The goal of this update, he said, is to make ensure “we are not heavy-handed with these tools,” as city officials want to focus on getting positive outcomes of improving neighborhoods.
This additional consideration to the code was prompted by an issue on Golfview Drive involving an LLC, he said.
“Criminal charges just don’t work because the criminal charge is difficult to pin against an LLC because you have to identify it against the person that’s actually responsible,” Vanderhorst said.
Giving the city the ability to include civil citations, it can levy fines against a nonresponsive LLC, and have the ability to place a lien against the property, if appropriate. Criminal charges would be reserved for individual property owners who have the means to make required repairs but are refusing, or for those just blatantly disregarding the orders, “which we occasionally run into,” Vanderhorst said.
But what this code update will not do is pile up fines on a resident, or take them to court, if they are making a good-faith effort to bring their property into compliance but, for one reason or another ― such as fiscally or physically ― cannot.
“Usually, we go out of our way to find help for them,” Vanderhorst said.
The Hamilton health department previously had a role in Hamilton’s property maintenance code enforcement, but it’s been moved under the direction of the city’s External Services Department. Cindy Hogg, Hamilton’s assistant health director and who had been involved in the code enforcement, said people just need to ask for help.
“We try to help them as much as we can,” she said. “And with every order that goes out to the property owner, we actually send a SELF (Supports to Encourage Low-income Families) application. If they respond to us and keep that communication line open, we will try to direct them to different ways to get help.”
Hogg and Vanderhorst said they might also learn through that open communication line that a property owner might need help with the interior issues of their home.
“We try to help them as much as we can, as long as they’re responding to us,” Hogg said.
But if they don’t respond, she said, “We won’t know what their needs are.”
“What we want everyone to fix up their houses,” she said. “We don’t want the court process, or to go that route. We just want compliance. We don’t want undue hardships on people with fines and court costs and things like that.”
The Hamilton Ordinance Review Commission agreed with the staff recommendation to move forward with the change, and it will be presented for City Council’s consideration.
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