The pressure's on, Andrew Dick.

Dick just got his investment saved by four St. Paul City Council members who went through the wringer with three of their colleagues.

He has six months to turn that dilapidated, vacant 1888 house he bought for $19,900 on the East Side into a gem.

There are some on the council who said the 28-year-old shouldn't have been able to buy the house because a recently adopted ordinance doesn't allow properties in such bad shape to be sold unless they're brought up to safety standards.

The goal of the ordinance, which was sponsored by Council Member Dan Bostrom, is to keep junky properties, known as Category 3 vacant buildings, from being passed on without being fixed properly. His ward, on the city's East Side, has seen the negative effects that high concentrations of vacant homes can have on neighborhoods. Citywide, nearly 2,000 buildings, most of them residential, are vacant.

Bostrom wanted the property to go back to the bank that sold it to Dick and make the bank pay for repairs or demolition.

But there was a question of who knew what when, whether the city was enforcing the ordinance (it took effect Sept. 2) and how Dick could own the property if it wasn't supposed to be sold to him. The situation was a test of the new ordinance.

Council President Kathy Lantry said there was a miscommunication on the city's side.

Bostrom disagreed. Council member Dave Thune took Bostrom's side and said the council shouldn't backslide on the ordinance.

Council members Russ Stark, Pat Harris and Melvin Carter III sided with Lantry, saying that Dick's past performance of going beyond the basics to fix up several other St. Paul houses would produce a better outcome. Dick has estimates from contractors and a letter from the bank saying he has the means to fix the property on Wells Street.

Emotions ran high around the council table as the vote was taken. It was an unusual show of acrimony. The vote was 4-3 against demolishing the building.

Bostrom, clearly upset with the vote, said, "Thanks a lot."

Chris Havens • 612-673-4148