by justin strawser
COAL TOWNSHIP - The township has yet another weapon in its fight against blight.
Commissioners unanimously passed the Coal Township Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Ordinance at their meeting last week, meaning they can inflict harsher penalties on owners of blighted properties.
The ordinance, which the Northumberland County Blight Task Force has encouraged municipalities to enact, is adopted from a state law by the same name that went into effect in April 2011.
If a code violation is left unaddressed by a property owner for six consecutive months, the law allows a municipality to take action, including having an out-of-state offender extradited for prosecution. Also, punishment can include placing a lien against other properties owned by the alleged offender, or against a mortgage lender, limited partner and others, to recoup costs.
Craig Fetterman, chairman of the township commissioners, said there are some properties already targeted, and that the township will be making use of its new power.
"We will be actively pursuing it. It won't be just another ordinance on the books," he said Tuesday.
He acknowledged that addressing blight is frustrating.
"You can fine people, you can arrest them, and you can take them to court," he said. "But you can't make them fix things up."
Still, he believes the threat of liens against other assets, more "valued property," will push owners of blighted properties to act.
The ordinance also allows the township to deny a property owner who has outstanding code violations or delinquent water or garbage collection bills or taxes from obtaining municipal permits.
If the permit is necessary to fix a code violation, however, it can not be denied, and there are avenues for appeal.
Latest step
The new ordinance is the latest effort by Coal Township to address the issue of blight.
Last year, commissioners instituted a "Wall of Shame" in an effort to embarrass blighted property owners. Their names and telephone numbers are posted online and at the properties so neighbors can read them.
Also, the township instituted a policy earlier this year requiring landlords to file for occupancy permits at the end of a lease or rental agreement, upon change of occupancy or one year from the date of a code inspection. An inspection is required with each new permit or each permit renewal. Cost is $25 for each inspection and $25 for a permit.
Commissioners also passed a nuisance ordinance earlier this year that punishes code violators with a $25 ticket for the first offense. The cost of the fines rise to $50, $100 and $300 for subsequent offenses, after which a citation is issued. Violators have 10 days to pay before a citation is issued and the matter lands in court. The previous system saw nuisance violators issued a citation immediately, but that involved a lengthy and costly process that the ticketing process is designed to avoid.
$84,000 committed
While the "Wall of Shame" hasn't been as effective as expected - township manager Rob Slaby Jr. said in April that some people are "unembarrassable" - Fetterman said Tuesday the ticketing has proved fruitful.
"For some reason, it's a whole lot more effective than running it through the magistrate office. It was a good first year," he said.
Coal Township is among the municipalities that have committed to a plan by the newly formed county blight task force to pool resources, including state grant funding, to use as leverage in pursuing other money to acquire and raze blighted properties.
Slaby said the township has dedicated more than any other municipality in the county in hopes of getting the most return: $84,000 from Community Development Block Grant funding and leftover demolition package money.
He also said eight blighted properties have been razed every two years over a 10-year period.
As for the new ordinance, Slaby believes it will help.
"This allows us to go after what someone owns, what they put money into and what they care about," he said. "It's a couple extra tools that allow us to deal more aggressively with more individuals."