The city has people and ordinances to deal very well with bad landlords. What the city appears to be lacking is the public structure that leads to a solution of any one situation.
The city council is at the top of the pyramid in the solution process, short of legal action.
To get to the council requires steps, none of which are mandated and given a recent situation are difficult and frustrating for all involved. When the city council acts, this body depends on reports from police, residents and building inspectors.
It’s at this level where no structure exists.
A case in point is 863 Fifth Ave SE. which is owned by Joe Mercil. On Aug. 2, 2011 the city building and safety department noted 33 housing code violations involving this property. The details can be accessed on the building and safety department’s Acela website under Citizen Portal. Type in either the address or Mercil’s rental certificate number which is RO6-4836H.
Months of complaints from neighbors, led by Kevin Denny at 853 Fifth Ave. SE, preceded the department action. The complaints were brought to the city council initially in a committee-of-the-whole meeting. Then Mercil said the original offending neighbors had been evicted.
Shortly thereafter Mercil evicted the replacement tenant who refused to pay rent until the above-noted changes were done. The replacement tenant was gone at the end of July.
Before the replacement tenant left, Denny came to her defense. The only way he felt he could do it was to intercept city officials coming out of a committee-of-the-whole meeting on July 25. Listening to Denny that afternoon were Police Chief Roger Peterson, Councilmen Randy Staver and Mark Bilderback and City Administrator Steven Kvenvold. The building and safety department was ordered to look at the address as a result.
In another case, Hillcrest Apartments, 1701 Highway 52 North, is renting to tenants even though the rental certificate is expired. Rental certificates give property owners the city’s permission to do business. Public records show the rental certificate expired in April. A second renewal notice has not resulted in action by the owners. Under the city ordinance, the owners will ultimately face legal action.
No maintenance or tenant management issues exist with the 35-unit Hillcrest Apartments.
Three councilmen and the police department have been informed about the lack of a certificate. So far no action has been taken. Effective Aug. 4, however, the certificate had been reissued but almost four months after expiration.*
The recent property issues have produced meetings with a number of officials, but these talks, which are apparently focused on what more the city can do about bad landlords, have been kept behind closed doors.
The police department has the authority to issue disorderly house citations to landlords. These citations require the landlord to care of the bad situation immediately. None were issued to Mercil.
The building and safety department has the authority to inspect and issue citations as is being done with the Mercil property. But such an inspection isn’t automatic when a complaint is made.
The city council has the authority to tighten the reporting and action structure, but no discussions have been initiated.
Residents have the authority to complain but they also want to know that someone will be listening.
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