Ypsilanti sets up 'blight court' to battle ordinance violations, property maintenance issues

Ypsilanti's City Council unanimously approved creating the new city department, technically called the Administrative Hearings Bureau.

“The bottom line is, we want compliance, and we want blight removed,” Planning and Development Director April McGrath said. “We’re trying to develop the best way for that to happen, and there are so many levels to this.”

Ypsilanti is aiming to cut down on ordinance violations and blight in the city.

The particulars are still being worked out, but council members expressed optimism over its potential. However, several worried about placing an additional burden on already-stretched city staff.

In a presentation to council, Assistant City Attorney Karl Barr said the bureau is a new city department that would only require hiring a hearing officer. The city clerk would initially function as the court’s clerk, though it is not yet known how much time the clerk’s efforts would require.

McGrath said the court would result in some extra work for staff, but she believes managing a small workload at the outset will help determine how to best build the bureau.

“We plan on starting this slowly on specialized cases, rather than sitting down and saying ‘what if, what if?’” she said. “We just need to start this and figure out where it goes, and I think in the end, it’s going to help.”

Among the issues that would make their way into the blight court are ordinance violations, property maintenance complaints, noxious weeds, dumping, abandoned vehicles, junk on a front lawn, couches on a porch or any issues with a property being deemed unsafe.

In the event that a person was failing to mow the lawn, for example, building inspector Frank Daniels, who is also the city’s ordinance officer, would first approach the violator and try to correct the issue without writing a ticket, McGrath said. If the problem persisted, a citation would be issued.

The city clerk would then send the violator a notice to appear in blight court within 14 days. Court would likely be held in council chambers two mornings a month.

Once offenders were in court, they'd meet with the city attorney and building staff to resolve the issue. If no resolution was met, the case would go to trial before the hearing officer. 

Should the hearing officer rule in favor of the city, that person would be ordered to pay a fee and remedy the problem. Barr used the example of $225 for a lawn ordinance violation in his presentation, though no fee schedule has yet been set.

Barr and McGrath observed a similar concept in action in Jackson, where many of the citations being issued carried fines in the range of $400 to $600. Officials said the city will collect the full amount of the fines. Currently, the district court collects the money, part of which is distributed to the county.

But the city must pay for the costs of prosecution, and McGrath said she doesn't expect the court “to be a money-maker, and is not intended to be.” She said the city may end up contributing a little bit to run it.

“The bottom line is, it’s another tool for us to address blight, and we can work with people a little more closely,” she said.

McGrath said Jackson’s court provided social work to address problematic residents. She said that element could be beneficial in Ypsilanti, though she isn't sure which staff would be involved. She said the more challenging cases involved people who simply didn't care that they were violating ordinances or didn't have the resources to do anything about the problem.

“You have to sit down and make them understand why it’s important and build that relationship to encourage them to take care of it,” she said, adding the city pays for the abatement otherwise and ties up city resources.

McGrath added programs are available through the county and other entities to help those who can't afford a lawnmower, for example.

“When it’s the very serious cases - that’s where we need it most,” Council Member Brian Robb said. “And I think this is a very needed organization that will benefit us greatly.”

McGrath said the city is still trying to determine how it will deal with out-of-state institutions or owners who neglect their properties.

The city has already developed the ticket, informed the district court of its intentions, written the hearing officer's job description, assessed staff capabilities and approved a budget.

It now must hire a hearing officer, put the word out to community groups about the new court, train staff and implement the program.

“I think this is going to be a great success when we get it together,” Council Member Pete Murdock said. “I’m looking forward to this thing getting off the ground and going.”

Tom Perkins is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com. Reach the news desk at news@annarbor.com or 734-623-2530.