Eyesore of the week

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