11/19/2024 Meeting Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

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Council Clerk: Yes, Council received a letter from Mr. Dennis Lambert requesting it be read at Council. To all of Council, I have looked over City of North Olmsted Resolution Number 2024119 and have legal concerns with its passage and implementation. While the city is a public entity and has the right to ensure the well-being of its residents, it has limits on what it can do when it comes to privately owned properties. The City does have the right to enforce building codes and require owners to comply, but it doesn't have the right to manage or take over those things that private owners are required to do so as private property owners, except in an extreme emergency. This Resolution does not spell out what an extreme emergency is in detail. It allows the city to intervene and to take over the choices that an owner and his insurance provider have rights to, and thus makes the city vulnerable to litigation and financial damages from the property owner, his private contractor, and/or his insurance provider. This is what I see as a potential risk if it is enforced over what a private owner might choose to do. Be aware. Dennis Lambert. Law Director Gareau: Mr. President. May I address that, please? Thank you. It's been a long time since I had a chance to address Mr. Lambert. So I don't share Mr. Lambert's legal conclusion about the Ordinance that you have before you. I know we can discuss this in committee, but there's a number of people here who may not be at the committee meeting, that might be interested to hear that. This ordinance strictly deals with those situations where a property has been declared a dangerous building and has been condemned. There's notice requirements, the people have a right to appeal that determination. They have all the due process rights that one could possibly hope for and one deserves when dealing with the City of North Olmsted. We've had several significant structure fires in the past several years. Two that come to mind was the murder and arson down by Duane's Dad's, in that neighborhood over there, off of Berkshire.... Councilman Limpert: Forest Ridge. Law Director Gareau: Forest Ridge, thank you. Then the second one this year where we had a total structure fire, a total loss. In each of those instances, there was a requirement that action be taken. There was no appeal taken by the homeowner. The City actually received funds to be able to do the demolition from the insurance company pursuant to State code, and it sat there for three months. The entire neighborhood was dealing with the smell, the overwhelming smell of the burnt structure for, in some cases, 90 days, and this most recent one, we had people going in and out of the building, we can't have that. It's not fair to the people that live there. So that's the long answer to Mr. Lambert's concern, but I can tell you that we're not going in and taking it over. We're taking it over if you don't do what you're supposed to do because the City of North 11-19-24 Council Meeting Minutes - Page 9