Property owners may pay nearly $500 in initial fees and $310 every year thereafter for boarded-up dwellings if a proposed ordinance passes City Council scrutiny.
Property owners currently pay nothing to board up a building and effectively "mothball" it.The proposed ordinance also would require property owners to meet stringent maintenance standards for the boarded-up structures.
Nearly seven months ago, Salt Lake Mayor Deedee Corradini proposed the city adopt an ordinance that would make property owners feel a financial pinch for letting dwellings remain unused.
Boarded-up homes are an eyesore, hurt the value of surrounding property and attract crime, Corradini said.
With a residential vacancy rate of less than 2 percent, Salt Lake City can't afford to let any dwelling go unused, according to Corradini.
The city has used a variety of measures to encourage renovation of abandoned houses since Corradini took office in 1992, dropping the number of boarded-up homes from about 250 to 170.
The new ordinance may prod the holdouts into action, Corradini said.
In January, she proposed property owners pay initial and annual fees similar to those contained in the proposed ordinance. The fees, the city hopes, will spur property owners to either fix up the boarded-up homes or sell the properties to someone who is willing to renovate or replace the structures.
"I think this is one of the best things we can do to help secure neighborhoods," Councilman Stuart Reid said.
The city's Housing Advisory and Appeals Board helped staff craft the ordinance regulating boarded-up dwellings. The appeals board first proposed that property owners pay a fee of $2,000 for a boarded-up structure.
But City Attorney Roger Cutler said that fee wouldn't stand legal review because it far exceeded the city's costs of overseeing such structures.
City staff then did an analysis using a sample of 50 boarded-up homes to determine costs to the city, said Harvey F. Boyd, assistant director of community and economic development. Boyd used that analysis to come up with appropriate fees to charge property owners (see accompanying box).
The ordinance forwarded to the City Council for review "puts the burden of financial and property maintenance responsibility where it should be - on the property owner," Boyd said. "It will be an effective tool for promoting neighborhood conservation and safety by improving the maintenance standards."
The ordinance will apply to homes that are currently boarded up as well as those boarded up in the future.
Councilman Tom Godfrey says the ordinance may not go far enough, however. He also wants it to include measures that will force owners of homes that are unoccupied but not boarded-up to meet certain maintenance standards. The ordinance may be adjusted to address Godfrey's concerns before it is presented at a public hearing on Sept 20.
If the council approves the ordinance following the public hearing, property owners will have until Jan. 31, 1995, to take out permits and pay fees for their boarded-up structures. The ordinance includes a provision that gives property owners a 30-percent discount on fees if a property owner applies for a permit before Oct. 31, 1994.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Plethora of costs
The proposed ordinance would require property owners who have or want to board buildings to:
- Pay an initial fee of $185 for a single-family dwelling plus $15 for each additional dwelling unit, such as a basement apartment, in the same structure.
- Pay an initial fee of $185 or $1.50 per lineal foot of building face, whichever is greater, for a nonresidential structure.
- Pay $200 annually to mitigate harm caused to the city's tax base, aesthetic interests and value of surrounding properties.
- Pay an annual inspection fee of $110.
- Pay double fees if a building is boarded before the property owner receives a permit.
- Pay a $6 plumbing permit if the structure does not have an outdoor source of water.
- Pay the city a fee of $100 and actual costs of boarding a structure if the city has to board an abandoned building for the owner.
The proposed ordinance also sets out specific criteria to be followed when boarding a building:
- The openings on the first two floors must be covered with plywood, chipboard or wood-frame construction.
- The coverings must be painted the same color as the building.
- Exterior surfaces of the building, including the roof, must be kept in good repair.
- The yard must be maintained as though the building were occupied and in use.
- During winter months, snow must be removed from the sidewalks surrounding the property as required by other city ordinances.
- If the property owner fails to maintain the building or keep it up, the city may charge the owner an administrative fee of $170 to $175 and the actual cost for getting the work done.