Detroit has taken HGTV alum Nicole Curtis to court, filing a civil nuisance-abatement lawsuit that claims a long-troubled East Grand Boulevard house tied to her company is still sitting unrenovated and posing a danger to neighbors. The complaint, filed Wednesday in Wayne County, says the property has racked up repeated correction orders and code violations that were never resolved. City attorneys are asking a judge to order repairs, collect fines and, if the owners refuse to act, put the house under a court-appointed receiver to finally get the work done.
The lawsuit zeroes in on 451 E. Grand Blvd., where inspectors from the city's Buildings, Safety Engineering and Environmental Department say they found missing permits, no required compliance certifications and a failure to register the property as vacant. The filing also points to piled-up trash, overgrown vegetation and deteriorating structural features that the city argues are a safety hazard for the block. The suit asks the court to mandate repairs, impose fines and let the city recoup its enforcement costs, according to the Detroit Free Press.
This property has already seen one legal showdown. Curtis' company, Detroit Renovations LLC, took ownership after earlier litigation with the Detroit Land Bank Authority. In 2021, Wayne County Judge Timothy Kenny declared the house a nuisance and ordered that it be renovated, according to ClickOnDetroit. That ruling put the responsibility for finishing the rehab on Curtis, yet the city now says the problems never went away.
The new complaint details a paper trail of enforcement: correction orders in September 2022, November 2023 and April 2026, along with 25 violation tickets in total, broken down as 10 in 2022, three in 2023 and 12 so far this year. It also lists roughly $1,331 in unpaid inspection and registration fees and about $4,200 in blight-related fines tied to the address. The city is asking for a judgment that would let it recover those costs and force repairs, per the Detroit Free Press.
What the city is asking the court
In the lawsuit, city attorneys urge the judge to officially declare the house a public nuisance, spell out required repairs and order payment of outstanding fines and fees. They also want the power to bring in a court-appointed receiver who could hire contractors, complete the renovation and place a lien on the property so those costs could be recovered.
Legal implications for Curtis
The suit seeks to hold Nicole Curtis personally liable as the managing member of Detroit Renovations LLC, which could expose her to financial judgments if the court agrees with the city's case. If a receiver is ultimately appointed, her company could lose control of the project altogether, and any costs advanced by the city could follow the house as liens that might eventually force a sale to satisfy the debt.
The Detroit Free Press reports that the newspaper reached out to Curtis' representatives but received no response, and her team has not publicly commented on the fresh lawsuit. For now, the next moves will unfold in Wayne County court as officials push to wrap up a long-stalled rehab and address what the city describes as a public hazard.
