Fire guts Richland ‘junkyard’ house. Can officials force a cleanup?
The morning after a 2-alarm blaze tore through a home in central Richland, investigators peered into the chaotic site from ladders affixed to fire engines and extended overhead.
The Thursday afternoon fire heavily damaged the one-story home at 2100 Pullen St., but appeared to leave intact the sea of debris that engulfs it and the rest of the 8,700-square-foot lot.
The extension ladders allowed investigators to scrutinize conditions from above without having to pick through construction debris, fast food signs, ladders and other accumulated material. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
The property is one of Richland’s best-known nuisances, and it burned amid a legal effort by the city to win court approval to clean it up.
Richland Fire Chief Randy Aust said Thursday that no one was in the house, and he’s unaware of any animals harmed during the dramatic blaze.
Aust confirmed firefighting efforts were hindered by conditions on the property.
A bystander reported the fire at 2:30 p.m. and firefighters immediately encountered obstacles.
Aust said firefighters fought the flames and noxious smoke from around the property rather than take the risk of sending them into it.
Cascade Natural Gas dug up the nearby street to cap off a gas line serving the house because the home’s shutoff valve couldn’t be reached, he noted.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Nuisance court case
In the aftermath, the city is asking the court to move on the case, said Heather Kintzley, city attorney.
Last fall, the city sued owner Taylor Knipp and his now-former wife. The suite came after several years of visits and citations by code enforcement officers failed to get the property cleaned up.
The suit asked a Benton County Superior Court to declare the property a nuisance and issue an order of abatement.
The Knipps have since divorced.
Jacqueline was awarded the house and other real estate holdings, but conveyed ownership of 2100 Pullen back to Taylor in February. He is the sole owner.
The time-consuming legal case is required to protect Knipp’s Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure.
Case paused, unpaused
The case was briefly paused in January when Knipp asked the court for an Americans With Disabilities accommodation. He had previously disclosed mental health issues to the Tri-City Herald.
Kintzley said the ADA process has concluded. She told the Tri-City Herald she will file a brief asking the court to schedule a hearing as soon as practicable now that circumstances have changed.
An order of abatement would allow the city to hire a contractor to clean up the property.
The city already had sunk considerable time and effort into pressing the case, first through its code enforcement arm, and when that failed, in court.
On June 2, less than two days before the fire, Richland’s city council voted to double a contract with Clean Up Crew LLC, its on-call junk removal and hauling contractor tasked with attempting to clear debris from the sidewalks and street in front of the residence.
New items are routinely deposited in the public right-of-way soon after they’re cleared. The original $100,000 contract is now worth $200,000.
Technically, the city can file a lien against the property to recover costs. The county assesses it at about $385,000, including $50,000 for the land.
“Richland Fire will take reasonable steps to secure the safety of the scene and the surrounding properties, and the city’s abatement effort will continue,” Kintzley said.
Anyone with information on the fire is encouraged to contact Richland Fire Marshal Andy Sabin at 509-942-7327, or by email at asabin@richlandwa.gov.
Not the only nuisance
The Pullen Street property is one of three nuisance sites that burst into public view in 2025. Two are houses and a third is the former Northwest Tire Recycling site near the city landfill.
A house at 1312 Hains Ave. came under scrutiny for similar conditions to Pullen.
The city paused plans to sue when the now-former owner fell behind on the mortgage and the lender foreclosed.
The Hains house sold at auction in March and the debris has been removed.
The city successfully sued to have the collection of discarded tires on Twin Bridges Road declared a nuisance.
The 2026 Washington Legislature authorized $3.2 million to address the collection of approximately 7,100 tons of old tires.
Richland officials say they expect to complete an agreement with the Department of Ecology and begin developing a plan. Clean up will take an estimated two years.
This story was originally published June 5, 2026 at 3:46 PM.