GARDEN CITY, Mich. (WXYZ) — Garden City is launching a new Administrative Hearings Bureau (AHB) — commonly called "Blight Court" — to handle property maintenance violations faster and keep cases out of district court.
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The city's Community Development Director, Matt Miller, said the new process is designed to resolve blight violations quickly and internally.
"We're not doing it as a way to punish people. We want to see compliance. That's the end goal," Miller said.
Instead of taking residents to district court over properties that are not cleaned up, the AHB will handle cases directly. Miller said the goal is faster resolution for repeat offenders and properties that have gone without maintenance.
Penalties for violations can add up quickly. A first violation carries a $100 fine, a second violation costs $250, and each subsequent violation costs $500. If the city has to step in to mow a lawn, for example, that service costs $425 — on top of any fines.
When asked whether blight is a problem in Garden City, Miller said the city is focused on maintaining its community standards.
"We're trying to maintain a good community. So, it's not, I don't think, anything more, but as houses are changing and things like that, then we're getting people that aren't taking care of the properties the way they used to be," Miller said.
Some longtime residents say the new enforcement tool is long overdue. Kenny Durham has lived on Pierce Avenue for 25 years and pointed to a nearby property with weeds blocking the porch and vines growing on the roof as an example of what the city is working to address.
"You can see the vines grow more every year," Durham said. "I just wish he would clean it up."
Durham acknowledged that not every case of neglect is intentional.
"We don't want them to look ran down. I mean, everybody's trying their best to make their house look good. Everything's expensive, I know it's hard to do," Durham said.
Resident Michael Bengel created a Facebook group called "Garden City MI Blight" as a place where people can report properties with issues. He said some residents are hesitant to speak up.
"A lot of people are afraid of backlashes, you know, from their neighbors," Bengel said.
Bengel also noted that some neglected properties may belong to elderly residents who need assistance rather than enforcement.
"You know, if somebody is elderly, you know, we do have a senior center here that they can call and people can get help," Bengel said.
Resident Richard Ritter said some of his neighbors only clean up their properties after receiving a notice from a zoning ordinance officer — and then let conditions deteriorate again.
"I can let somebody go a little while, but these guys go until they get the letter," Ritter said.
Ritter said the fines and city cleanup costs are still preferable to allowing blight to continue unchecked.
"So you can see, the forest is coming back through here," Ritter said.
Ritter and other residents are now waiting to see whether Blight Court will produce faster results.
If you'd like to learn more about Blight Court, CLICK HERE: https://gardencitymi.org/1116/Administrative-Hearings-Bureau-Blight
If you would like to submit a complaint through the Garden City "See, Click, Fix" website, CLICK HERE: https://seeclickfix.com/web_portal/m4TF12jZvs7EXUqsyrPrCrN7/issues/map?lat=42.32241988003417&lng=-83.25566194387831&max_lat=42.39370897593568&max_lng=-83.12399766775545&min_lat=42.25104991826649&min_lng=-83.38732622000117&zoom=11
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