What due diligence did the town do, other than a nailed up notice?

The boards were face nailed, so most likely we'd have to adjust to stud boundaries if we tried to 'reuse' the existing fastener points.

If the fasteners are just some nails, or worse, screws, I would want to see at least one post in place to transfer some load directly to the ground. 

You could spray over, say a hammer head imprint around a nail perhaps a 1/16th inch deep, 20 times and it wouldn't disappear since you're "coating" the high area around the low area just as much.

By 4 we finally understood our niche market and nailed it.For me, 50% gives me room for if the market dives again to get out if I need to.  

Man you nailed it.

@Gerald Demers hit the nail on the head.

@John Weidner you nailed it!  

My home is currently a literal construction site and my fenced in back yard is full of debris, rusty nails, ladders left propped up against the walls and my patio furniture and BBQ grill thrown about as if they were trash.

Pop the nails back in with a hammer.