owner Robert Williams was asked last fall to clean up the closed shop, which, according to the village, poses a fire hazard and violates several building codes.
Williams went before Village Justice Jason Frament last week and was told he would have to pay a $5,000 fine or serve jail time for ignoring the cleanup order.
On Thursday, May 1, Williams was told he has his final warning and three months to empty out the building.
He had said earlier in the week that he was willing to go to jail before paying the fine, said Village Attorney Lydia Marola.
Mayor Kris Kastberg has said that cleaning up Mohawk Avenue, as well as other neglected parts of the village, is a priority of his while in office.
The shuttered antiques shop is located on the end of Mohawk Avenue closest to Glen Sanders Mansion.
Kastberg said that the village filed a lawsuit last fall in an effort to avoid going to court but still let Williams know that the building is a hazard and needs to be cleaned up. Kastberg said that the building is packed with items, causing obvious code violations.
As of Monday, May 5, the building remained full, and a sign still hangs outside of the entrance. Town officials are also targeting the vacant former McDonald’s building on Mohawk Avenue for cleanup. The building’s owner has refused to sell, but the village would like to see it occupied. Kastberg said he has turned to county legislators to help them contact and convince the owner to sell the building.
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