The Shadow
Covington, VA (Virginian Review) — The Commonwealth Fire Marshal shut down 410 On Main Corporation and their building at 410 W Main St on Friday, May 24, 2024, for failure to obtain required fire safety inspections and Certificates of Occupancy to publicly open their doors. The owners of 410 W Main have allegedly operated over 10 public events illegally over the past few months without the proper certifications, putting the public’s safety at risk.
The City of Covington’s building department was also shut down on Friday due to not having the required certified personnel. Due to State enforcement actions and the State Fire Marshal, the City appears to be unable to issue any permits or Certificates of Occupancy until such time that the City hires a new Certified Building Official. Sources report allegedly only the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) can issue permits in the interim.
The City has a direct interest in the building, through a contract with the 410 on Main Corporation. The City gifted the building in 2023 and its operations are governed by a Performance Agreement.
The Virginian Review issued several Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the City. Official records directly from the city indicate that since October 30, 2023, there have been numerous instances of 410 On Main owners receiving undue favors allegedly from the City’s building official and the Mayor, potentially allowing the business to operate above the law without facing consequences. This shows an apparent coordinated effort from the City and the 410 W Main St owners to knowingly and willingly operate in violation of State building codes and required Fire Safety inspections.
Oct 30, 2023: David Bostic, co-owner of 410 on Main Corp applied for the first 410 building permit. He stated “SELF”, indicating he had a valid Virginia contractor license. Official State records show he does not. VA Law has strict codes for commercial building construction & renovation and requires work to be performed by a Class 1 licensed contractor and licensed trade workers.
410 also failed to obtain the required Asbestos inspection and submit that inspection before the permit was issued. Official records show owners David Bostic and Gray Lane coordinated with the City Building Official to ignore these requirements, as the uncertified building official allowed them to proceed whilst clearly in violation of the City’s own building permit process and Virginia Code.
November 2023 to Jan 2024: 410 apparently operated for 3 months without any licensed workers. Citizen reports alleged that major renovations, including electrical and plumbing, were being performed by unlicensed workers being paid cash under the table. In addition, the walls were breached for new windows, apparently with no Lead testing or abatement procedures, and tiles were removed without any asbestos testing or abatement. City officials were notified by their citizens of these potentially illicit activities, but the official refused to take action.
December 2023: While under construction, 410 ‘opened’ its doors to the public and began hosting events without any permanent Certificate of Occupancy, no fire marshal inspections, and apparently no Health Dept inspections. The first event was Good News On Main’s Church Christmas Bazaar.
December 2023-May 2024: 410 hosted at least 10 major events and several minor events without proper permits. 410 only obtained 3 temporary, single-event use Certificates of Occupancy, however, since they were issued by an uncertified building official, they are likely invalid. These events, including the Good News On Main’s Christmas Bazaar, Mountain Rush, Gauntlet meetings, Boots and Bling, a Baby Shower, and the AHPS Prom were all illegally operated in direct violation of VA Code, with no Fire Marshal inspections, approvals, and certifications.
February 14: 2024: After 3 months of inaction and denial, neither the City, Mayor Sibold, nor 410 attempted to rectify these alleged unlawful and unpermitted construction activities. A FOIA was issued to request official documents, which revealed that the City had been operating with an uncertified building official since 2021, and the current building official missed all the required deadlines to be certified by September 2023. This could possibly render all permits for all buildings in Covington issued by Michael Mines from September 2023 invalid.
When confronted with these allegations, Mayor Sibold acknowledged that his building department was operating illegally and claimed he would have Bath County’s Official and an engineering firm fill in temporarily. However, official documents from the City revealed that neither of these actions took place, and Sibold continued to use his uncertified official to issue permits illegally.
March 12, 2024: DHCD official issued a stern warning to the City for allegedly operating illegally without a Certified Building Official since 2021. The DHCD warned the City of potential civil and criminal exposure if any structural failures happened with any construction that was not properly permitted. They advised the City to seek legal counsel.
If an accident were to occur due to unpermitted work failures or a fire in a building that was illegally occupied and still under construction, both the City and 410 On Main Corporation could face civil or criminal liability. Such incidents could also render insurance claims invalid. Despite these risks, both the City and 410 On Main denied all allegations and continued to host unpermitted events, knowingly and willingly putting the public, including children, at direct risk.
On March 21, Mayor Sibold denied that the building department and 410 had done anything illegal, and stated in defense, “Over half the stories told on 410 were from imagination.”
May 24, 2024: 1:30 pm: However, the State Fire Marshal and DHCD saw the situation differently. For egregious violations of State Law, The Commonwealth Fire Marshal, and apparently other Government agencies ruled for immediate termination of the Building Official’s ability to issue permits, Certificates of Occupancy, and building approvals, and ordered the shutdown of 410 main St building’s operations, and apparently all future events and access to the building.
The City of Covington is currently also facing several State and Federal violations across multiple departments, from the Building Department to its Water Plant with 3 State violations and 13 Federal violations from the EPA’s Serious Violators Enforcement Targeting priority list.
In addition, the City’s Parks and Recreation Department saw the resignation of two senior personnel on May 15, leaving only clerical and administration staff. The City currently does not have a City Clerk, and its public website is now several months behind in providing required information including City Council agendas and minutes. However, instead of addressing these issues, Mayor Sibold continues to vehemently deny any wrongdoing.
