Mayor says new code enforcer will be hired by springtime

Talk about it

The city of Mitchell plans to have a code enforcement officer on the job this spring, according to Mayor Lou Sebert.

“We are looking at sending out applications in February, hiring in March and starting in April,” Sebert said this week.

The Mitchell City Council decided to add the position during its Aug. 19 budget meeting.

“It’s what the citizens of Mitchell want,” said Councilman Travis Carpenter at that meeting.

While the city has tried to enforce city codes on lawn maintenance, snow removal and other issues, a staffing problem has created a sizeable backlog of complaints and violations. A file on alleged code enforcements is thick and packed with documents.

Police Detective Toby Russell and building inspector John Hegg try to deal with nuisance complaints now. Both men said they have other responsibilities. The council asked other city staff members if they wanted to assume the duty, but none stepped forward.

The council also considered hiring someone on a part-time basis but finally decided to hire a full-time employee to handle code violations.

Sebert said the new position will cost the city about $40,000 in salary and benefits. The new staffer will report to Hegg, according to Sebert.

The code enforcement staffer will focus on unkempt lawns and other issues this spring, according to the mayor.

He said snow removal is an issue the city is trying to address. Right now, property owners have to clear snow from sidewalks 15 hours after the snow stops, but Sebert said that is rarely enforced.

He said the city struggles to clear snow from its own sidewalks and public areas such as parks, so he doesn’t think it’s right to penalize people for violating an ordinance if the city is not in compliance.

The only way for the city to comply is if more people are hired for snow removal, he said, and he doesn’t want to spend money to do that, especially in a heavy snow season such as this one.

“We’ll have to see how that goes,” Sebert said.

The city is creating space for the new staffer by shifting Corn Palace Assistant Manager Janice Peterson to the ticket office and moving the code enforcement officer into her vacated office in City Hall, Sebert said.

Adding this position to the payroll came after years of discussion of the problem. It moved to the front burner of local issues last summer, and some local residents told the council they were tired of seeing repeated code violations in the city.

At the summer budget hearing, Deputy City Attorney Doug Papendick said the problem is a few homeowners and residents who will not keep their homes in proper condition and “play games” with the city when efforts are made to enforce codes.

The city has issued some citations and taken a few people to court, but for the most part, it tries to work with property owners to get them in compliance, according to city staffers.

Tags: code enforcement officer, lou sebert, news, local