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REGULAR MEETING <br />NOVEMBER 26, 2007 <br />never even been to this property. This ordinance is a step in the right direction to make <br />the bad landlords accountable for their properties. She has no respect for landlords who <br />make no effort in keeping their properties up and who have abandoned their properties. It <br />brings the neighborhood and property values down. Bad landlords need to be held <br />accountable for their actions. She requested the Council to pass this ordinance. <br />Ms. Ann Mannix, 724 W. Washington, South Bend, Indiana, stated that property owner is <br />aright and it is also a responsibility. Irresponsible property owners are an obstacle to <br />future development. She stated that she makes a living doing real estate development and <br />it is very difficult to buy property in older neighborhoods. There are owners who are <br />listed on the record and cannot be found anywhere. If you cannot find an owner or a <br />contact person, you can't see if the property is for sale. Most times these properties are <br />not paying taxes and are just sitting there. She stated that there is a three year waiting <br />period just for the property to go up on tax sale. <br />Ms. Patty Hill (1500 Block) Webster Street, South Bend, Indiana, stated that she lives in <br />the Rum Village Area. She advised that she purchased her home fifteen years ago, and at <br />that time there were three (3) rental properties and the other homes were owner occupied. <br />Today, there are only three owner occupied homes left on the block and the rest are rental <br />properties. There are four (4) homes that have been boarded up, one (1) that no one has <br />lived in since she purchased her home fifteen (15) years ago and it is right next door to <br />her. She feels that it is very important that the Council takes a really close look at this <br />bill. She stated that just recently she had decided that she needed to move to a home that <br />had less yard work and had the home appraised to put on the real estate market. She <br />stated that the appraisal came in $20,000 less than what she purchased it for. When she <br />questioned the appraiser, he stated that it was the condition of the neighborhood that <br />brought the appraised value down. <br />Mr. Al Heet, 2118 Kemble Avenue, South Bend, Indiana, stated that he is in favor of this <br />bill. If this bill doesn't get passed at the Council level nothing will get done. He stated <br />that there needs to be cooperation between the City, Neighborhoods and the Citizens. <br />Mr. Heet advised that it is time to take back our City, its time to say to the worst of the <br />worst that it is "time to get out of Dodge!" <br />Ms. Linda Wolfson, 809 Pak Avenue, South Bend, Indiana, advised that she is here <br />tonight to deliver a statement from a citizen's organization named the Community Forum <br />for Economic Development. The Community Form for Economic Development <br />welcomes and supports the abandoned building ordinance. This ordinance targets <br />problem properties and identifies local owners or local property managers who can be <br />held accountable for the day to day conditions of these properties. It offers an important <br />tool for enforcing the housing codes and improving the quality of life in the <br />neighborhoods. Improving the quality of life in the community provides an important <br />incentive for future economic development. Since most new and expanding employers <br />seek safe and vibrant neighborhoods which their employee can live. The potential <br />benefits from this ordinance will not only be experienced in the neighborhood where <br />these abandoned properties are concentrated, but will be felt throughout the City of South <br />Bend. <br />Ms. Noreen Dean-Moran, 716 W. Colfax Avenue, South Bend, Indiana, stated that she is <br />the President of the Near West Side Organization which encompasses William Street to <br />Walnut Street and Western Avenue to Lincolnway Avenue. She stated that she sincerely <br />hopes that the Council gives favorable recommendation to this ordinance because it <br />seems like a shining light in the darkness of mess. They have had Land Trust's in her <br />neighborhood for years, one time it took fifteen years for the various banks and <br />connections to find out who actually owned the house, it turned out that it was not only <br />abandoned, but being allowed to be lived in by vagrants who therefore were breaking the <br />windows on surrounding houses and there was nothing anybody could do. She stated that <br />there is a house on LaSalle Avenue which has been completely vacant for close to twenty <br />years it's a lovely home people want to buy it, it's not available for buying, and it has just <br />recently been sighted by the Department of Code Enforcement and in its monitoring <br />system. The house sits there without an ounce of paint on it; the foundation is crumbling <br />8 <br />