Council Aims to ‘Add Teeth’ to Blight Ordinance

A blight ordinance established in 2007 has helped address many problems in town, but as a handful of properties have skirted the system and continue to be a problem. Council members are looking to find a way to put an end to the issue once and for all.

After hearing from several angry residents on Monday evening, the voted unanimously to move forward with an expedited review of the town’s blight ordinance in an effort to address a handful of properties that continue to pose problems – including one on Germania Street where issues have existed for years now.

“There have been stories of success, but right now my concern is that in some cases the ordinance just doesn’t have enough teeth,” said Councilwoman Cheryl Lounsbury, who also serves as chairwoman of the ordinance committee. “When residents don’t comply, it brings down property values

The issues with the blight ordinance were brought to the attention of council members and Mark Sciota over the past couple weeks as issues continued to pile up at 77 Germania Street, where resident Mario Simeone has continually challenged and refused to comply with the blight ordinance since it was established nearly five years ago.

Residents said the property has long been cluttered with unused cars and an unkempt yard, and when neighbors have tried to reason with him, they said he responded with threats of violence.

Richard Amnott, a resident at 108 Germania St. and one of two from the neighborhood who spoke, said neighbors have spent years working with the town and rather than finding a solution for the problem, things have only gotten worse.

“If there’s any doubt that something needs to be done (to the ordinance) and needs to be done now, I would invite you all to come down and see what it’s like,” Amnott said. “It may be (Simeone’s) property, but I have property too and it is affecting me. There are animals there; fuels and oils. Lets get the EPA in there, someone. The ordinance now isn’t getting it done.”

Simeone could not be reached for comment.

Democrat John Barry, who served as chairman of the council when the town first passed the ordinance in 2007, and Council Chairman Edward Pocock III each said although he sympathizes with the residents, it is a complicated issue.

Both said that while there are a handful of cases where the ordinance hasn’t worked, there are also examples of success as a result of the process. In fact, these successes far outnumber the cases where residents like Simeone have fought the ordinance.

Barry said the council also has the challenge of trying to revamp the ordinance in a way that will allow it to be used as intended, not simply making it so strong that a neighbor could use it to complain because they don’t appreciate something such as a child’s toys showing on their neighbors property.

When the council proposed the original ordinance, it was designed with much more stringent penalties which included escalating fines for those who did not comply or continued to disregard the warnings that their property was in violation of the town’s blight complaint.

“We saw a lot of pushback,” Barry said. “I think we have to remember, it’s something where we need to find a balance between people’s individual rights and the rights and needs of their neighbors. Both ordinances could be much stricter. It is now a question of where do we go as a council?”

Lounsbury said the council will need to consider a variety of factors from steeper fines for repeat offenders to a step system for offenders who refuse to address the problem. Sciota warns that as with any state and local laws, however, the town must also be careful to make sure everyone is allowed due process and given the right to challenge the complain in court.

That’s the problem that the town has faced on Germania Street, where after two years in state courts the town has not come to any resolution on Simeone’s property.

The council will hear a proposal from the ordinance committee on May 14 and will be asked to consider a public hearing on the matter on May 29. Pocock said he would ask the council to consider voting on the matter that night and any changes could be implemented 20 days following approval.

Meriden Avenue resident Barbara Farina said while the focus seemed to be on the Germania Street property Monday night, she hopes the council will realize the problem still exists across town.

“On Meriden Avenue alone, there are three properties,” she said. “ What I’ve looked across at for 10 years now, nobody should have to deal with that.”