By Jim Bloch
Two-and-a-half years of failed ordinance enforcement turned out to be too much for the St. Clair City Council.
The council voted unanimously at its regular meeting Aug. 18 to adopt a resolution authorizing the city to remove a storage unit at 1504 S. Riverside Avenue and place the cost of the removal on the property itself in the form of a single-lot assessment. To avoid the action, the resident has 21 days to remove the structure.
“Either we have ordinances, and we enforce them – or we get rid of them,” said Mayor Bill Cedar, as heard on the CTV-Channel 6 recording of the meeting posted on YouTube.
City Attorney Jim Downey summarized the matter for council.
“There is a structure set up in the driveway of this property which is impermissible,” said Downey. “I know (previous city superintendent) Mr. (Quentin) Bishop met with the property owner in order to get the matter resolved. There simply hasn’t been any action taken.”
“(T)he property remains noncompliant with City Codes in August 2025 where an outdoor storage unit/accessory structure has been erected and maintained unabated in violation of City Zoning Ordinance since November 2022,” according to the resolution.
The resolution said that the homeowner has ignored or failed to respond to violation notices over that period. The storage unit, it said, presented a “public hazard or nuisance that is detrimental to the health, safety or welfare of the inhabitants of the city.”
The city notified the resident of the council’s action via first class mail.
“I can report that I got a phone message from the property owner last Thursday in which she indicated her willingness to comply, in the hope that this matter would not be considered at tonight’s meeting,” said Downey. “I left messages with her on Friday and again this morning. Haven’t been able to speak with her as a follow-up, but I told her that it would not be the position of council to table consideration of the resolution for the reason that it gives the council leverage to make sure she follows through on her promise. If in fact she’s sincere in bringing her property into compliance, tonight’s resolution would have no impact.”
Court action will be necessary to enforce the ordinance.
“If it doesn’t happen within 21 days, the city would be granting (me) the authority to file a complaint in the circuit court, where it would be assigned to one of two circuit court judges, and we would ask the court to order the cessation of the violation,” Downey said.
Council member Mitch Kuffa made the motion to adopt the resolution, supported by member Micah Volz. The vote was 7-0.
“I think this is something we have to do,” said Cedar. “That’s where I’m at with it.”
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer based in St. Clair, Michigan. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
