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Nuisance and Vacant Properties
by Mountain Girl ~ February 27th, 2008. Filed under: Blight, Development.‘Bertha St.’ provided some useful information in the comments that I wanted to bring to everybody’s attention.
The building code violations are the responsibility Mr. Hurite. Since it is clear that he has taken a non-responsive position on the matter, the Director of Public Safety can “charge the cost of abatement on the infractions to the property owner in the form of a lien against the property.”
Nuisance and Vacant Properties - City Council Bills 2004-0044 and 2007-1112 Recent discussions in Pittsburgh City Council over building code enforcement have brought attention to a bill passed by Council in 2005. This piece of legislation amended the Pittsburgh Municipal Code to add a chapter that creates a ‘Nuisance Property’ designation. Under this law, a property can be declared a ‘nuisance property’ if the unit has been cited for infractions 3 or more times within a 60 day period. Qualified infractions include: Building code violations Noise violations Weeds and grass violations Number of pets violations Any summary offense, misdemeanor or felony Under the Director of Public Safety, owners of designated nuisance properties are notified and must submit an abatement plan for said nuisances. In the event the property owner is non-responsive or fails to abate said nuisance, the Director of Public Safety has the authority to charge the cost of abatement on the infractions to the property owner in the form of a lien against the property. On 1/26/07, a bill sponsored by Council members Bodack, Deasy and Harris would amend the prior bill to include a designation for ‘Vacant Properties’ in addition to ‘Nuisance Properties’. The penalties would be the same for both. Council will be scheduling a televised post-agenda hearing to discuss enforcement of the nuisance property ordinance and obstacles in the court system.
According to this legislation (I can’t verify its legitimacy, but I assume our friend ‘Bertha St.’ got it from a credible source), if The Edge is cited 3 times within a 60-day period, it is considered a nuisance property. Is there a distinction between a condemned property and a nuisance property or are they one in the same? Will the Bureau of Building Inspection work with residents to issue the citations in order to force the owner’s hand? I suppose the difficulty with this is that once a vacant property is cited, not much else could crop up within a 60-day time frame that would merit another citation. If you have any other information pertinent to The Edge, feel free to comment. Thanks ‘Bertha St.’!
February 28th, 2008 at 7:58 am
I stumbled across your site and was thrilled to see there were more Mt. Washington residents that share my concerns for the vacant/deliquent properties as well as my hopes for the future of our piece of Pittsburgh. I moved to The Mount a little over 10 years ago and have become increasingly concerned over the slum landlords neglecting their properties and the delinquent teens and adults these properties attract. I have had my car spray painted, rocks thrown at the windows of my house, garden statues stolen out of my yard - all within the past year! My neighbors have had the same happen to them but are affraid to speak out. Thank you for your site. I look forward to reading and participating more.
February 28th, 2008 at 9:36 am
Jan, I just had to respond. We started a blockwatch in our neighborhood about 10 years ago. Neighbors cannot be afraid to speak out or the vandals win. I hope a police report was filed for each incident that happened i.e. rocks, spray paint etc. We know the owners of all the landlords in our neighborhood and their phone numbers and if we are unhappy with the condition of their properties and or renters we contact the owner and work together to solve the problem. You have to be persistant and the whole neighborhood needs to connect with each other and try to solve the problems as a group. ( Power in numbers) If you are interested in starting a blockwatch in you area Officer Christine Luffey is your contact, her phone number is 412/488-8425. Good Luck!!
February 28th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
The portion of the Nuisance Property ordinance passed in December of 2007 (2007-1887) added the provision for “disruptive properties,” which allows 3 calls to the police (in 60 days) to trigger “abatement.” Abatement requires the property owner to take action to prevent further disruptive activity. Unfortunately, this can lead to eviction of tenants who were reported to the police unfairly (e.g. out of discrimination or for circumstances beyond their control). Ordinance 2004-0044 penalizes property owners with fees for nuisance activity. The fee penalty for disruptive property is superseded by the newer legislation.
For more information:
http://legistar.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/detailreport/Reports/Temp/2282008131450.pdf
http://legistar.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/detailreport/Reports/Temp/2282008132745.pdf
February 28th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
A condemned piece of property has various building code violations, whereas a nuisance property has continuing everyday problems like garbage,weeds, uncut grass, trash, drugs, vagrants. A piece of property could be both condemned and a nuisance. Which I believe The Edge is. The nuisance property ordinance, which I don’t think has been passed yet by city council, means we need to be viligant in calling the police anytime we see any activity i.e.homeless, drugs, etc. going into The Edge property. After the 3rd call to the police the owner will be fined for his lack of securing the property causing trespassing by homeless, vandals etc. We will get the “good” doctor someway, somehow!
February 28th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
Speaking of nuisance properties…One just became available on Kathleen Street on the corner of Judicial. This property has had its share of nuisance tenants and perhaps now that it is for sale it can be recycled to a more positive use. It is 429 Kathleen Street http://www2.county.allegheny.pa.us/RealEstate/Image.asp?CurrBloLot=0004S00047000000&HouseNum=429&Street=Kathleen&SingleResult=True
please pass this along to any reputable investors that are working to make this a more positive community. Kathleen is really starting to turn around and this opportunity can keep it headed in the right direction.
March 1st, 2008 at 10:28 am
East Edge,
Do you know how people feel about someone buying these crap holes and tearing them down???? Do you all think this will create hang out places but I want to get a feel of what everyone else thinks, especially if the grounds are upkept.