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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001-04-18 CEAC MINUTES• • • CODE ENFORCEMENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES APRIL 18, 2001 1. Call to Order. The regular meeting of the Englewood Code Enforcement Advisory Committee was called to order at 6:40 p.m. by Vice Chair McCahill in the City Manager 's Conference Room. Roll Call . Present: Ex-Officio: Excused: Absent: 2. Approval of Minutes. McCahill, Blair, Roberts, Hansen , DesMarteau Lynn, Moore , Flaherty, Yurchick Roth Olsen, Nabholz Member Roberts moved and member Blair seconded that the minutes of the March 21 , 2001 Code Enforcement Advisory Committee meeting be approved . The motion carried. Member Blair moved and member Roberts seconded that the minutes of the CEAC Special Meeting on April 4, 2001 be approved. The motion carried. Ayes: Nays: The motion carried. 3. Public Open forum. McCahill , Blair, Roberts, Hansen , DesMarteau None There was one guest present for the public open forum. Her name is Peggy Crago, who resides at 3820 South Sherman Street in Englewood. She addressed the Englewood Municipal Code 7-lA-8-6 concerning barking dogs , the interpretation of the code , and what constitutes a constantly barking dog violation. She felt that the ordinance is vague in the way the code is written, and she questioned how the code is interpreted . After speaking with the City Attorney 's office , she was told that dogs don 't have to bark to be a code violation , but any complaint call received will be considered as a violation. Peggy would like to see the ordinance changed to be more explicit in the definition as to what constitutes loud barking. After Ms. Crago 's departure , Lynn stated, per the City Attorney , that there must be two complainants to be a valid complaint. Lynn referenced Title 7-lA-8-6 , discussing the issue in detail , stating there is a Code Enforcement policy statement on this. Vice Chair McCahill offered to write a letter to Crago explaining the code . PAGE l • • • 4. Old business . a. Animal Issues. As requested at the March meeting , Lynn has reviewed the state statutes regarding veterinary care , and said there is nothing in the book that addresses it. Ruth Steel stated that she has received much input from animal care professionals on the state statutes and their procedures. Mrs . Steel stated that dog owners should be held responsible for the care of their animals , and that the code is too vague. McCahill questioned how one would verify that proper care of animals is taking place. Lynn stated, per the City Attorney , that if we want to include veterinary care , then it must be defined . Much discussion followed. Member DesMarteau suggested expanding the language to mandate that the animal be brought in to good health, by an examination. A decision was made to delete all references to veterinary care in the proposed changes. Lynn reiterated nine changes to be made to the ordinance (attached). McCahill made a motion to approve the changes Lynn made and send to council. All were in favor and the motion carried. b. Advisory Committee presentation to City Council. McCahill discu ssed the upcoming Advisory Committee presentation to City Council that will be on Monday , May 7 , 2001. The CEAC met on April 4th to discuss Code Enforcement policy , and their priorities for the 14 item li st of Municipal Code issues. These issues will all be presented to City Council at the May i 11 meeting. All members were encouraged to attend . 5. New business. a. March 2001 Code Enforcement Monthly Activity Report. Lynn presented the March Monthly Activity Report , discussing each item in detail. He stated there were 2,622 issues that Code Enforcement dealt with in March. Lynn explained that the animal issues for March were up , which is not a positive sign. Approximately $13 ,000 was made by selling sixty-one cars at the last car auction. There were eighty-nine postings for March , which is up 58%. Lynn stated there will be a meeting with business owners concerning shopping carts, as this continues to be a chronic problem. This meeting will take place April 19, 2001, 2:00 p.m. Lynn discussed in detail the public relations contacts for Code Officers in March. Lynn stated , of the 2 ,622 negative issues addressed by Code Enforcement, numbered less than 10, thus , resulting in a compliance acceptance rate of greater than 99.7%. b. Prioritize List of Englewood Municipal Code issues. All members discussed a copy of the draft amending , 7-lA-4 (number of animals maintained on premises) which was received from Dan Brotzman, City Attorney . The draft proposed that the number of animals in a household be changed from two animals to four animals. Yurchick discussed the sentiment of City Council , and that council has divided opinions on this. McCahill asked how the draft was initiated, and Flaherty explained it was a request by a council person. Lynn expounded on how this fir st came about , and after much discussion , Member McCahill made a motion for a recommendation to City Council from the committee , that the existing ordinance not be more than two of each species , a PAGE2 • • • total of four animals be upheld. Member Blair made a motion and Member Hansen seconded. All were in favor , the motion carried. 6. Topics for May 16, 2001 meeting. a. April Code Enforcement Monthly Activity Report b. Prioritize List of Englewood Municipal Code issues 7. Adjournment. Member DesMarteau moved and member Roberts seconded to adjourn the meeting . The motion passed unanimously and the meeting adjourned at 8:27 p .m . Ayes: Nays: McCahill , Blair, Roberts, Hansen, DesMarteau, Roth None ~1.G~ Recording Secretary PAGE 3