City in the weeds again

LIMA - Tall grass and weeds, and getting rid of them more quickly, was again the topic of conversation for city officials Tuesday.

Fourth Ward Councilman Tom Tebben wants the time between complaint and abatement streamlined. Currently, a three-day warning period, time for mailing a formal violation and time for appeal adds up to 16 days before the city has grass mowed if a property owner doesn't comply.

"Sixteen days and nothing's been done except the grass gets higher," Tebben said.

Eliminating the warning period would narrow a gap, Community Development Director Amy Sackman Odum said, but it was City Council that first suggested and wanted the time, to give property owners a chance to comply, which is the city's goal, Odum said.

About a third of property owners who receive the warning address it before a formal violation and a $50 fine is filed.

"We'd rather see them take care of the problem than spend tax dollars prosecuting them," Odum said.

If a city contractor mows, the cost is $350 for a civil penalty, $205 for an administrative fee and the contractor's cost of 1.75 cents a square foot. About 300 lots owned by habitual offenders are on a program administered with a cheaper square footage rate, about a quarter of a penny per square foot.

Sixth Ward Councilman Derry Glenn has advocated jailing property owners who don't comply. Odum said the city's two largest owners of abandoned property, typically violators of the maintenance code, are out-of-town banks.

Tebben said the city is facing a special challenge now with a mortgage crisis contributing to even more abandoned homes with tall grass and trash.

Tebben suggested a single seasonal notification and doing away with the warning, moving to mowing upon a complaint and violation, but officials didn't know the legality of such a move.

Odum and Tebben disagreed about how much added cost the extra mowing would be, but Odum cautioned that higher gas costs would be a factor. Odum also reminded councilors her office is operating with fewer maintenance code inspectors and those currently also now have at least one other task.