VENTURA : Council Favors Law to Clean Up Eyesores

Setting a zero-tolerance policy for neighborhood eyesores, the Ventura City Council has initially approved a law that makes it easier to force owners to clean up any mess declared a “public nuisance.”

A public nuisance, as defined by the new measure, is a property overgrown with weeds, overtaken by transients, cluttered with debris or otherwise deteriorated. City officials also could declare a property a nuisance if it has an abandoned vehicle or broken equipment in public view.

Approved unanimously Monday night, the new ordinance--expected to get council’s final approval in the next few weeks--would allow the city to clean up a site, then mail the bill to the property’s owner.

Officials would first be required to officially notify the property owner that the mess constitutes a public nuisance.

If the owner disputed the notice, the new law would allow the city to schedule an administrative hearing at City Hall. Now, officials must drag the owner into court, expending valuable time and money.

After the administrative hearing, if the owner and the city were still at odds over the state of the property, officials could nevertheless have the site cleaned up and charge all expenses to the owner.

City Atty. Pete Bulens, who drafted the law, said residents in the Ventura Avenue area requested such an ordinance. They have complained that it takes the city too long to force owners to clean up their deteriorating properties, he said.