LISBON — A judge on Thursday signed an agreed judgment entry to stop the planned demolition of an East Palestine property at 101 S. Market St., granting the property owner access to get inside.

Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge Megan Bickerton granted the motion to stay requested by property owner John Holman, of Columbiana, and ordered the stay remain in effect until further order of the court.

She also granted full access to the property to Holman and his agents. The agreed judgment entry was signed by Holman’s attorney, James Wise, and by the East Palestine legal counsel Dave Powers.

A motions hearing that was scheduled for Monday has now been canceled.

Holman requested the stay as part of an appeal he filed Wednesday to challenge the decision by the East Palestine Zoning Board of Appeals on June 26 to demolish the property. He claimed the decision was in error and must be reversed, saying it’s not supported by reliable, probative and substantial evidence in the record, it’s contrary to law and violates Holman’s due process rights.

The document said the board failed to take into consideration additional evidence presented to the board by Holman and that the decision was an abuse of discretion and “bears no reasonable relationship to preservation of the public health, safety, morals or general welfare.”

In the motion to stay, Holman argued that the notice to the homeowner was deficient in that it “failed to provide notice to the homeowner of the reasoning for the condemnation or any steps to be taken to dispute that the property was being condemned. That notice only indicated that the utilities had been turned off and there was no access allowed to the property.”

The motion also said it appears grounds for demolition were some reports of break-ins to the residence, however pursuant to the notice of condemnation, all utilities were terminated and measures were taken to secure the building.

“In other words, the village has taken steps so that no lights can be on to indicate someone is living there. The village secured the residence and yet uses the lack of those measures to justify the demolition of the building,” the motion said.

Also noted was that this residence was Holman’s boyhood home and was “filled with furnishings, memorabilia, photographs and a lifetime of memories which cannot be replaced in the event of demolition. Plaintiff continues to pay the mortgage on the property as well as the real estate taxes.”