You know the old Jones house down on 4th Street in the town’s historic district, don’t you? Well, it’s a real shame that it is in such bad shape. I remember when that house was right at the center of … Read more
Carolina County has been working with its largest municipality, Tar Heel Town, to redevelop one of Tar Heel Town’s more dilapidated neighborhoods. Many of the properties in this neighborhood are owned by absentee landlords who fail to maintain them properly. … Read more
Several years ago I prepared a blog entitled “Nuisance Abatement and Local Governments: What a Mess.” At the end of that blog I promised a sequel to take up several other legal issues related to nuisance abatement and building condemnation. … Read more
When property owners stop paying their property taxes, it’s a good bet that they’ve been ignoring other obligations concerning those properties as well. Weeds grow chest-high, houses slowly crumble, and neighbors begin to use the lots as informal trash dumps. … Read more
John Spartan serves as the senior housing code official for the town of San Angeles, NC, where he recently presided over his 100th minimum housing hearing. He has overseen the repair or removal of many unfit homes over the years, … Read more
Along Broken Dreams Boulevard, not far from Main Street, an abandoned mill overlooks a troubled neighborhood. Once a thriving residential area with inexpensive mill housing (single family homes and duplexes), the neighborhood is now typical of a declining mill village. … Read more
My blog from December 15 of last year (“Preoccupied with Occupancy Certificates: Part I”) was intended to provide an introduction to the use of a certificates of occupancy (CO) by local inspections agencies to ensure that a development project is … Read more
The city manager of Tooltime, North Carolina, picks up the phone and calls Tim Taylor, the city’s minimum housing public officer and lead housing inspector. “Tim, I understand why you suspended all periodic inspections in Tooltime that did not comply … Read more
Tim Taylor is both a housing inspector and the appointed minimum housing public officer for the town of Tooltime, North Carolina. For years he has conducted periodic inspections of dwellings throughout the town in accordance with his town’s periodic inspection … Read more
[2011 UPDATE: For more detail on this topic, see the following 2011 book: Housing Codes for Repair and Maintenance: Using the General Police Power and Minimum Housing Statutes to Prevent Dwelling Deterioration] An earlier post on minimum housing ordinances (MHOs) … Read more