PETOSKEY — The Petoskey City Council approved an ordinance on Monday, Aug. 18 aimed at addressing blight and vacant properties throughout the city.
The council unanimously approved the ordinance, which establishes a vacant property registration process. The move is intended to protect residential and commercial buildings from becoming blighted or not receiving proper maintenance.
According to the meeting’s agenda materials, the ordinance would adjust the city code and allow officials to regulate vacant buildings, establish registration and prescribe penalties for violations.
With the ordinance in effect, buildings within the city that have been vacant for more than 60 consecutive days would have to register the property with the city’s code enforcement officer within 14 days. The registration form will include the property address; legal names, mailing addresses, phone numbers and email addresses of all owners; proof of identification for all owners; name, address and contact information for a local agent to manage the property; the reason for vacancy and estimated duration; and the plans for restoration, reuse or demolition with a timeline attached.
Exemptions for registration include temporary absences, like vacation home-owners; buildings actively under construction; buildings with fire or weather damage (exempt for 90 days); buildings listed for sale, if proof is provided to the city; and vacancies within individual units of multi-family apartments, hotels and more.
Mayor John Murphy said he expects the code enforcers to operate with some discretion.
The council also approved a resolution establishing the vacant building registration and inspection fee schedule. City manager Shane Horn said there would be three established fees, with separate fees for residential and commercial buildings.
The initial set of fees would be $150 for residential and $250 for commercial properties, covering both the registration fee and initial inspection. At six months, the fees double to renew registration and reinspect the property. Late fees for registration are $100.
“As you can see, this council wants teeth in our actions at this point to resolve some of these community issues that we get calls about all the time,” Murphy said.
City attorney Laura Genovich said the fees will allow the city to recuperate the costs of staff time and resources needed to monitor the vacant properties.
The council also had another first reading of a proposed dangerous building ordinance during Monday’s meeting, which is intended to give the city further enforcement options.
The discussions for addressing vacant and dangerous buildings came to the forefront for the council following the Petoskey City Convention in June, where constituents from all four wards voiced concerns regarding consistently vacant buildings in the downtown district.
This is the latest in a set of ordinances passed by the council intended to help ensure buildings are properly maintained and occupied throughout the city.
— Contact reporter Karly Graham at kgraham@petoskeynews.com. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @KarlyGrahamJrn.
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Petoskey council OKs ordinance to regulate building vacancies, set penalties for violation
Reporting by Karly Graham, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
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