County Commissioners received a letter from the city of Florence on Friday requesting the county secure the former Holiday Motel on the western edge of the city.
The vacant motel — owned by the county because of unpaid property taxes — was unlocked, city supervisor Phil Baldwin said.
Clerk Janet Robinson said she had heard a rumor that a squatter had been living in it. Baldwin said he hadn’t seen anyone going in or out of the building, but he has seen evidence that people had been in it.
Because it has no water or electricity, squatters couldn’t do much more than sleep in the motel.
“I wouldn’t doubt somebody does,” Baldwin said.
Additionally, the city asked the county to mow the property. After reviewing the letter, commissioners called Road and Bridge Superintendent Randy Crawford and requested the department mow the property before Florence’s Labor Day celebrations.