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Blight Management Hampton City Council July 14, 2010 Codes Compliance.

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Presentation on theme: "Blight Management Hampton City Council July 14, 2010 Codes Compliance."— Presentation transcript:

1 Blight Management Hampton City Council July 14, 2010 Codes Compliance

2 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 2 July 14, 2010Blight Management Purpose Purpose of your presentation? To help the Council and the public better understand the challenges associated with Codes Compliance and to share new approaches we plan to employ to be even more successful in the future

3 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 3 Foundations What Codes Compliance can enforce: Building, Electrical, Plumbing, Mechanical, Fuel Gas safety issues Zoning violations Weed & debris violations Inoperable vehicles Property Maintenance issues Graffiti What Codes Compliance cannot enforce: Aesthetics Different siding colors Different paint colors Mis-matched roof shingles Messy/cluttered yards Overgrown bushes Many of these items give an appearance of blight but are not regulated by State Code as they do not address safety July 14, 2010Blight Management

4 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 4 Illustrations What we can enforce Due to the large file and the quality of the printed picture, we will add these for the presentation. What we cannot enforce Add picture July 14, 2010Blight Management

5 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 5 July 14, 2010Blight Management Process Building Code Violations Inspector finds violation proactive drive through a neighborhood and/or citizen call 45 day violation notice issued Inspector re-inspects the property If repairs made, the violation notice is cleared; Subsequent violations restart the process Appeals

6 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 6 July 14, 2010Blight Management Process Building Code Violations If the repairs are not made and an administrative appeal is not noted, a summons is issued The Court date is approximately 4 weeks after expiration of violation notice We must allow 3-4 weeks for the summons to be issued and served

7 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 7 July 14, 2010Blight Management Process ~ Penalties Building Code Violations Initial conviction = fine up to $2,500 ; abatement shall be ordered by Court Failure to abate once convicted and abatement ordered, each day uncorrected = separate violation subject to fine of $1,000 - $2,500 Enhanced fines for 2 nd, 3 rd, subsequent convictions within 10 years. Changes to law - General Assem bly

8 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 8 July 14, 2010Blight Management Process Zoning Ordinance Violation Inspector finds violation proactive drive through a neighborhood and/or citizen call 45 day violation notice issued Inspector visits property to verify compliance If in compliance, violation notice is cleared; subsequent violations start the process over If not in compliance and an administrative appeal has not been noted, summons issued Court date approx. 4 weeks hence

9 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 9 July 14, 2010Blight Management Zoning Ordinance Violation Initial conviction = fine of $10 - $1,000; abatement shall be ordered by the court Failure to abate within court ordered period punishable by a fine of $10 - $1,000 Each succeeding 10 day period that violation remains uncorrected = separate offense punishable by a fine of $100 - $1,500 Changes to ordinance - General Assembly Appeals Process ~ Penalties

10 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 10 Process Weed – Debris Violation Inspector finds violation proactive drive through a neighborhood and/or citizen call 7 day violation notice Inspector re-inspects the property If problem corrected, the violation notice is cleared; Subsequent violations restart the process July 14, 2010Blight Management

11 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 11 Process Weed – Debris Violation Vacant lots and lots with vacant structures given to contractor to cut – lien placed on property Occupied structures - court process or given to contractor (concern for conflict) July 14, 2010Blight Management

12 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 12 Process ~ Penalties Weed – Debris Violation Initial conviction = up to $2,500 and or up to 12 months in jail. Abatement shall be ordered by the court Failure to abate-can request a Show Cause summons for violating the order Changes can be done by General Assembly/City Council July 14, 2010Blight Management

13 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 13 Process Residential Inoperative Vehicle Violation Inspector finds violation proactive drive through a neighborhood and/or citizen call 60 days for correction provided by first letter, followed by 10 day 2 nd letter Inspector re-inspects the property If problem corrected, the violation notice is cleared; Subsequent violations restart the process July 14, 2010Blight Management

14 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 14 Process Residential Inoperative Vehicle Violation Failure to comply = turned over to contractor to tow If can’t gain access to vehicle, issue summons July 14, 2010Blight Management

15 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 15 Process ~ Penalties Residential Inoperative Vehicle Violation Initial conviction = up to $500 fine. Abatement shall be ordered by the Court Subsequent conviction = up to $1,000 fine Failure to abate - can request a Show Cause summons for violating the order Changes can by done by General Assembly/City Council July 14, 2010Blight Management

16 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 16 Court Process & Challenges Must allow approx. 4 weeks after violation deadline for court date Court has the power to grant continuances Court normally will grant defendant their first request for continuance This causes time delays in the corrective action when a defendant exercises these options July 14, 2010Blight Management

17 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 17 Policy Discussion One end of spectrum Zero tolerance for correction time frame = summons as soon as time is up (or tow vehicle or demolish structure) Other end of spectrum Never invoke the remedies prescribed by law; never gain compliance unless voluntary We have endeavored to try to strike a balance between the two extremes because our goal is to gain compliance July 14, 2010Blight Management

18 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 18 Policy Discussion Why have we attempted to strike a balance? Individual circumstances are important at times Example: person making a good faith effort but needs more time Challenges of current economy = external factors that we have never faced Choosing between putting food on table or painting house Numerous properties are in foreclosure or owner walks away from property and we have no contact July 14, 2010Blight Management

19 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 19 Statistics From January 1, 2009 thru June 25, 2010- 13,815 complaints (weed/debris, inoperative vehicle, zoning, and property maintenance) were investigated 3,821 were complaints called into the 311 Call Center 9,994 were the result of proactive code enforcement July 14, 2010Blight Management

20 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 20 Statistics 91.62% of the complaints were closed meaning that either the complaint was corrected or there was no violation Since January 1, 2009, 56 structures were declared to be a public nuisance  30 were demolished  16 were rehabilitated  9 are still in process  1 was purchased by HRHA July 14, 2010Blight Management

21 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 21 Changes to Our Approach Given the community’s desire for more active blight management, we propose to do the following: 1.Move toward the zero tolerance end of the continuum of enforcement  More like traditional criminal law enforcement – cite the violation and allow the Courts to weigh mitigating circumstances 2.Employ technology to create automatic tickler system  Ensure that re-inspections occur immediately upon expiration of notice period July 14, 2010Blight Management

22 Healthy Neighborhoods Slide 22 Changes to Our Approach Given the community’s desire for more active blight management, we propose to do the following: 3.Implement an automated process for alerting Inspectors to track expired permits  Void those that have expired and turn over to Codes Inspectors to pursue property maintenance issues  Create list of permits 6 months and older for new construction inspectors to check 4.Rotate inspectors areas of assignment  New set of eyes in each area  Each area is divided into sub areas and all are inspected approx. every 6 weeks July 14, 2010Blight Management


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