No progress reported on El Rancho cleanup

The owners of a dilapidated motel on the western edge of Sedalia failed to meet a state deadline to clean up the site.

“The stuff we told him to clean up is still there,” said Karl Fett, a Department of Natural Resources regional director based in Kansas City.

But the Pettis County Commission is working with the owners of the El Rancho Motel to provide volunteers to clear the litter.

The motel has been abandoned since 2004. Ramu and Kusum Patel bought the property from Bernard and Hope Howard in 1981.
Rakesh Patel has been the owner since 2003.

Fett first notified Rakesh that his motel was in violation of Missouri statutes on environmental controls in a May 22 letter. The letter gave a deadline of June 30 to clean up the property.

A member of the Patel family contacted DNR to request an extension. The second deadline was set for August 15.

The DNR could issue notices of violations and fine the owners $5,000 per day.

 “I am not ready to go there yet,” Fett said. “But when (DNR) requests are not complied with, we take further steps.”

The only obvious change at the motel since May 22 has been the removal of siding from the exterior.

Presiding Commissioner Rusty Kahrs said last week that Commissioner Larry Wilson has put together a group of volunteers willing to help clean up the El Rancho.

He said Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Mittelhauser is working on an agreement that would limit liability for those involved with the potential cleanup.

The Patels are open to the idea of a volunteer cleanup crew, Kahrs said.

“We’re making progress. We’re a ways away from getting it done yet, but we’re making some progress,” he said.

He said the commission is “cautiously optimistic” the situation will be resolved.

The commission will act as an intermediary, he said, but Kahrs said he hopes to avoid spending money on the effort.

The DNR cannot require the building be destroyed but can require that it be inspected for asbestos before any demolition.

“We don’t want a cloud of asbestos dust over that side of Sedalia,” Fett said. “I understand he is looking at demolition.”

— Allison Elyse Gualtieri, Courtney Hudson and Kaye Fair