06-22-15 Common Council Meeting Minutes

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REGULAR MEETING JUNE 22, 2015 Attorney Kathy Cekanski- Farrand stated she was uncertain. Councilmember Karen White responded I think it is over $200,000. Councilmember Schey continued my fiustration as a taxpayer is that we have irresponsible people that are going out and dumping in the alleys and we the taxpayers don't collect on that effort. We are the ones picking up the burden on cleaning up this illegal dumping. The ordinance before us is a similar sort, the quality of life issue where you have the irresponsible property owners, absentee landlords, for example who aren't maintaining their property. By us continuing business as usual, where we send out code crews or park crews to cut the lawn, we are once again putting the burden on tax payers. What this ordinance is proposing is increasing the fines on those irresponsible property owners to... (Interjected by Councilmember Henry Davis) Councilmember Schey stated he just said on the taxpayers which I disagree. We are currently putting the burden on the taxpayers every time Randy's crew or the Parks departments has to go out and cut those lawns at no cost to the property owners. What the ordinance proposes is shifting that burden, as I believe is the right thing to do, on the irresponsible property owner. As I understand from Jesse's comments I understand the point of tracking down ownership is not as easy as one might think. At the same time I hate to think that we the taxpayers are paying for all of these various programs, the illegal dumping effort. I like the idea of increasing the fees and fines where the irresponsible property owners are fined. I understand it is a slow process to increase collections. But I would like to shift the burden for maintenance of these properties that are not city properties but are privately owned properties. So I will support this bill. Councilmember Henry Davis Jr. — I have a question from earlier before I give my final comments. So I can make an informed vote. When you begin to attach fines or fees to a certain property owner when they don't pay for it that goes to a collection agency then they can apply a lien, take them to a court hearing, and/or do check garnishments? Council Attorney Kathy Cekanski- Farrand responded all of the above. Councilmember Davis asked then can that lien then turn into a foreclosure that ultimately ends up back in the county to the city and we start the cycle all over again? Council Attorney Kathy Cekanski- Farrand responded upon sale it would. Councilmember Davis replied, but that can actually happen right? Councilmember Dr. Ferlic stated it happens, I bought one recently at a commission sale. Councilmember Davis replied the framework is what I laid, if they go to a lien, it can ultimately end up back in to the hands of the county? Let's say I refuse to pay, for years, and they put a lien on my house, what happens then? Council Attorney Kathy Cekanski- Farrand responded in order to sale the home the lien would need to be paid for by the new purchaser to have the deed on the house. The foreclosure only relates to a mortgage. Councilmember Henry Davis replied what do we do if we continue to fine the owner and if the owner doesn't pay? So no one knows the answer, this is why the Mayor needs to be here. We are not just talking about grass cutting but neighborhoods and what people see and feel in a city. I've never seen this city look this bad since the amount of time that I've been on the Council. I'm telling you the truth I'm sick of calling code enforcement, sick of sending emails, and stopping code workers to cut the grass. This is ridiculous. My problem with this, is we come in with a new charter and raise the fees and think maybe people will cut the grass. However, it does not change the fact that it is not being done through enforcement. You talk to Code Enforcement, "we cited." You talk to the Parks department, "they never got it," what's happening here? The Mayor needs to answer that and his department heads. I am tired of always having the conversation with you, fighting with you guys on things we have no control over. The enforcer needs to be here, the administration has to be here. We can't continue to do this; this is crazy. We passed this three years ago, this came from me to make sure there was a plan for vacant and demolished buildings. Before the home was demolished, we needed to answer why the home is being demolished? We have not gotten anything back from the administration. That was three years ago and here we are dealing with that same issue. We keep asking for it to get done, nothing is getting done. Then we become the whipping boys, tomorrow there will be something about us arguing and fighting in the news, yet enforcement is not happening. The Mayor is not doing his job. We talk about how Randy is going to do a good job, I don't know that, I hope that he does. We have had three Code Enforcement Directors in three years. Meanwhile people on Chicago St. can't even see their front doors, meanwhile the neighborhood wood chuck has grown bigger than my son, meanwhile the neighborhood possums are hanging out. I am serious about this. I am going to ask that this Council tables this to the next council meeting until we get some clear answers from the Mayor and the department heads. We had Phil St. Clair come in with Jesse Davis where we talked about grass cutting. That young man had his son cutting the cemetery but we never got any answers back. Yet we keep pushing 17