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.”

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].