T-R FILE PHOTO Debris is strewn around a damaged room in the old downtown hospital. Many of the rooms have sustained damage under the ownership of CD Marshalltown. The City of Marshalltown has taken the owner to court to obtain the deed. The trial was held yesterday, and lasted roughly one hour.

The trial between the City of Marshalltown and the owner of the old downtown hospital was one-sided on Tuesday.

Scott Covalt, the head of CD Marshalltown and the property owner, appeared in the non-jury trial without representation. He was informed by Judge Christopher Polking that since Covalt represented CD Marshalltown, which is an LLC, Covalt could not testify without an attorney. That surprised City Administrator Carol Webb, and she thought it caught Covalt off guard as well.

“He could not provide a defense,” she said. “It was just the city giving testimony.”

Webb was not surprised that Covalt did not bring in an attorney. On Jan. 30, John Cutler, Covalt’s attorney at the time, filed a motion to withdraw his counsel, stating a “breakdown of the attorney-client relationship.” City attorney Steven Leidinger filed a June 1 brief stating that no substitute counsel has appeared for CD Marshalltown, and there had been no active participation in the litigation.

Despite the lack of representation for Covalt, Webb said the trial went ahead. It lasted roughly one hour.

“Our attorney presented a number of exhibits, such as notices of violations of everything from snow and ice removal to fire hazards. There was a variety,” she said.

According to Webb, Marshalltown Police Department Chief Chris Jones testified about the response of officers to the neglected and abandoned property.

“There were 50 pages of call logs that required a response from the Marshalltown Police Department,” Webb said. “That’s a lot of calls. There were a few from the fire department.”

The next step in the case should be a ruling from Polking. Webb said no timeframe was given as to when the ruling would be made. However, she expects it to go in the city’s favor. A ruling for the city would allow them to get the title to the property.

The city filed a 657A petition in September 2025, which would allow a city to intervene when an abandoned structure is determined to be a danger to the neighborhood. The city is not seeking permanent ownership. Webb added that Covalt did say he would file an appeal, depending on Polking’s decision, which must be done within 20 days of the ruling.

“This property has been a nuisance since I have been here and the city is committed to figuring out how to turn [it] into something productive, and not a public hazard,” she said.

——-

Contact Lana Bradstream at 641-753-6611 ext. 210 or lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.