By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
“You’re doing a heckuva job keeping our city clean. People need to take some pride in their properties,” Decatur Mayor Dan Rickord told Building/Zoning Superintendent Curt Witte and his assistant, Brad Roe, at the latest meeting of the city’s board of works and safety.
The mayor’s comments came following Witte’s presentation on an ongoing trouble spot in the city. Three properties are involved: 221 S. 12th St., 225 S. 12th, and 316 S. 11th.
The owner of all three, Vickie Ellis, and her son, Aaron Ellis, attended the meeting along with their attorney, Pat Miller.
Witte, whose department oversees code enforcement in the city, said the properties “were in pretty bad shape” at first, then some cleanup progress was seen, then things deteriorated once again.
Neighbor complaints are once again being received.
Miller listed some of the changes being made on the properties and some rehab work being done.
So no action was taken by the board, but the mayor said an update report will be received at the next meeting, June 6.
Complaints are mounting and, looking ahead, Witte said his department is spending too much time on code enforcement and he plans to, in the future, offer property owners less time for a cleanup.
