Property: 3917 Burchfield Drive, Lansing
Owner: Stefan and Tamara Farrell
Assessed value: $18,300
Owner says: Could not be reached for comment
Architecture critic Amanda Harrell-Seyburn says: Like the
lost Mayan city of Chichen Itza swallowed up by the Mesoamerican jungle,
this house at 3917 Burchfield Drive in south Lansing is overrun with
vegetation. The simple fact is that the earth is incredibly resilient
and unrestrained — nature will take over. The greater the human
footprint, the greater the battle with nature as countless amounts of
time, energy and resources are used to keep every lawn manicured. Living
closer together and sharing resources is the best way to coexist with
nature. Every cluster of weeds that pushes its way through the sidewalk
is a reminder that we are only visitors. To learn more about living in
balance with nature from Harrell-Seyburn, see this story at
www.LansingCityPulse.com.
Amid a quiet and manicured neighborhood just east of
Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and south of Holmes Road sits a
boarded-up, baby blue abandoned home overrun by long grass and weeds.
The attached garage/shed in front is locked down and looks like it
hasn’t been entered for years. The backyard grass is shorter but the
paint is peeling worse here and broken gutters sit at the base of the
house. To top it all off, the large, dead tree in the front yard lacks
leaves and is overtaking a power line.
A note on the front door shows the house was “retagged” unsafe by the city on Aug. 3.
— Andy Balaskovitz
edz
