Residents press for stronger code-compliance outreach; city highlights volunteer partnerships and targeted programs

Several residents urged the city to strengthen code-compliance enforcement and to coordinate volunteer help for property maintenance. City staff and residents discussed both enforcement limits and resources to help owners who cannot maintain yards.

Leslie Fontaine, a longtime neighborhood volunteer, asked whether the city could mobilize volunteers, high‑school students seeking hours, churches and nonprofits to address overgrown properties. She praised recent education videos and called for a handout listing resources. Jonathan (City Manager) said the city has shifted language from “code enforcement” to “code compliance” to emphasize assistance and added that some programs track foreclosed properties and charge registration fees to out-of-area owners; those fees (a baseline example cited in conversation was $120 annually) can be used to fund targeted remediation of properties in foreclosure.

Community resources: Donna Pilson, executive director of Rebuild Bay (noted in the meeting), was identified as an available partner for supplies, and the United Way maintains a volunteer system that local nonprofits use. Jonathan and others suggested a volunteer coordinator or better outreach to match willing volunteers to tasks and to limit direct use of city equipment by untrained volunteers.

Enforcement scope: Staff reiterated that code-compliance officers are not police; they issue written notices and follow an administrative process that may end in a magistrate hearing if owners do not comply. Residents suggested short videos explaining rules for items such as unsheltered storage, the city’s one‑RV/one‑boat policy in front yards and allowable bulk items so citizens understand what is permitted.

Ending: City staff encouraged neighborhood-led volunteer programs, agreed to better resource handouts and noted coordination with nonprofits and the United Way; residents asked for more proactive outreach and a volunteer coordination point of contact.