Legislative Hearings

15 West Kellogg Blvd. City of Saint Paul Saint Paul, MN 55102 Minutes - Final Legislative Hearings Marcia Moermond, Legislative Hearing Officer Mai Vang, Hearing Coordinator Jean Birkholz, Hearing Secretary legislativehearings@ci.stpaul.mn.us 651-266-8585 Tuesday, February 4, 2014 9:00 AM Room 330 City Hall & Court House 9:00 a.m. Hearings Special Tax Assessments 1 RLH TA 14-75 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 703 BEDFORD STREET. Sponsors: Thune 703 Bedford Street Reduce the assessment from $310 to $155. Seeley - reported it as a Summary Abatement Order with a compliance date of 11 -6-13 - work was done on 11-8-13 for $310 - no mail was returned - order sent to Kevin Younge, property management, and occupant - there is some history on the property - as assessment is coming later Bonnie Barlage - she is with EIG - recently took management of this property - this was a problem property - they took steps to vacant the tenants - the property sat vacant for a few months - they invested money to get it looking nice again - neighbors were not happy that they evicted the people - t.v.s would show up at the property (video was shown) Barlage - the unit was vacant - the summary abatement order had carpet on it Moermond - this was dumping - there was a good faith effort City of Saint Paul Page 1 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - Barlage's folks had taken the carpet away - asked about the history Seeley - they took over after July - it was a huge t.v. and it could not have been dumping - since then, there was an order on boulevard trash containers - yesterday, there was three feet of snow, which needs to be cleared out - there are two properties and it has been really rough Moermond - it snowed last week and the neighbors want to walk through that area - she will lay this over for three months - then she will have four months - if it is a spotless record, she will delete the assessment * - if not, she will recommend approval * Barlage - they are in the process of hiring a new maintenance guy - they have a refugee family in Bedford and they will pay them $25 a month to take care of the carts Seeley - there is no parking back there Barlage - none of the people have cars Moermond * - will recommend cutting the assessment in half Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 2 RLH TA 14-51 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804 at 714 BELLOWS STREET. Sponsors: Thune 714 Bellows Street If permits are finaled by March 12, 2014, will recommend deleting the fee. As of 3/12 11:00 a.m. permits (electrical and building) have not been finaled. Carl Berger appeared Joseph Yannarelly - this is a Category 1 vacant building - owner was instructed to pull proper permits Moermond - utilities were shut off Berger - he talked to them - the glass and electrical was done - he picked up the permits City of Saint Paul Page 2 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - he did not know he was in violation - he used to work as a property inspector - he does not have the strength he had before - he is at the point of coming to completion - it has been handled gingerly on staff’s part - this is a turn key house and ready to be moved into - he has interest in North Dakota - he put $40,000 into the house - the electrical will be completed next week - he was going to have all the permits and things done - he will be putting a new furnace - he was a juvenile judge for years - he worked for FINA - he noticed a lot of things that were not in the initial report - he is about 90% done - he will be done within a month - the only thing that will not be done is he will be putting a roof on Moermond - the house moved into the vacant building program October 2012 - a vacant building fee was paid - there were some months in the vacant building program, which is negligible - she is ready to let it go - she would like the permits to be closed - this goes to Council on March 19 - inspections will be done at that time - if the major permits are closed out on March 12, she will make sure it is deleted Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 3 RLH TA 14-69 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 662 BURR STREET. Sponsors: Brendmoen 662 Burr Street Approve the assessment. Vlada Gazalabova appeared. Paula Seeley - The summary abatement order was issued on 10-30-13, rechecked on 11-6-13 - work was done on 11-8-13 at a cost of $300 - work orders sent to Dana Markhasin, Stephanie Schmidt, and occupant - summary abatement was for tires in the front yard Gazalabova - when they received the letter, the maintenance crew was sent - maintenance went there on November 20 - the deadline was November 6 - Dana Markhasin and Stephanie Schmidtasks are the management company Moermond - the legal obligation is to the owner - there is no returned mail City of Saint Paul Page 3 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Gazalabova - she did not receive the original letter Seeley - the certificate of occupancy may have been updated after the fact Moermond - she got the tax letter - it was two weeks after the deadline that the work was done (video shown) Moermond - that was a really easy thing for the crew to spot Gazalabova - they must have gone there and missed it Moermond - the owner was notified - her crew does not go out there very often - notice was sent out on October 30 originally - it was three weeks later when the crew was sent there - she will recommend approval of the assessment (Seeley gave Gazalabova her copies of documents) Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 4 RLH TA 14-53 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405G, Assessment No. 148704 at 1042 BURR STREET. Sponsors: Brendmoen Inspector called trash hauler, Veolia, on 10/22/13 to check on status of service; Veolia did not have an account for this address. PO called inspector on 10/30/13 stating they had Veolia for trash service; inspector called Veolia again who said they had the account listed under 1032 Burr Street which account included 1036 and 1042 Burr Street. Inspector recommends deleting the assessment due to information error. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 5 RLH TA 14-62 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804 at 749 CHARLES AVENUE. Sponsors: Thao 749 Charles Avenue Approve the assessment and spread the payments over 5 years. Fara Azizudin appeared Joseph Yannarelly - vacant building file opened May 6, 2010 - 90 days extension for rehab to be complete City of Saint Paul Page 4 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - it went to assessment because it was not complete Azizudin - she was here before - in August, she totaled her car - her dad got rear ended, and he was doing the work - after the car was gone, her job didn’t work out - she is expecting or hoping to get started - her dad is telling her two weeks - four months would be better Yanarelly – there are several active permits Azizudin - she will borrow money from her sister and get started soon - she will have been in the program for almost the entire year - she didn’t have enough workers - she is taking a loan from her sister Moermond - it was in the vacant building program - it would not be out until the anniversary date - next year’s fee will be gone - she will recommend approving it and spread over 5 years - the real estate office will send out a letter and it will have a bill in it, and you can make arrangements to them - when asked if it can be cut in half, Moermond responded Azizudin can go to the City Council Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 6 RLH TA 14-71 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 322 COTTAGE AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Brendmoen 2/4/14: Owner called and stated missing hearing; rescheduled to 2/18/14. 2/6/14: Owner called again and stated tenant is happy to pay the fees so he don't need to reschedule hearing. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 7 RLH TA 14-70 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 759 EDGERTON STREET. Sponsors: Brendmoen 759 Edgerton Street Approve the assessment. Vlada Gazalabova appeared. (She also appeared on 662 Burr Street.) City of Saint Paul Page 5 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Paula Seeley - Summary Abatement Order sent 11-6-13, rechecked 11-12-13 - work was done 11-15-13 - previous complaint of tall grass, weeds - orders sent to Anton Yelchin, Stephanie Schmidt, and occupant - summary abatement order has remove mattress and futon from rear yard near alley Moermond - wondered if there a call for an extension because order was sent on the 6th, compliance date on the 12th, and crew didn’t show up until the 15th - she will treat this issue the same way as 662 Burr Street, but she will look at the video (video shown) Moermond - approve assessment - we will give Gazalabova a fire certificate of occupancy form - we have the right address on record Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 8 RLH TA 14-60 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 589 FOREST STREET. Sponsors: Lantry No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 9 RLH TA 14-64 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 766 FULLER AVENUE. Sponsors: Thao 766 Fuller Avenue Delete the assessment. Shimelis Dadi appeared Paula Seeley - summary abatement order sent 11-8-13 with a compliance daet of 11-12-13 - work was done on 11-15-13 - sent to State of Minnesota and Shemelis Dadi - order is to remove several items - it was bought from the State of Minnesota - clearly appears to be illegal dumping Dadi - bought in May - somebody dumped stuff on the land - got another letter that extended the deadline - letters are confusing City of Saint Paul Page 6 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Moermond - (looked at letters from Dadi) - both are summary abatement orders - they are the same issues covered in both orders - the cleanup was done on 11-15-13 before the deadline - one order was from Skally and the other was Gavin - they were the same description - will delete the assessment Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 10 RLH TA 14-19 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1404A, Assessment No. 148503 at 226 GROTTO STREET NORTH. Sponsors: Thao Forthcoming. Referred to the City Council due back on 2/19/2014 11 RLH TA 14-50 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804 at 624 HAZEL STREET NORTH. Sponsors: Lantry 2/21/14: See attachment email from Connie Sandberg, DSI, recommended reducing the fee from $1595 to $1440. LHO concurs with the recommendation. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 12 RLH TA 14-72 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 394 HOPE STREET. Sponsors: Lantry 394 Hope Street Approve the assessment. Ben Hosfield appeared Seeley - reported that summary abatement order was sent on 11-10-13 with a compliance date of 11-25-13 - work was done 11-27-13 - no mail returned - there is some history on the property - notice sent to Covenant Capitol and Trikin Ventures - summary abatement order says to remove broken kids bikes, plastic tubs, bricks, tires in the yard, litter on the boulevard (video shown) Hosfield - he sent his guys to get all of that and he thought they did City of Saint Paul Page 7 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Moermond - recommend approval Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 13 RLH TA 14-78 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1404A1, Assessment No. 148518 at 649 IVY AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Bostrom NOTE: Assessment to be at 2/19 PH but in error, it got scheduled for 3/19 PH. Real Estate gave new number and will be on for 3/5 PH. No change of recommendation. 649 Ivy Avenue East Approve the assessment. Robert Weiker apepared. - gave Mai Vang (paralegal) a power of attorney, a letter from the owner, and cancellation for the contract for deed - the only reason he is here is that Stratford Woodlane says they have never been in possession of the property - the affidavit from the fee owner states that - he is not asking them to eliminate anything done there - the cancellation of the contract for deed was filed in December 2013 - he does not want any more letters; that is all he is asking for - they never were in possession of the property Moermond - the City pulls the ownership records from the county - whoever is the owner of record is who shows up in the computer system - he needs to talk to them Weiker - he has a copy from the recorders office - it shows the cancellation of the contract of deed from the fee owner and Stratford Woodlane - at no time was Stratford Woodlane in possession - it is junk property - in 19 years, they owned property across the street - no matter who puts the debris there, you are liable - the City of Saint Paul does a good job of shoveling and cutting the grass - he is 83 years old and spends an hour everyday picking up the streets on Wilson and Bates because people throw junk in the street - there is no way you can train them Seeley - the owner of the property is Stratford Woodlane Moermond - she will approve the assessment Referred to the City Council due back on 3/5/2014 14 RLH TA 14-59 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate City of Saint Paul Page 8 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Project No. J1405G, Assessment No. 148704 at 764 JAMES AVENUE. Sponsors: Thune Owner missed hearing and contacted the office on February 5; can't make hearing until March 18. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 (Legislative Hearing on March 18, 2014) 15 RLH TA 14-63 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804 at 707 JESSAMINE AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Bostrom Delete the assessment; rehab completed less than 30 days after anniversary date. (No hearing necessary) Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 16 RLH TA 14-77 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804 at 754 MAGNOLIA AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Bostrom 754 Magnolia Avenue East Approve the assessment. Angelita and Timothy Phipps appeared. Angelina and Timothy Phipps appeared. Yannarelly - came into the vacant building program Sept. 18 - condemned for lack of water service - it is in as a Category 1 Angelita - looking at this vacant building fee and the time period - fee has April 8 to December 18, which is incorrect - amount is $1440 Moermond - she can explain it - (Angelina approached) - vacant building fee billed during this time period - the bill went out ahead of time Angelita - they went through a bankruptcy, Chapter 7 - they went to court on May 6 - they were discharged out of bankruptcy - this house was also put into bankruptcy City of Saint Paul Page 9 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Timotny - the mortgage company took over the house - they do not have ownership of the property Angelita - they talked to Paula - they knew the water was going to be shut off - they vacated Aug 18 - Paula said they had two days to vacate the premises - they were not living there; they were just moving stuff out - it had gone back to the bank - she is wondering if she could sign over the deed in lieu Moermond - responded she does not take deeds in lieu - asked who is showing up as the tax owner of the property Seeley - the Phipps show up as the tax owner Angelita - sheriff sale was 11-26-13 Moermond - they will not be stuck with the bill - the bank will be stuck with the bill if they are in title - she will leave it on the property - they are not the owner of the property and are not responsible - the bill stays with the property (There was some discussion between the Phipps and Yannarelly about items remaining in the property. The Phipps were advised to contact the inspector to get the items out; however, it is the mortgage company that probably put the padlock on the property.) Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 17 RLH TA 14-76 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 1615 MARGARET STREET. Sponsors: Lantry 1615 Margaret Street Delete the assessment. Ben Hosfield appeared. Seeley - Summary Abatement Order sent 11-8-13 with a compliance date of 11-13-13 - no mail returned - SAO sent to Covenant Capital and to the occupant - SAO has bags of yard waste and tires near the alley (video shown) City of Saint Paul Page 10 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Hosfield - he removed the things by the alley - he didn’t know the back yard was an issue Moermond - clearly there was a yard of leaves and people were raking it up - deleted the assessment Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 18 RLH TA 14-6 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1404A, Assessment No. 148503 at 1152 MARION STREET. (Amended to Project No. J1404A3, Assessment No. 148520) Sponsors: Brendmoen 1152 Marion Street To be laid over for 3 months. If no more nuisance abatement, LHO will recommend deleting the assessment. Darlene Hoppe and Rosa Patterson appeared. Paula Seeley - summary abatement order sent 10-23-13 with compliance date of 10-30-13 - work was done 10-31-13 - sent to Darlene Hoppe and occupant - summary abatement includes pallet, wood, uncovered garbage containers, and light bulbs in alley Hoppe - said there were two containers open - there was a broken dresser - she never had light bulbs in her containers (Video shown) Seeley - when people see containers without covers, it is inviting Peterson - in response to a question, responded that one of the containers was hers - pickup is on Mondays - they wouldn’t pickup the barrel with the light bulbs in it Moermond - she sees that the notice went out on Wednesday, the 23rd - on Monday, there would be garbage pickup - she would have learned on Monday for sure - she wondering why they didn’t address it Patterson - she called the person that came out there on the 31st - they picked up the containers - she pulled that container into the garage - the summary abatement order talks specifically about containers and light bulbs City of Saint Paul Page 11 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - the people next door were remodeling Hoppe - a whole bucketful of light bulbs would have to be someone from construction - she pays the bill next month - no one else was living upstairs Moermond - the notice that went out said specifically that the barrel with the light bulbs would have to be taken care - the responsibility for garbage service lies with the landlord - she sees that there was notice and there was opportunity given to clean it up - she is not hearing there was a stop taken to deal with this Hoppe - there was a stop because Peterson called someone - people next door put stuff there all the time - if they had belonged to Patterson, she would have put it back in the garage - she is the best tenant Hoppe has had Moermond - will lay this over for three months - if there are no problems there, she will recommend they delete it - if there are problems, she will recommend they approve it Referred to the City Council due back on 2/19/2014 (Public Hearing to be continued to May 21, 2014) 19 RLH TA 14-54 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 1846 MARSHALL AVENUE. Sponsors: Stark 1846 Marshall Avenue No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 20 RLH TA 14-52 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1404A, Assessment No. 148503 at 515-517 MINNEHAHA AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Brendmoen 515 Minnehaha Avenue East Delete the assessment. Notification went to previous owner. Mai Vang - said this would be the second reschedule - told owner she could read the written statement at the hearing - owner is recovering from a broken leg Moermond - assessment should be deleted City of Saint Paul Page 12 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - she closed on October 14 - the notice went out 11-14-13 Paula Seeley - it was a mess yesterday Referred to the City Council due back on 2/19/2014 21 RLH TA 14-74 Deleting the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 610 MINNEHAHA AVENUE EAST. Sponsors: Bostrom Owner to provide closing statement. Recommendation is forthcoming. 610 Minnehaha Avenue East Bonnie Barlage - it is cleanup Seeley - Summary Abatement Order sent 10-30-13 - work done on 11-8-13 - orders sent to James Sundberg, Fletcher, and occupant - orders to remove mattresses from rear yard Barlage - it is a new owner Moermond - this assessment stays with the property - laid over for two weeks to get it squared away - she would like to know when the property got transferred Laid Over to the Legislative Hearings due back on 2/18/2014 22 RLH TA 14-65 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 1232 SEVENTH STREET EAST. Sponsors: Bostrom 1232 Seventh Street East Laid over to get more information from the work crew and owner's contractor. Rose Blalock, TAV Investors, owner, and Mr. Frelix Frelix - TAV is a family business Blalock - has no clue of what this is. Seeley - Summary Abatement Order was sent on 10-15-13 with a compliance date of City of Saint Paul Page 13 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 10-25-13 - work as done on 11-4-13 - no mail returned - several complaints of overflowing dumpster on property - previous complaints of trash in yard, snow and ice - orders sent to Blalock and occupant to empty dumpster or remove it - complaint came from fire inspector who wanted it out of there (video shown) Blalock - they had a contractor who was doing a tear down of the garage - Inspector James Thomas was coming around and interfering - they had problems with neighborboods putting things into the dumpster - she thought the City had removed the dumpster - the company that rented the dumpster was the one who came - they are trying to figure out how they are stuck with a bill - they cleaned up after every notice - Inspector James was harassing the contractors - they did get a new inspector - he put a notice on the door saying everyone in the building had to be removed Moermond - the dumpster looked full Seeley - they dump it at Veolia and then they contact the company and tell them to pick it up - this originated from a long line of stuff from the certificate of occupancy (Lots of talk back and forth) Moermond - will lay over to February 18, 9:00. Laid Over to the Legislative Hearings due back on 2/18/2014 23 RLH TA 14-56 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. 1404T, Assessment No. 149003 at 683 SIMON AVENUE. Sponsors: Brendmoen No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 24 RLH TA 14-55 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 290 STINSON STREET. Sponsors: Brendmoen 290 Stinson Street Approve the assessment and spread the payments over 3 years. Piper Van Ness appeared - she got a notice to get this cleaned up City of Saint Paul Page 14 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - the renter said the stuff was not hers - her husband went over and removed some stuff - she got another notice - she called the officer and he said it looked like it had been cleaned up so don’t worry about it Seeley - summary abatement order was sent 11-14-13 - work was done on 11-21-13 for $476 - sent to Piper Van Ness and occupant (video shown) Ness - said she was surprised and had no idea what it looked like - it was not her stuff Moermond - recommends approval and divide over 3 years (owner returned to the legislative hearing room later) Van Ness - talked to her husband, and he was wondering if it is possible to make it the tenant’s responsibility Moermond - that is a private contractural relationship with the tenant Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 25 RLH TA 14-79 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. 1404T, Assessment No. 149003 at 1046 STINSON STREET. Sponsors: Thao No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 26 RLH TA 14-66 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 523 TEDESCO STREET. Sponsors: Brendmoen No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 27 RLH TA 14-67 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 832 THIRD STREET EAST. Sponsors: Lantry City of Saint Paul Page 15 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 No show; approve the assessment. Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 28 RLH TA 14-68 Ratifying the Appealed Special Tax Assessment for Real Estate Project No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504 at 647 VAN BUREN AVENUE. Sponsors: Thao 647 Van Buren Avenue Reduce the assessment from $476 to $237. Stephane Reis appeared. Seeley - Summary Abatement Order sent 11-6-13 - work was done on 11-14-13 for $476 - no mail returned - SAO also issued 7-13-13 about loose garbage outside container rear yard alley - orders went to Tim Reis Construction and to occupant Reis - she never got the original letter - if you look at the history, they take care of it - during this time period, the tenant took off - at one time, there was a van in the backyard (video shown) Reis - she didn’t know it was there - they never let things go to assessment - she had a tow truck called to pick up the van Seeley - Skally sent a SAO in July on the same thing as Novmber (they looked at photographs together, then they went to Seeley’s laptop to look at photos) (looked at video again) Reis - they clean up everything - they cannot afford this assessment - if she had the first order, she would have had it cleaned up Moermond - asked for other history Seeley – one in 2012 and one in 2011; one a year Moermond - there is responsibility there City of Saint Paul Page 16 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - owner didn’t get the order - she has taken care of things in the past - she will cut the assessment in half to $237 Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 Special Tax Assessment Rolls 29 RLH AR 14-1 Ratifying the assessments for Collection of Vacant Building Fees billed April 8 to September 18, 2013. (File No. VB1405, Assessment No. 148804) Sponsors: Lantry Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 30 RLH AR 14-2 Ratifying the assessments for Property Clean Up Services during November 2013. (File No. J1405A, Assessment No. 148504) Sponsors: Lantry Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 31 RLH AR 14-3 Ratifying the assessments for Trash Hauling Services during November 2013. (File No. J1405G, Assessment No. 148704) Sponsors: Lantry Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 32 RLH AR 14-4 Ratifying the assessments for Tree Removal Services during November 2013. (File No. 1404T, Assessment No. 149003) Sponsors: Lantry Referred to the City Council due back on 3/19/2014 11:00 a.m. Hearings Summary Abatement Orders 33 RLH SAO 14-2 Appeal of James Wacek and Nora Liksai to a Summary Abatement Order at 1364 ALASKA AVENUE. Sponsors: Tolbert Inspector gave owner extension until March 1, 2014 for compliance. Withdrawn 1:30 p.m. Hearings City of Saint Paul Page 17 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Fire Certificates of Occupancy 34 RLH FCO 14-22 Appeal of Lyle Rambo to a Correction Notice-Complaint Inspection at 877 CHARLES AVENUE. Sponsors: Thao 877 Charles Avenue Owner asked for extension of March 1 deadline as his wife passed. LH recommends April 1, 2014 deadline. RecommendGrant until March 1, 2014 for items to come into compliance with the exception of the roof which is granted until September 1, 2014. Lyle Rambo appeared along with Mike Hotzler. A.J. Neis - this is a Fire Certificate of Occupancy notice in response to a complaint received on Jan. 9 that the kitchen sink was falling - inspector went to the property and identified multiple code violations - there is a lot of deferred maintenance in the home - it is unkept - the certificate of odcupance is due for renewal Rambo - it is not the floor, it is the ceiling - (he approached and showed Moermond a sample of the ceiling) - the lady upstairs ran the sink over - he asked her when she will pay the rent - there are other things written there for the sidewalk - after his son passed away, he divided it so he can make the payments - the one upstairs is only a month and a half behind - neither tenant has paid anything this month - he is not supposed to do any lifting; he just had heart surgery - whenever he goes down, he takes care of the sidewalk - the inspector came out right after that snow storm - they don’t sweep the steps - his shovel disappeared; he has to take another shovel down there - (spoke of the tenants being behind in the rent). Moermond -asked does he have any other properties. Rambo - his son passed away and that is why he has it - his wife just got out of the hospita and is in a nursing home - the inspector has seen how dirty it is - he cannot find anything wrong with the cabinets Moermond - she does not see anything about the cabinets. Rambo - tenant will not let him in - he only goes in when they are there because he could get accused of taking City of Saint Paul Page 18 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 something Neis - the City holds the landlord responsible for damages caused by the tenant - the owner can also find a company to provide the services Rambo - he took the one upstairs to court, and the judge gave her three months to catch up on the back rent Neis - roof – there are a few pictures that show the shingles have deteriorated. This was only a complaint inspection - the inspector did not do a full inspection on the property - the chimney is an issue Moermond - it looks like there is a tree coming out of the chimney Rambo - he is not sure about the chimney Neis - Item 3 is to grant the inspector to the building so he can check the property - Item 4 – doors do not fit tightly into the frames, multiple locks on the doors, holes in the door - shower doors need maintenance in one of the units - fire extinguishers are not required, but have to be maintained if there - if the owner does not want to pay for new extinguishers, he could get rid of them - Item 8 is for holes in the wall - usually when there are holes of that nature, they are tenant related - windows are in good condition - frames are rotten and deteriorated - kitchen cabinets – Item 10 – are gross unsanitary. They are out of sync, a little warped, and need to be cleaned - he would instruct his inspectors to not touch the cabinets because of the stuff on them - there are missing tiles on the floor, some of the gaps are hard to see because the dirt looks like it could be caulk - the inspector only wrote up 12 orders, but there may be 30 other things that need to be written up - there seems to be a lot of deferred maintenance Rambo - knows it is dirty - the City comes up with complaints but when he tries to do anything about it, they say he has to go to court - he pays the sewer, water, garbage - now he gets a bill for storm sewer - his plan is to evict them come spring, and sell it Neis - one of the things he is looking at is the unsanitary conditions could cause them to condemn the building - if they are not getting compliance with the landlord, they can start off with a revocation with an order to vacate, then they will move to a condemnation City of Saint Paul Page 19 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - the revocation and condemnation have the same effect on the building - given the way the tenants are living, he does not know how the owner can get a really good start with the tenants living there Rambo - asked what protection does the landlord have Moermond - the City cannot get involved in private arrangements between him and the tenants Neis - asked how long he owned the property Rambo - he has had it for a long time Neis - there appears to be a trend of the building being in disrepair back to 2001 - (gave a list of problems dating back from 2001 to 2012) - rubbish, rent, leak in plumbing, insects, mold, etc. - 2011 – this was inspected by Imbertson, there was a garage issue, and it was taken down - the furnace and water heater were not being taken care of - it appears there is a long history of hard to maintain compliance - the owner should screen his tenants more - there are free classes for landlords Moermond - asked owner what he is looking for Rambo - time to do something so that he can get in there Moermond - she is sympathetic for a little bit - he has to get in and fix things Rambo - concurred and said he wants to get in there, too Neis - received ten days from Inspector Hall - he was expecting all the items to be complete by today - they do not inspect him to have his roof fixed in 9 days - the inspector would like a good faith effort - they wanted to get into the property today Rambo - he talked to the tenant today for the rent - she said the inspector was there today Moermond - she would like the inspector to come around March 1 and send out a letter - then, these things can be addressed except for the roof - she is happy to go to September 1 on the roof and chimney issues - the owner is going to get another set of orders City of Saint Paul Page 20 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - Neis should get the inspector scheduled and have the whole house looked at - the inspector will let the owner know the date and time - if the owner does not comply with those orders, the certificate will be revoked and the building emptied. Neis said the week of March 3 they will send out an appointment (Rambo showed receipts to Moermond) (Moermond is granting an extension to March 3 on the existing orders. The roof has an extension to September 1) Referred to the City Council due back on 3/5/2014 35 RLH FCO Appeal of Gary T Walker to a Re-Inspection Fire Certificate of 13-256 Occupancy with Deficiencies at 1011 VICTORIA STREET NORTH. Sponsors: Brendmoen 1011 Victoria Street North Grant the appeal to allow owner to continue to be in the Fire Certificate of Occupancy Program if he has his permit finaled by April 1, 2014. If not, he will be referred to the Vacant Building Program. Moermond - read into the record that the owner cannot come because of the distance Neis - he has not had an inspection since July - the building inspector did not want to sign off on the ceiling issue - it may need a variance granted - perhaps that is what is holding upon the permit Dornfeld - they do not have a current file - they closed it without it being code compliance . Neis - Insp. Thomas indicated the there was a final wall covering on walls and stairs - at 6 feet it should be 6'8" or get variance - the last notes on this file were 7-22-13 - very little left to complete - have not had any complaints - the warm air permit was finaled - the building permit may have been slowed up because of the head room - there are minor things to take care of - he is comfortable putting this back into the certificae of occupancy program Mai - owner said he has been in Arizona, but is back Neis - owner's son is living at the property - it still has the address of Arizona - he is comfortable putting it back in the certificate of occupancy program City of Saint Paul Page 21 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 Moermond - recommend the Council grant the appeal to allow the property to continue in the Fire certicate of occupancy program and not the vacant building program if the permits are finaled by April 1 - if they are not finaled by April 1, they can be in the vacant bulding program Referred to the City Council due back on 2/19/2014 2:30 p.m. Hearings Vacant Building Registrations 36 RLH VBR 14-7 Appeal of Loni LaBrocca to a Vacant Building Registration Notice at 72 ROSE AVENUE WEST. Sponsors: Brendmoen 72 Rose Avenue West Grant the appeal. Lonie LaBrocca is here. Neis - this was a referral sent to the office from St. Paul Regional Water on 11-20-13 for a water shutoff - a letter was sent out on 11-22-13 indicating the building was condemned and restore water service by 12-2-13 - On 12-3-13, Inspector Urmann followed up with Water Department & it was still off - notified owner and property manager - property manager said the tenant moved out and it would be taken care of - on 12-4-13, the water still had not been turned on - inspector went out, the property was still vacant - inspector indicated he did not provide the proper notice to owner Dornfeld - Kalis opened a Category 2 vacant building on 1-27-14 - he noted minimal things, other than the fact house was vacant - it was maintained and appeared to be in fair shape on the exterior - there is a truth-in-sale of housing on file LaBrocca - after the tenants moved out, the owners wanted to put the house up to sale - truth-in-sale of housing was done after it was vacated. Dornfeld - it looks clean - there are some open electrical wiring - it looks like it is in decent shape Neis - he cannot in good faith stand up for the inspector’s condemnation orders if notice was not given to the property owner LaBrocca City of Saint Paul Page 22 Legislative Hearings Minutes - Final February 4, 2014 - she has the printout of the payment to the water company made out on 11-16-13 - we didn’t get a letter - she called Perrier, who said he was not able to reverse it - he refered her to Matt, who suggested they come down there - Perrier had called the water company as well as she - they have confirmation that the water was turned out, and we had confirmation that payment was made on line - Water said there was a glitch in the system and that several people got notices that the water service was not paid when it was paid - she asked if it can be reversed Moermond - recommends granting the appeal Neis - asked if they need to do a certificae of occupancy inspection LaBrocca - to her knowledge, it will not be a rental; the owners will inhabit Neis - they will hold off until May to see if the transaction has gone through Referred to the City Council due back on 3/5/2014 Window Variances: No Hearing Necessary 37 RLH FCO 14-19 Appeal of Joe Brennan to a Correction Notice-Complaint Inspection at 724 WILSON AVENUE. Sponsors: Lantry 724 Wilson Avenue Grant a 2-inch ceiling height variance for both the front and back basement bedrooms. (grant without hearing) Referred to the City Council due back on 3/5/2014 City of Saint Paul Page 23