CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Councilwoman Deanna McLaughlin spoke to the Clarksville Kiwanis Club this week about efforts being made by the new Restoring Clarksville Initiative to beautify the city.
The Restoring Clarksville Initiative launched in January to “identify, inventory, review and evaluate properties in the City of Clarksville that are experiencing deterioration due to economic factors, or neglect by the owners that are contributing to their decline,” according to McLaughlin’s presentation.
The beginning process involved looking at changes to the city code to reflect the restoration initiatives. “We have looked at the city code at things that could strengthen our ability to enforce some of the issues in Clarksville that may not have been as enforceable in the past. … It’s a big process,” said McLaughlin.
Three strikes, you’re out
Task force committee members tackled fining property owners for code violations off the bat. Violators used to be charged only $50 per code violation due to set laws that the city and state had in place. With the hard work of the committee, repeat offenders of a code violation can now charged by City Court, and be forced to pay $50 per day of violation.
This new change is mainly geared towards property owners who receive multiple citations from the city about repetitive issues. The city is looking at implementing a three-strikes system for code violators; once they hit their third strike, they receive fines.
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“Our Codes Department has been really good about working with property owners, and that’s what their initiative is. … As long as the property owner is working to improve that issue and showing that they are moving in the right direction, then they get some leeway,” said McLaughlin.
Demolishing crime, one building at time
Building and Codes is joining forces with the Clarksville Police Department to identify dilapidated structures based on calls for service from police. Then they identify what needs to be fixed and work with the property owner to try to resolve the issue.
When there is a vacant, dilapidated structure standing for a long period of time, it becomes a center for crime. Eventually, the crime starts to trickle to businesses and neighborhoods in the area.
The initiative team is combatting that by demolishing buildings, typically by urging the owner to do so at the owner’s expense. “That does two things. It eliminates the place for people to hang out and commit crimes, and second of all, makes that property right for future redevelopment,” said McLaughlin.
Demolishing old structures also makes the lot more enticing for potential builders, while preventing the use of unnecessary tax dollars to demolish buildings at the city’s expense. Four dilapidated structures have been demolished at the owner’s expense since January, with more to come.
The city has an online tool called Click See Fix that can be used for people to report dilapidated structures, city code violations and more. Since there are only five code enforcement officers in Clarksville, this helps to concentrate efforts and alleviate issues more quickly.
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