Study may pave way for end of Waubeka Mill saga

The Fredonia Town Board is taking the first steps towards ordering the demolition of the Button Factory and the Waubeka Mill, a portion of which recently collapsed onto Mill Street.

However, Charles Sheridan, who owns the Button Factory and whose son owns the mill, still believes the structures can be repaired. The Button Factory, he said, is in overall good condition and the mill simply needs its dilapidated additions cleared and main structure patched up.

He proposes renovating the buildings for commercial or residential use or as a kayak rental business.

He said on Monday that he is working with a contractor to put a fence around the mill property and to clear the road of debris from the collapsed facade.

He also plans to build a ramp to the river to allow a backhoe to clear the Milwaukee River, which runs along the properties, of building debris.

“We want everything on the roadway gone as soon as possible,” he said, noting Mill Street has been closed for almost two years because of collapse concerns.

Town and county officials have said the buildings aren’t repairable. The county has repeatedly denied building permits to the Sheridans, citing that the buildings are in a floodplain, have essentially no setback from either the road or river and are grossly out of code.

“There’s a lot of hurdles to overcome and so far he hasn’t provided an application we could approve,” county Sanitation and Zoning Specialist Barry Sullivan said in October.

Earlier this month, the town board approved spending $5,000 on an engineering study of the buildings, possibly by a forced inspection warrant.

The study is needed for the town to “prove its case” to the state that a raze order is necessary by showing the cost of repairs would be unreasonable compared to the properties’ value, Town Clerk Christophe Jenkins said.

The town still needs to find an engineering firm willing to perform the study despite talking with several companies, Town Attorney Nathanial C. Jung wrote in a letter to the board.

Jung said the board could pursue a raze order now, backed by information from a 2023 inspection report, but didn’t advise it since the previous report would likely not be considered specific enough in court.

In his letter, Jung also pointed out the likely significant cost of razing the buildings.

Demolishing the buildings would likely cost hundreds of thousands of dollars — a price tag that “would be extremely difficult to regain” by the town, he said.

While the cost could be recouped by a special assessment of the properties, their value would likely be very low and the Sheridans could simply not pay. The town could then seize the properties, but would be stuck with near valueless land.

Jenkins said keeping the demolition costs off the town’s tax rolls is the board’s key priority.

“It should be on the private property owner but when things are held by LLCs and we have to go to the court system, there is no guarantee (the town) would get its money back,” he said.

Sullivan has said the county is interested in putting a boat launch where the Button Factory is and a parking lot where the mill is if Sheridan donates the properties.

In that case, the county could cover the cost of demolition and remediation. Sheridan has said he is willing to donate the mill, but not the Button Factory, which has stalled talks with the county that wants both.

“That’s not reasonable,” he said.

Jenkins said the town is also reluctant to get into a legal battle with Sheridan, who could challenge a raze order in court and launch appeals — a possibility Sheridan acknowledges.

“We are going to push back, we are going to stand up for our property rights,” he said.

The mill was purchased by Sheridan Jr. in 2019 and the Button Factory was bought at county auction by Sheridan Sr. in 1990.

The factory has drawn Sheridan into legal trouble in the past.

Sheridan was told he could install a temporary roof on the factory when he bought it, he said. So one Friday night in the 1990s, he had a team of contractors install a permanent, shingled roof and completed the work by Sunday night.

“A county sheriff showed up on Monday morning with a legal summons,” he said.

The judge told Sheridan he could keep the roof, but made him pay a $2,500 fine, he said.

Sheridan said he doesn’t regret it because it helped preserve the property.

Sullivan said it would have been “ideal” if the county never put the Button Factory up for auction and simply converted the property to a park in 1990. However, it is standard procedure to put all properties acquired through foreclosure to auction.

Jenkins said the engineering study could surprise town officials.

“Maybe we are all wrong and it will say the Button Factory is still in strong condition and can be repaired,” he said.

The Button Factory is on the National Register of Historic Places.