MASON CITY – City staff held a public presentation at the Mason City Library Tuesday night which included an open forum regarding the nuisance laws that the City Council is set to approve next month.
The nuisance laws bring strict enforcement upon property owners who have properties that are deemed a “nuisance.” Activities within 1500 feet of a property may factor into abatement notices that city staff may hand out to landlords and property owners. Stiff fines and other penalties may be imposed if a property is deemed a nuisance and property owners or landlords do not cooperate with City Hall.
City staff gave the presentation in order to clarify how the nuisance laws work and who may be affected if they become law. The public was allowed to address city staff during a question and answer session.
Several landlords voiced displeasure with how the ordinances are worded, saying the laws or not clear enough while some even said the ordinances are unconstitutional and would not hold up in court.
Mayor Eric Bookmeyer and all six city council members were in attendance.
See the following video for highlights of the meeting:
httpv://youtu.be/jI1Nkk6PGLQ
Photos:
These “slumlords” in Mason City get rich by buying property and not keeping it up while the poor tenants live in squalor.
Many other cities in Iowa have this. It was modeled on these. Wish the landlords would spend their time dealing with their run down properties rather than bickering about attempts to clean up the city.