Tag: code inforcement

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5 REASONS FOLKS FLEE FRUGAL CITY

About a month ago,  the Chamber of Commerce  announced the results of a survey about the way the locals feel about our town. To their dismay, it turns out we have a negative  self image.  Even though 59,000 people live here, they don’t think it’s a very great place, and lots of them have moved away in the past several years.  We used to have  a population of 71,000  in 1960,   but it’s been slowly dwindling ever since.   What is wrong?  College towns are supposed to be attractive.  Recently, we’ve built a mega million dollar convention center, and voted in a new casino to attract the gambling crowd.  We have a new concert center, great parks, and low cost of living. And the mayor just announced that we’ve balanced the budget.   What are the 5 reasons folks flee this frugal city? 

5 reason folks flee frugal city. Who wants to stay in a place with poor infrastructure?city
5 REASONS FOLKS FLEE FRUGAL CITY. Poor infrastructure and lax code enforcement don’t help.

You have to wonder if saving all that money –to the point where we have an excess of tax money—is such a good idea.  It’s great that the City Council and  the politicians who run things  are investing in ways to attract tourists.  After all, tourists spend money in restaurants, hotels, and malls.  But  then they leave.  Not many of them are so impressed with what we have that they feel any great desire to relocate.

As a long time resident who’s also lived in other cities from time to time, it’s easy to see what’s wrong.

1. Infrastructure is sadly lacking. Yes, our main streets and highways are paved and well maintained. But if you drive through the inner city, along side streets and alleyways, you will encounter numerous pot holes, crumbling sidewalks, and deteriorating , poorly maintained houses.  Quality of water supply is  questionable, when black sediment is frequently seen in toilet bowls.

2.    Code enforcement is not functional. The inner city is blighted with run down, weed filled yards and properties.  When you complain to someone in that office, they claim to be understaffed, to the point where optimal code enforcement is not possible.  Other cities impose large fines for homeowners  and landlords who don’t maintain their property.. But not this city.  Why do we not have enough money for optimal code enforcement?  Maybe that would be a place to spend some of that extra money, rather than building more and more running  trails for wealthy suburbanites,

  3.  The city does not have a municipal indoor swimming pool. They gave into pressure when the local YMCA closed their pool, and agreed to partner with them to reopen their aging pool  Unfortunately, the YMCA is poorly funded, and managed by the YMCA in an adjoining county, who has no vested interest in improving our community. .  The pool is frequently closed due to broken parts and electrical problems—sometimes for months at a time.

4. Poverty level is 26%–twice the national average for a city of this size. The  problem is way too complex for me to solve. I suspect poor people stay because of cheap housing in run down areas. They simply can’t afford to move.  Unfortunately, many don’t have cars and you see them walking along the streets with bags from the Dollar Store.  Homeless people congregate near the library, but unlike many  other cities , no social worker is stationed inside to help find them a place to live.

5. Trains running through the city cause traffic jams and delays to everyone going about their business and ambulances headed for hospitals.. There are three overpasses on the outer edges of town, but that doesn’t solve the problem  of  long waits at numerous inner city rail crossings.

Instead of spending tax dollars to attract tourists, it might be better to find ways of persuading people to stay. Right now, we are earmarked for 34.1 million dollars in American Rescue plan money. However,   the politicians who run the city can’t decide how to spend it.  How about asking all of the folks who live here?

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CITY CODE ENFORCEMENT LACKS TEETH

Most responsible homeowners  take pride in mowing their lawns and maintaining their property, but some  don’t.  That’s why  cities have  regulations about lawn mowing.  Currently,  any grass over 12 inches high is in violation of city code.  At that  point, they may  receive  a complaint in their mailbox. If the notice is ignored, the city mows the offenders  lawn and charges them $60. Which  happens to be less than what it would cost to have it mowed by a lawn service.  2nd, 3d and 4th offenses are charged at the same flat fee of $60.  Our city code enforcement lacks teeth. 

hOMEOWNERS should be fined if they refuse to mow their lawn.
if  a person isn’t fined for 2nd & 3d offenses, City Code Enforcement Lacks Teeth.

What happens to a nice neighborhood when one homeowner lets his yard get overgrown with knee high grass and mountains of weeds?  Property values decrease, and everyone feels frustrated.

In our subdivision, there is a homeowner  who thumbs his nose at society by refusing to mow his lawn more than once or twice a year.  Is he poor or disabled?  No, he’s an executive at a good company, who has the luxury of working from home.  He’s healthy enough to play golf.  Also, he owns an upscale lawn mower in good working condition.

This situation has gone on for several years.  When I asked the woman at code enforcement why there hasn’t been some kind of fine for 2nd 3d and 4th offenses, she responded that the city has over 700 un mowed lawns, and ‘you can’t make someone mow their lawn.” Wow,  if you’re going to apply that logic, you could say, “you can’t make a person stop running red lights.”  No, you can’t, but you can bet your sweet bippy it’s going to cost you more each additional time you run a red light.

Last spring, the Okemah. Oklahoma city council decided to  crack down on offenders by hitting them in the pocket book.  .  By a unanimous vote, they set a fee schedule for certain violations of the city code.  Under the resolution, failure to keep your lawn mowed could result in a $100 fine for the first offense, $150 for the second and $200 for the third offense. A warning will be issued before any fines are assessed.

The city of Ferndale, Michigan issued the following statement regarding code enforcement: ”  The lawn grass cannot be longer than 7″.  As a courtesy, we will send a notice once per season to the homeowner letting them know they have 7 days to cut their grass.  If the grass does not get cut, the City’s contractor mows it for them.  This service will cost the property owner $275.00.  Given the alternatives, the property owner normally realizes that it is much less expensive to maintain their lawn themselves or hire someone than having the City do it.”

You have to wonder why our  city council  is so lax about code enforcement.  What are they afraid of?  A person who won’t mow his lawn probably isn’t going to vote in the next election. But his neighbors will.