Bunkie officials want to get tougher on blight

Blighted property is a problem statewide, but Bunkie may become part of a pilot program that will help municipalities control that problem.

Cliff Palmer, executive director of Louisiana Municipal Advisory & Technical Services Bureau (LaMATS), addressed the City Council at its Jan. 10 meeting.

Palmer said he has been in discussions with Mayor Bruce Coulon in past months about the town’s problems with neglected and abandoned propoerties. He said LaMATS may be able to help the municipality make progress in combating that issue.

“Blighted properties keep property values down,” Palmer said. “It is not something you want to live next to.”

Palmer said LaMATS -- a subsidiary of the Louisiana Municipal Association -- “brings tools to address blight in a significant way.”

The most important assistance it provides is in navigating the legal minefield involving property rights and in tracking down the absentee landowners -- including any hard-to-find heirs in other parts of the country.

“Even the most irresponsible landowner has a lot of rights,” he said, adding that the proper steps have to be addressed for the program to successful.

LaMATS’ Blighted Property Program services are provided free of charge to municipalities.

“Since we are part of the LMA, you are our customers and you are our boss,” Palmer said.

PILOT PROGRAM

He said he is encouraged by officials’ comments and reaction to the LaMATS program, which is why he wants Bunkie to be part of a four or five-municipality pilot program. If it is successful, it will be offered to all small to mid-sized municipalities.

After the meeting, Palmer said he considers the two-year pilot program to have started at the meeting. He said Bunkie is “perfect, just ideal for this program.

“I am particularly excited by the united front of the mayor and council in wanting to fight the blight,” he said. “That is a key point for LaMATS and any partners we bring in to provide resources in a community.”

He said he will bring a delegation of representatives from the Louisiana Housing Corp. and other potential partnering agencies to Bunkie in a few weeks to formally begin planning for the program.

Palmer told the council that big cities’ blight problems are too large for LaMATS to handle with its limited resources.

“We can fully address 200 of our (LMA) members’ needs for what it would cost to address a few large members’ problems,” Palmer said. “Also, large cities have many more resources than the smaller municipalities have.”

Palmer said one of the first things Bunkie needs is an inventory of the town’s blight so it can determine which properties to address first.

Many absentee owners think they can pay a little property tax and they have met their obligation. Palmer said they need to be taught that they also have a responsibility to obey all municipal ordinances and maintain their property.

Councilwoman Brenda Sampson said neglected/abandoned property has been a major concern of hers since she was elected to the council and she is encouraged by Palmer’s program.

Councilman Travis Armand said the council has strengthened its ordinances over the past few years” but we are unable to do a whole lot with it.”

Palmer said Bunkie’s ordinances concerning abandoned buildings and overgrown lots is as strong, or stronger, than most other municipalities its size.

To make significant progress against blight, “you will have to look at what larger cities are doing.”

Palmer said the normal process of obtaining abandoned property can take four years before the property can be sent to a sheriff’s sale for failure to pay maintenance costs and/or property taxes.

‘NUCLEAR OPTION’

He said there is a “nuclear option” some cities have used with success.

If a property is in violation of an ordinance, Palmer said the municipality can issue a citation to the property owner. If the owner ignores the notice to pay the citation -- which many do -- “you can move that property to foreclosure within a year.”

Palmer emphasized that the purpose of the LaMATS’ program is not to take people’s property, but rather to force them to maintain their property in accordance with city oridnances.

It will also help to restore property taxes on buildings and land whose owners have not been paying taxes.

Palmer said Bunkie does not currently have the legal authority to invoke the “nuclear option.” It would have to adopt an ordinance stating that if a property owner cited for creating a nuisance fails to abate that nuisance and pay the fine for the citation, and after due legal process, the property would be foreclosed.

Palmer said there are two types of “negligent” property owners who would be identified in the proposed program.

The largest group are the “nose thumbers” who intentionally ignore their responsibility to maintain their property in the city. These usually throw away notices or never sign for the certified letters.

“They believe if they ignore the letters, you will go away -- probably because you have before,” Palmer said.

These are the targets of the “nuclear option.”

The second, much smaller, group are those who are economically unable to maintain the property. Many of those live on the property or nearby.

He said the city would have to deal with those who are truly indigent “in a spirit of compassion.”

There are some government programs available to help “weatherize” homes that do not comply with municipal ordinances. Those programs are specifically designed to help low-income residents make needed repairs to their homes, he noted.