Riverdale Park Seeking to Buy Jey's Auto Property

The vacant home of Jey’s Auto could receive an overhaul soon if an effort to purchase the property by the Riverdale Park Town Council is successful.

Earlier this month, the council green-lighted proceedings to buy the lot, which is located on Baltimore Avenue next to Hyattsville's EYA development and across the street from DeMatha High School.

The council's resolution states that the town will pursue negotiations to purchase the property at fair market value and that it will draft a letter granting 30 days to respond to the town's offer.

“I believe most people driving by the property will innately understand the rudiments behind the resolutions that were passed," Councilman Jonathan Ebbeler (Ward 1) said in an email, describing the lot as "a consistent eyesore for years and one of the worst examples of urban blight in Riverdale Park."

“In the short-term, razing the building and having it graded for a rain garden with a 'Welcome to Riverdale Park' sign would be a better use than what is there now; long-term it is a gateway property that in the past has attracted the attention of numerous developers,” he added.

The owners of the Jey’s Auto property — Edward Jeyakody and Edward Suprabha — have received multiple citations for city and county code violations via their realtor, Paul Buggappa.

In July 2011, Riverdale Park cited the pair for violations of Code #36-7a, requiring property owners to properly dispose of trash, and Code #68-1, requiring property owners to maintain a maximum grass height of not more than seven inches.

Colleen Ferguson, Riverdale Park's code enforcement and community relations manager, said that the property owners are quick to correct problems when brought to their attention but that they comply minimally. The town has had to make repeated requests of the pair to bring the property into line with code, she said.

“I have suggested that they put it on a routine maintenance schedule to handle the grass and trash on the property,” Ferguson added.

Anthony Bolling, a representative for the owners, said he was unaware of the town’s attempts to purchase the lot or that the property had been out of compliance. 

While Jeyakody and Suprabha are open to unsolicited offers to purchase the lot, he said, they are more interested in leasing it out.

“We’ve been marketing the site as a ground lease,” Bolling said. He added that he had spoken with regional and national developers about the property for both residential and retail use.

“We are discussing it, and we are excited,” he added.

According to Ebbeler, the property owners have only advanced plans for the property that include gas stations and convenience stores — uses that are not supported by the town council and that would require special permits from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.

If the owners do not respond to attempts to purchase the property, or if the owners refuse to negotiate in good faith, the resolution states that the town will "move forward with additional remedies to ameliorate conditions a the property."