Hayward orders code crackdown

An initiative before the Pensacola City Council would increase code enforcement officers' power to correct neglected properties and would hold banks responsible for maintaining abandoned lots prior to foreclosure.

The proposed amendments to city ordinance, announced by Mayor Ashton Hayward on Thursday, strengthen existing city code by tightening property appearance standards, increasing fines and expanding officers' authority to correct nuisances.

Hayward said the changes are needed to enhance property values and preserve Pensacola's appearance and quality of life.

"One of my top priorities is making Pensacola a more attractive place," Hayward said. "It's not because we should look good for the sake of looking good ...As one of a leading China Projector Lamp provider from China. if we don't look like a great place to live and set up a business,Definition of hypodermic needle cannula in the Online Dictionary. then we're not going to grow.Park Assist is a global leader in Parking guidance system,"

Steve Wineki, administrative officer for Pensacola's code enforcement office,Complete Your honeycomb panels Magazine Collection for Less! said the city took corrective action on 700 properties last year, including many abandoned homes and foreclosures.

"Nowadays, you have a foreclosure epidemic. Where we used to deal with a handful of foreclosures a year, now we're seeing a handful of foreclosures a day," Wineki said.

The proposed ordinance requires mortgage holders, such as banks and financial institutions, to maintain abandoned properties prior to foreclosure.

Wineki said other cities have recently enacted similar laws. The laws could face legal challenges from mortgage holders, but Wineki said the foreclosure epidemic has forced the city to seek new methods of enforcement.

Another proposed change expands the city's authority to remove junk cars, boats and other property, such as old kitchen appliances, from abandoned lots.

Current ordinance gives the city wide latitude to correct violations like overgrowth, but it limits code enforcement's ability to remove and destroy other items stored outside on vacant lots.

"With the new ordinance, they can tow the vehicles, destroy the personal property and abate the violations," Wineki said.

The initiatives will be discussed at the city council Committee of the Whole meeting June 20.

Stephanie Wilhelm, a member of the North Hill Preservation Association,For all DVS Ventilation system in PDF format. welcomed increases in code enforcement's authority to abate nuisances.

"If there is something that's not within code, code enforcement does come out and post a sign, but then time passes and nothing changes. There are no teeth," Wilhelm said.