City Council to vote on vacant housing fee
October 19, 2011
Owners of vacant houses and buildings could see a new annual fee starting next year if City Council
votes “yes” Tuesday.
At 7:30 p.m., City Council will vote whether to approve a vacant house and building registry that will
compile addresses of vacant property, its owners and their contact information. By the end of every
year, each owner on the list will owe a certain fee depending on whether the house or building is well
maintained.
“It’s another tool, another use, another addition to what we have on the books,” at-Large Council
Member Eric Valenta said during a committee discussion Oct. 5. “It will help (the code compliance
officer) do his job more effectively.”
The following is a breakdown on fees charged toward owners of vacant houses and buildings:
- Owners will be charged a $50 fee for every vacant house that is well kept.
- Owners will be charged a $200 fee for every vacant house that is not well kept.
- Owners will be charged a $500 fee for every vacant commercial building that is well kept.
- Owners will be charged a $1,000 fee for every vacant commercial building that is not well kept.
If the ordinance is approved, city officials will begin registering every house or building that has been
vacant for 45 consecutive days or more. An owner can appeal registration with the Board of Appeals for
a two-year or 90-day waiver.
City Council authorized the registry to be made into a proposed ordinance on Oct. 5 with a 6-to-3 vote.
Valenta, who voted in support of the registry that evening, said the legislation would help prevent blight
and other problems associated with vacancy.
Last year, the code compliance officer cited 399 code violations and more than one-fourth of those
code violations were reported at vacant houses or buildings, according to the 2010 Code Compliance
Summary. In 2009 that ratio was around one-to-six.
Robin Turner, an at-large council member who, along with two other council members, voted against
the registry, said it’s “governmental overreach.”
“Quite frankly it’s none of my business if they want to keep the house vacant,” Turner said. “If it’s about
blight, we already have a code enforcement officer that does that.”
Contact Simon Husted at [email protected].
