Agenda - Council - 02/09/2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Councilmember Dehen asked why the City would re-inspect a single family residence every two years if it's the same tenant, etc. Building Official Kaehler described some of the violations they have come across during inspections such as smoke detectors being disconnected, broken windows and screens,. and carbon monoxide detectors not working. We check for these types of Code violations every two years. Discussion ensued relating to inspections, tenants rights to privacy, landlords having no control over what tenants do and tenants having some responsibilities. Councilmember Look commented that the City has no right to go into a private residence under public safety and tell the resident they might be in danger. Councilmember Elvig felt that pulling licensing off completely is a huge step backward. He suggested that subsequent Councils would probably put it right back in. He stated he understood the privacy issue but at the same time you have landlords who rent out substandard dwellings. Landlords can inspect that property anytime. The City should be able to look at it at least when it changes tenants. Discussion ensued regarding the type of inspections and the provisions for doing so. Councilmember McGlone stated that landlords. have no rights. Other ordinances handle blight -our ordinance is not very good with lease to own or contract for deeds. Tenants do stuff that is not compliant but the landlord is the guy you go after. Councilmember Dehen stated that eliminating this would be a mistake. Inspections. are a good tool to prevent bad landlords from having the ability to rent out substandard property. Councilmember Jeffrey stated he is not in favor of removing this language either Councilmember Look stated that we are using this tool to control rental property. It's against the law to do this. This is discrimination. He noted lack of screens is not a public safety issue. We are making people do stuff that we do not make anyone else do because it's rental property. Councilmember Elvig stated he is not concerned about what is not a danger but he is concerned about what is dangerous for a family. He suggested getting rid of the language we do not want or need but keep some of the language in the Code. Councilmember Look stated that tenants are not forced to be in a property -people vacate these types of properties. Councilmember Dehen felt we need some leverage. City Council Work Session -December 1, 2009 Page9of16