10-17-2007 City administration files hotel ordinance with Council

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standards for all hotels are also aimed to improve conditions at residence hotels or motels, in which patrons reside for 30 days or more. They would ensure that police, fire inspectors and code-enforcement personnel have the most appropriate regulative tools at their disposal. City officials have had conversations with neighbors, including Indiana University South Bend, which is building new student housing nearby. The city also has explored acquiring the Wooden Indian but the owner has "a highly inflated view" of the property's worth, according to Mayor Stephen J. Luecke. "This ordinance will be another tool—not just for the Wooden Indian but for any nuisance property—to help them comply with community standards so they're good neighbors to those around them," Luecke said. "One way or another,these properties will change for the better." The Common Council will have first reading of the proposed ordinance next Monday, Oct. 22. After it is assigned to a committee, there will be opportunity for public input and discussion. It could return for a public hearing and action as early as Nov. 2. The city's Legal Department researched similar ordinances earlier this year before drafting this proposed ordinance. For more than a month, the draft has been circulating among city departments, council members and representatives of the hotel industry for input. However, the ordinance, as filed, is still subject to revision based on input from the public and from Council members. Calls for service, according to the ordinance, are defined as emergency police, fire, medical and code-enforcement calls that result in a representative being dispatched to the hotel, including calls in the surrounding neighborhood that can be traced to hotel staff, registered guests or visitors. Multiple calls for one discrete event shall count as one call for service, according to the ordinance. According to the proposed ordinance, by Jan. 15 of each year, South Bend police will have determined each hotel's call-for-service ratio from the previous calendar year and notified hotel operators of their classification for that calendar year. • Tier 1 hotels would not be required to make any changes in methods of operation. They will pay an annual licensing fee ranging from $95 to $135, which reflects the city's cost to administer and issue the licensing. • Tier 2 hotels would be required to have a staff member on the property 24 hours per day, maintain an operable surveillance camera in the lobby and parking areas at all times, preserving tapes for at least 30 days, and participate in a crime-prevention assessment by South Bend police or their designates. Tier 2 hotels will pay a $175 licensing fee. • Tier 3 hotels would pay a $505 annual licensing fee, "which is caused by the cost of monitoring and assuring compliance with the ordinance," according to Leone. A hotel classified as Tier 3 is required to: • Meet all requirements of Tier 2 hotels. • Require all guests to furnish government-issued photo identification at the desk, retaining a copy of the ID along with name, address and telephone number of employer and emergency contact, as well as home contact information and date of