Another of Wilt's properties in Superior

Thursday afternoon, Dr. Glen Wilt again faced Judge Bravo in the Superior Court for sentencing on 8 counts and 11 citations involving his properties in Superior. He was found guilty in absentia two weeks ago when he failed to show up for his court date where the citations were reviewed.  His failure to appear for his own court date was due to a simple mistake he explained in today’s courtroom. He had thought the court date was for 5 pm… not 2 pm. Then, he added, when he started to leave (for Superior) he got sick and “couldn’t have made it anyway.”

As a college professor, one wonders what Wilt’s response would have been were a student to miss his midterm exam with the same ‘I -didn’t-know-what-time-the-test-started-and-then-I-got-sick-and-couldn’t-have-made-it-anyway’ excuse.

As the sentencing got underway, the Town’s case centered on the fact that the citations not only involved commercial buildings which according to Melanie Oliver, Superior’s Planning and Zoning administrator, are held to a higher standard and that of the 8 cases involved, six of them had been before the court for previous violations.

Wilt then questioned Oliver on the classification of each of his properties noted in the violations and determined that 4 were residential. He also stated he had abated weeds on property identified in the citations “as of today” and asked the court to consider this in determining fines. He explained he had recently (September) worked with Adult Probation to have parole’s work on his properties but alas, this proved to be an unreliable remedy due to recidivism. Wilt asked the Court to consider that he had been making an effort.

Judge Bravo asked the Town attorney if he had would agree to consider todays efforts at weed abatement and he stated he had no problem with Wilt petitioning the court to reduce fines, but he wouldn’t gaurantee that he would agree to it reminding the Court that the fines pertain to the citations themselves which involved a lengthy process giving Wilt ample opportunity to take care of the issues before today.

A sign in front of dilapidated structure on Main street reflects what some residents in Superior have come to feel about Wilt and his local "investments."

Each citation carried a maximum of $2500 for each violation and the Superior Town attorney, Michael Beers, asked the Court to assess “significant fines” in this case due to several factors including the seriousness of the violations, the second-time offender status and the need to make it clear to Dr. Wilt that it would be cheaper to fix the issues in a timely manner than to go to court. Judge Bravo agreed. He assessed $1500 for each of the citataions involving weeds and junk cards, and $2000 for each citation involving dilapidated buildings. In the case a property which had citations for both weeds and dilapidated building status, the total citation assessed was $3500.

Wilt acknowledged he was not prepared to pay the fine that day but wanted time to work out a payment with the Court Clerk.

He also said he had asked for a meeting with town officials immediately after the court sentencing to get a full accounting of what he had to do to come into compliance. Whether this was a bit of grandstanding on Wilt’s part or will result in a concerted effort to get all his properties in compliance will play out over the next several months. History seems to suggest that the problem here is not knowing what needs to be done – but doing it.

Wilt was not in the courtroom when the verdict was read, but I caught up with him as he exited Hill Street Mall in Globe. Another of his properties, the Hill Street School can be seen in the background.

Dr. Glen Wilt, ASU professor of economics and real estate investor, was found negligent of his duties as a landlord in the tragic fire which destroyed the Pioneer Hotel and adjacent Globe Theater in the summer of 2005. The jury trial, which was held in Gila County Court took 6 days to present all the evidence and took a jury of ten just over 2 hours to send down a verdict. They found for the Plantiffs, Frank Balaam and his wife Nora, and awarded them $223,000 for the loss of nearly 1000 pieces of artwork stretching over 30 years. The artwork was being housed in his gallery space within the Pioneer Hotel at the time of the fire. The other three plantiffs  in the case had reached out of court settlements prior to yesterday’s verdict. They included the Hollis family (Globe Theater), Tony and Chris Brusca (Java Junction) and Amanda and Tim Haas (Animal Magnetism).

Wilt, who owns over 80 properties throughout Gila, Pinal, Maricopa and Yavapai counties, says he  just “likes old buildings” and while 40% of his holdings are residential (mostly in Tempe), the majority of his holdings include old buildings throughout Globe, Miami and Superior.

He purchased the historic 1916 hotel from Patrick Harris in December 0f 2003 for the sum of $210,000 and said he felt the Pioneer Hotel was his “jewel.” Despite this professed fondness for the building, court records show that he did little to secure the long range health of the building. He fixed a cornice which was threatening to fall on the sidewalk below, but when it came to water leaks which was an on-going problem in the building,  his solution was to put down large swaths of black plastic which ran down the stairways and along the hallways. As he said, “It is a method I learned when I was a sophomore in Michigan. The idea is that you let the water sit on top of the plastic until it evaporates.”

Wilt says he cares about old buildings, but his investment in them seems to suggest otherwise. Here are 2 of his properties in downtown Globe, Az: The 1910 Elks Building listed as the tallest 3-story building in Guinness Book of Records, and the Taekwondo Building which also dates back to the turn-of-the century. He has been issued citations for the plywood covering the windows and the fire Marshall reported seeing pigeon feces and dead birds on the 2nd floor.

Wilt acknowledged the need to make sure there was no electrical in the upper unoccupied portions of any building, and to secure the building in a manner which would prevent others from getting into it causing damage, harm or mischief. Yet his testimony indicates he fell short on both accounts. Dr. Wilt did two walk-throughs of the Pioneer Hotel before committing to the purchase. He said the second walk-through was with a partner, who he identified as a building contractor, and indicated he was aware of the makeshift apartment which the former owner had built on the 4th floor. The apartment included appliances, power tools, a jet-tub in the bathroom and lights.

However, when he took over the building, he found one lone electrical cord running from the 2nd floor to the 4th floor.He told the court he followed the cord to the 2nd floor where it was plugged into a pigtail which dropped into the floor. He unplugged the cord, wound it up and placed it on the 4th floor. According to testimony, he never checked out any other sources of electrical on the upper floors – nor, it seems did his partner who, as a building contractor would have had the means to check this issue thoroughly. Wilt indicated on the stand that he relied on his partner to let him know what was needed, yet it seems the only input he gave Wilt after walking through the hundred year old building was the understated truth; “It was a big job.”

There is no indication that Wilt asked for or received any greater detail than that on the building’s condition and maintenance issues.

Issues began surfacing almost immediately, brought to his attention by the tenants who rented space on the first floor.  The roof which had leaked ‘some’ prior to Wilt taking ownership, began leaking more and more. And with Patrick Harris no longer living on the 4th floor, the upper floors offered an attractive haven to those who could find their way in – as they did by crossing the roof of the theater to gain access to 2nd floor windows or through a transom on the alley.

As these issues surfaced Wilt said he would “try to send somebody up.” His solution of putting down swaths of black plastic or re-applying plywood to the windows “with a few more screws” was not a “complete remedy” as he stated in court.

"The fire which consumed the Pioneer hotel and Globe Theater was said to have started on the 4th floor by 3 out of 4 fire experts. This may have contributed to the jury's conclusion that Wilt did not do enough to prevent access to the upper un-occupied floors and insure there was no electrical in the upper floors.

During examination by his own attorneys, Wilt said “…he would respond to maintenance requirements on the Pioneer Hotel just like he did for all his properties.”

This opened the door for the prosecution to bring in testimony and evidence relating to his other properties.  They called Globe Fire Marshall Joe Bracomonte and Superior Fire Marshall Todd Pryor who outlined a pattern of forced compliance on even basic maintenance issues such as weeds and properly stored items. Here in Globe, Wilt faces several outstanding citations to address issues with the Taekwondo Buildings, Elks Building, Old Hill Street School property and Globe School property. According to testimony in the trial, Wilt seems to respond only under a direct court order to do so (no informal ‘lets-work-this-out’ talks) and while  Wilt has taken marginal action to correct small things (weeds & storage) he is less proactive on issues which affect a buildings long-term health such as broken windows, transient access and upgrading electrical to meet basic safety concerns. According to Fire Inspector, Joe Bracomonte, Wilt has only addressed 25% of all outstanding citations on his properties within Globe. In Superior, Wilt faces sentencing in the Superior Courts on December 17th regarding his failure to comply with 8 counts and 11 citations on his properties in that community.

Typical of Wilt properties, the Hill Street School shows a degraded front with broken out windows which have allowed rain, wind and pigeon feces to degrade the interior

As a professor of economics, Dr. Glen Wilt has taught young minds the art and essence of economics for over 40 years. Yet, it is his penchant for collecting real estate – especially old buildings- and letting them crumble under his watch which may prove to be his greatest legacy. It is a case study in one man’s irresponsible disregard for his investments, his tenants and the communities which he says he values.

(An op-ed piece in the Globe Miami Times written December ’08 by another investor James Dowley reflects on this issue of responsible stewardship. Dowley, who spent nearly three years and thousands of dollars restoring the old Globe Cafe, knows what it requires to take on an old historic buildings and invest in their future)

Many people took up the offer.

Local Radio host, Bill Taylor of gila101.9, was on-hand in the Safeway parking lot with his “Wilt” doll immediately following the trial and invited anyone who wished to “Stick it to Wilt” to stop by. They did.

For those interested in seeing what the Pioneer Hotel looked like just months before the fire, take a look at photographer Bill Woody’s images taken in April of 2005. Woody, who is a fine art photographer based in Ohio has been to the Globe-Miami area often to photograph. He focuses his lens on abandoned places and finds the Globe-Miami area ideal for his subject matter.  He was given permission to photograph the Pioneer Hotel in April of 2005, just 4 months prior to the fire. These are the last photos taken of the Pioneer.

Dr. Glenn Wilt, who began teaching in the early 60′s,  distinguished himself as an educator at ASU’s  WPCarey School of Business. These days, however he is finding his reputation as educator eclipsed in the news by his reputation as a slumlord. Wilt, who has built a career out of teaching others about finance and real estate now finds himself at odds with the communities where he invests and the courts which are beginning to take action on his apparent blatant disregard of city codes and official requests for action. With over eighty properties – both residential and commercial- throughout Tempe, Superior, Globe, Hayden and Winkleman, Dr. Wilt and his company, Superior Development Co. are increasingly in the news.

According to many of his tenants and local municipalities, he has proven to be adept at side-stepping even the most basic requirements of maintaining his properties creating both a hazardous and blight condition in these areas. The East Valley Tribune and reporter Ryan Gabrielson covered the mounting problems with Wilt’s properties in Superior over a year ago.

It seems little has changed except for the resolve of local residents and town officials to bring Wilt to task for cleaning up and maintaining his properties.

Yesterday, in Superior Court, Dr. Glen Wilt was a No Show at a hearing where 11 citations for city code violations were presented to Judge Bravo. Many of the citations dated back to February when Wilt was asked to clean up weeds and debris and secure roofs and windows from the elements. The judge seemed to be in no mood to extend the leniency he had shown 30 days earlier when he had granted Wilt an extension on his court date. This time, he found the ASU professor guilty on all counts and issued a summons to appear for sentencing on December 17th at 3 pm. At this time the court can issue fines of up to $2500 per citation and/or jail time.

The Superior summons comes on the heels of a long-awaited trial- involving another of Wilt’s properties; The Pioneer Hotel. The hotel fire which consumed the building and all three businesses who were renting from Wilt,  took out the adjacent Globe Theater in July 2005

The trial is slated to begin in Gila County courthouse in Globe on December 2. Judge Duber will be the presiding judge.

It appears that Dr. Wilt will be spending more time in the courtroom than the classroom this Fall,  and that might prove to be his biggest lesson yet to pass on to his students.

Additional Links on the issue of Dr. Wilt and his Real Estate holdings.

AzSilverBelt on Wilt AzSilverBelt on Wilt Aug 12

KPHOChnl5 on Wilt