Man's rooftop protest delays Detroit house demolition

DETROIT – A man was on top of the roof of a vacant home Tuesday protesting a demolition on the city’s west side.

The man got on the roof about 7:30 a.m. The house is on 16th Street near Marquette Street.

Aaron Timlin, 45, said he is a community activist trying to save numerous homes. He doesn’t own the home, but lives in the neighborhood and doesn’t believe the house should be demolished. The man said the home should be refurbished.

Timlin told police he would not come down until he spoke with representatives from the Land Bank. 

Timlin came down from the roof about 11:15 a.m. 

Timlin was taken into custody after descending the fire truck's ladder. 

The city agreed to halt the demolition of the house and let the man come up with a plan to save it within the next two weeks.

While many neighbors support Timlin's fight for the homes, some say he's undoing their work to remove blight.

"He's embarrassing me," said Jean Wilson, of the 15th Street block club. "I'm a member of the art community and I remember him when he came to town and I've seen him do some great and amazing things by pulling people together. Right now what I see is a desperate man trying to make some money."

Timlin is a member of Closed Loop, a neighborhood group that he says owns 22 homes that are being saved and refurbished. Another member of the group says this won't be the last time they do this.

Timlin said he and some neighbors actually stopped the demo crews Monday too by blocking the front of the house.

Timlin was arrested for interfering with a city employee. He was charged with a misdemeanor.

“I do believe there are houses and burned up shells that need to be removed and there are houses that could be repurposed, or rehabbed. There are foundations of homes that can be repurposed, solid foundations, and that’s one of the most expensive parts of building a home,” Timlin said. “I think there just needs to be a more creative approach to what the city and what the Land Bank are doing.”

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