Sisters of Holy Nativity Convent slated for demolition barring appeal after court ruling

Sarah Razner | Fond du Lac Reporter

FOND DU LAC – The Sisters of the Holy Nativity Convent may soon be no more.

On Wednesday afternoon, Fond du Lac County Circuit Court Judge Robert Wirtz dismissed the temporary restraining order against the city, which for more than a year, kept the historic building's demolition at bay.

Wirtz dismissed the restraining order on the grounds convent owner, George Panoussis, did not appeal the raze or repair order within the 30-day period granted by the state. The city first issued the raze or repair order in September 2015, more than three months after the convent burned in a fire believed to be caused by arson.

It is the statute that City Attorney Deb Hoffman called upon when she made a motion to dismiss the temporary restraining order in August 2018. Panoussis filed for the restraining order after the city decided to raze the convent by the end of the year. However, as the city began to remove windows and artifacts from the building, Fond du Lac County Circuit Court granted a temporary restraining order to Panoussis and the convent against the city, halting all work.

Prior to Wednesday's ruling, Dan Kaminsky, attorney for Panoussis and his corporation, 1033 North Seventh St., said that he disagreed that the order could be dismissed just because action wasn’t taken within 30 days.

There are multiple reasons the city cannot tear down the convent, including that it is private property, which requires due process for action to be taken, as well as that there have been multiple issues in the city’s handling of the case, Kaminsky said.

Wirtz disagreed with the argument, saying that as Panoussis did not challenge the raze or repair order in 2015, it could be dismissed.

“I always thought the law supported the motion, and I’m glad the judge agreed,” Hoffman told the Reporter.

Fearing that the city could immediately begin the process to demolish the building, Kaminsky asked Wirtz to stay the dismissal, so he could have time to appeal.

“I have absolutely no reason to believe that as soon as we walk out this door, the city’s not going to have someone at the building, starting to tear it down,” he said.

Although he did not grant a stay, Wirtz will not sign the dismissal order until end of business Monday, he said, which gives Panoussis, and Kaminsky, until then to file an appeal. If an appeal is not filed, the city could begin the demolition process as soon as Wirtz signs the order.

How did we get here?

Built in the late 1800s by John and Samuel Amory, the convent is a well-known sight in Fond du Lac. The Episcopal Church's Bishop Charles C. Grafton purchased it in 1905 and built onto the building to make it a mother house for the women's religious order he founded, Sisterhood of the Holy Nativity. In 1973, Fond du Lac City Council made it a historical landmark. The building was abandoned in 2000.

Panoussis, a Los Angeles-based actor also known as George Pan-Andreas, purchased the convent in 2006 and previously told the Reporter he planned to restore it and use it as a hotel, museum or home for Catholic sisters. However, nothing ever came to fruition.

On June 5, 2015, a fire severely damaged the convent. Just over three months later, the city issued a raze or repair order on the building, stating Panoussis needed to “make the building safe and sanitary” or it would be razed within 90 days.

Tasks cited in the order included replacing the damaged roof, “exterior coverings,” fire-and-water-damaged structural supports, insulation, plaster, ceiling tiles, windows, flooring, doors and plumbing fixtures; repairing porches, stairs, peeling paint, railings and the elevator; and restoring the building to condition free of bird droppings, mold toxins, smoke odors and trash; and making the heating system functional.

Since, Panoussis has spent about $100,000 to repair the roof, he told the Reporter. In November 2015, he and contractors came to the city to make permanent repairs to the roof, reconnect water to the main drain, restore electrical power from the main panel and make the building safe. With the repairs made, Panoussis said the office of City Building Inspector Doug Hoerth indicated there was “no rush or deadline” to compete the remaining work.

However, in November 2016, City Inspector Doug Hoerth found many of the issues listed in the order had not been addressed and the building remained unsafe. Conditions included a roof that was temporary and had become loose, possibly due to deterioration.

After various legal proceedings, in summer 2018, the city moved forward to demolish the building, but the temporary restraining order stopped them.

In a September 2018 hearing, the city argued Panoussis and his corporation had missed several deadlines to make legal motions which would prevent the razing. In his argument, Kaminsky said Wisconsin law had two options for raze and repair. One allows for a raze order to be issued on a building which is not able to reasonably repaired, while the other allows the owner the option to make a building safe or raze it, even if it “can be made safe by reasonable repairs,” he said.

At the time, Architect Tom Meiklejohn testified he had inspected the convent prior to the hearing and found — in consultation with a structural engineer — the building was not in danger of structural collapse. Instead, the building’s smoke and structural damage was repairable, the roof was permanent and not deteriorating, and there were no signs of animal infestation.

Wirtz ordered both parties to engage in mediation, but, when the issue returned to court on Oct. 15, 2019, it remained in the stage it had more than a year before.The parties neared a resolution, but it was not successful, as R. Valjon Anderson, attorney for the city, said Panoussis did not “perform the agreement that had been reached."

The only “middle ground” in the issue was if the city got the repairs it desired — costly ones — Kaminsky said, but as Panoussis owns the building and it is not falling down, they believe the city shouldn’t be involved.

Sharon Roznik contributed to this report.

Contact Sarah Razner at 920-907-7909 or srazner@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @misssarahrazner.

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