Noel city council member Allie Peck said she's declaring war on trash and wants the city council to back some strong-armed ordinances and help in cleaning up some major eyesores.
Peck provided numerous photos of trash disasters at Tuesday night's Noel City Council meeting, saying that something should be done to clean up spilled over trash and places that are undesirable and disgusting. She pointed to at least one multiple unit building in town.
Marshal Paul Gardner said, according to the Office of State Courts Administrator, tickets cannot be immediately written. Rather, Gardner has a list of 60 properties that have trash problems. Letters to the property owners will be sent this week, he said, adding that a certain process has to be followed. After the letter is sent out, the property owner has a chance to respond with an answer. If the property owner fails to do that within 30 days, a probable cause can be issued. After that, a summons can be issued. If the property owner fails to answer after the summons, a warrant can then be issued.
Gardner said an old ordinance used to require dumpsters be surrounded by a containing wall. Dumpsters with lids are needed so trash isn't blown around. Gardner said he also hopes the council will set a cleanup date for residents.
In other business, council members discussed expenses that the city is still incurring regarding the former recycling center. Though the recycling center is closed, utility expenses continue to roll in and workman's compensation had to be paid, city officials said. The $5,000 in expenses is considerable, Peck said, questioning why there were still so many expenses when the center was officially closed.
The center closed in September and the building has been sold to a trash service. Mayor Lewis Davis said the recycling center's sale was put out to bid and that the trash service company was the only one to bid.
Members also discussed trying to garnish former residents' wages if they still owe the city for utility usage. City council members discussed possibly filing small claims cases if need be. The council agreed to seek advice from the city attorney and move forward with trying to recoup that money.
The council also continued to discuss the idea of a sign that would promote local events. Aldermen discussed a possible location and cost and said they would continue to look into the idea.
Fire Chief Brandon Barrett reported that the department had responded to 11 EMS calls, four structure fires, two brush fires, four accidents and three hazardous calls, resulting in 164 hours of on-call service. Firefighters also underwent 43 hours of training, he said.
General News on 03/14/2019