LORAIN - A crane tore down a house at Oak Point Road yesterday that has been the subject of friction between the city and disgruntled residents for nearly five years.

Don Buchs, president of All American Corp. and operator of the crane, said this is the first of a few more homes that will be demolished due to the damage done when a sewer line broke on Nov. 30, 2006.  The line broke because of a heavy rain storm and raw sewage flooded into homes.  Buchs said there are plans to demolish the house across the street in the near future.

The city became the owners of the Oak Point property that belong to Charles and Mary Williams as part of a settlement to a lawsuit that the couple filed.  The city and two other defendants awarded the couple in excess of $700,000, said Andy Goldwasser, the Williams’ attorney.  The family also sued for wrongful death of Mary Williams’ mother, Dorothy Dulick, who was living with the couple at the time.  She was diagnosed with pneumonia as a result of fumes from the sewage and died in 2009, according to previous news stories.

“The Williams family was pleased that settlement was reached, but disappointed it took so long,” Goldwasser said.  He added that the family never wished to file a lawsuit but the city didn’t want to pay for the house after the sewer break.  The family filed a lawsuit in 2007 and didn’t reach a settlement until December 2010.  The city also reached a settlement with five other property owners.

The Williams family continued to live in the house until the lawsuit was settled in 2010.  Goldwasser described the condition of the home as “deplorable” and “uninhabitable.”  He said the walls had to be torn out, the insulation had to be removed and cabinets on the lower level had to be removed.  Goldwasser compare it to “living in a garage.”  It was dirty, cold and had a terrible odor.  In addition to the extensive damage, Charles Williams lost his home insurance business that he just started.

The city has not indicated what it will do with the property.