The Balaton City Council on Monday was taken to task by a resident who says the city needs to literally clean up the its act when it comes to blight.
During the public comment period, Lou Anderson pleaded with the council to start stringently enforcing City ordinances that pertain to nuisances. “We really need to work to clean up our city,” Anderson opened her speech with. “I know we have ordinances and all that, but the citizens of Balaton deserve you guys to do your job and enforce those ordinances.” Anderson’s main consternation stems from how long it has taken certain properties in town to take care of the issue. “I realize there’s a timeframe for all of this, but some of these yards have looked like this for over a year,” Anderson said. “But we really, really need you guys to step up and clean up this city. It’s embarrassing almost having anyone drive around town.”
Anderson said she is not looking for perfection, but the refuse that can been seen on some yards in town — she noted mattresses and and old swimming pool — needs to be removed.
“We gave him a dumpster once; why should the residents of Balaton have to do that again?” she said. “Eventually, you’ve got to be responsible for your own property. The City is looking really, really shabby.”
Anderson doesn’t mind paying taxes, she said, but doing so is a tough pill to swallow when some property holders aren’t holding up their end of the bargain.
“I’m against paying more taxes to allow the rest of the city to crash — we just need you to enforce our ordinance,” she said. “It’s important to the whole city, whether you live in East Bay, or in town. You guys represent the residents in town also. We’ve let it go way too long.”
Council members said they are aware of the problem areas.
“We only go with what the timeframe allows,” Balaton Mayor Lonnie Lambertus said.
“We know that,” Anderson countered,“but a year to clean up your property? More than that actually.”
Mary Timmerman backed Anderson, saying cleaning up the town is as simple as cleaning up shrubs around a house and mowing the lawn. To some on the council, it seems as if pride in ownership has become a lost sentiment.
“You would think there would be a little pride in their yard, but that’s not the case anymore,” council member Greg Erickson said.
Timmerman asked if the City has an ordinance for those who rent out properties in town. She believes a number of those in question are rented, “and they have no skin in the game,” she said. “Do we need to hold the property owners accountable for that?”
City Attorney Matt Gross said those who rent houses to others can be held liable. He said the City has identified a number of properties over the last couple of years, and there is an abatement process the City can proceed with.
“It starts with the City notifying and observing the properties, and then a period of time passes and the City has to pass a resolution ordering them again to clean up the property,” said Gross. “If they don’t comply, the City has to obtain a warrant from the district court that allows them to go on the property to make the repairs, or clean up the property.”
He said that process usually takes from three to five months before the City go in.
“The biggest component there is the cost,” Gross said. “The City has to budget for that, and they’ve done that.”
According to City Code, a resident of Balaton must not act, or fail to act, in a manner that is or causes a public nuisance. A person who maintains or permits a condition which unreasonably annoys, injures, or endangers the safety, health, morals, comfort, or repose of any considerable number of members of the public is guilty of maintaining a public nuisance.
Balaton does have a nuisance committee consisting of council members Dylan Fricke and Tracy McCloud. Fricke said the group used to consist of more members, but they pulled themselves off the committee because of backlash they receieved.
Fricke said a couple of years ago, Torgeson went street-bystreet to survey problem areas. He believes there was one that failed to comply after nusiane letters were sent out.
“The others were within reason to where we decided we were not going to push them any further, and they have maintained,” Fricke said. “There was one where we had to send another letter to. We have a process started that’s as invasive as we can be; we’ve budgeted money if we have to take things to court.”
Anderson said there is nothing that holds property owners or renters accountable because of inaction on the part of the City in the past.
“That letter means nothing, and they don’t do anything, nothing’s done,” she said. “We’re talking one to two years; that doesn’t seem reasonable to expect the residents of this city to wait that long for this process to happen.”
Balaton Deputy Clerk Jody Kruger said the City does send out letters to both the landlord of a rental property and the renter.
To that, Anderson asked what the point of that is if the City doesn’t follow through with some kind of enforcement.
“You send a letter, and we do nothing,” she said. “Why should they do anything? Nothing is going to happen to them.”
Balaton Public Works Director Josh Torgeson said he sympathizes with Anderson and that he or his crew have spoken with the homeowners and have asked churches to come and help, “but the homeowners don’t want help,” he said. “I’d go out on a Saturday and help — they don’t want help.”
He added that the City began the enforcement process earlier this year so property owners have time to address the issue before the snow flies.
“I understand this; I see volunteer trees … it’s not that much work to trim a volunteer in your yard,” he said.
If the City chooses to attack the problem criminally, Gross said that process would only draw things out more time wise.
“That’s probably a minimum of eight to 12 months,” said Gross. “The abatement process can be as quick as four to five months.”
Most everything the council or Gross said to Anderson all but fell on deaf ears. She knows the ordinance and the process, but continued to stress that the residents are paying the price.
“From the citizen’s point of view, you have an ordinance … somehow the process has fallen through the cracks, and it’s frustrating on our side,” Anderson said. “Some of these yards are getting worse, and nothing’s happening. You can’t keep asking us to pay more taxes if you’re not going to follow through with our ordinances.”
Next week: Concerns about Balaton streets.
