02-22-12 Residential Neighborhoods & Health & Public Safety Committees

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Gavin Ferlic asked if the legal department had used these ordinances against an entire apartment complex or had identified any one problem tenant in the last six (6) months. Ann -Carol said only student apartment complexes were targeted for underage drinking, noise, or litter offenses. Kyle Chamberlin said available data needs to be refined, segregated by type of complaint, and better shared among city offices to address this unacceptable situation. Ann Carol. Nash urged caution. Mike Dvorak, St. Joseph County Prosecutor, recounted several murders at Courtyard dating back to '07, two of which resulted in convictions and one pending. Catherine Toppel, Director, Code Enforcement said her department does not get calls about problems at Courtyard Place Apartments often; but finds management cooperative when they receive notice. Councilmember Henry Davis, Jr., questioned whether current laws were adequate to address problems or were they not being adequately enforced. He made a point that the Council was only a legislative body. The administration was responsible for enforcement. Regarding available info, he wanted to know if socio- economic data for tenants was available, how many calls the SBPD gets per day as well as the who? What? Where? and when? Of calls, leading to what resources are available to respond. Sean Kenyon, Attorney, representing Courtyard Place Apartments said there were a substantial number of Section 8 tenants. She added that the new management as of 2008 had haired part-time security for a few hours, each evening. She reiterated strengthening the lease and screening of the tenant's process. Responding to Councilmember Scott she said the manager does not live on site and she would provide a copy of the lease, as well as a report on the number of evictions. Councilmember Henry Davis, Jr., noting cultural differences among people from different backgrounds and geographics wondered if that data was available. He was told it was not readily available, but could be culled from background checks. Noting there were 25 calls already this year for violent activity Dr. Ferlic asked if this was a wake -up call for Courtyard Management? The response was yes. In response to citizen member Jen Tindell, Mrs. Kenyon said Courtyard follows Federal Section 8 reporting rules. However, police reports or calls about drug activity are not always shared with Courtyard Management. She said Carla White was the manager hired by the owner DMH Holding. The manager reports to the attorney who works out of Valpo.