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A man walks down Matsui Alley near a vacant home at 1315 22nd St. in midtown Sacramento. The city recent sued the owners of the property, which burned in 2021.<\/p>\n
NATHANIEL LEVINE<\/p>\n
nlevine@sacbee.com<\/p>\n
A controversial proposal to create new enforcement program, funded by fee increases, to address Sacramento\u2019s vacant buildings and blighted lots was shelved during city committee meeting Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The city currently has two programs to address neglected properties: requiring weed abatement and mandating landlords register empty lots with the city for a $70 annual fee.<\/p>\n
But Sacramento\u2019s policies contain an \u201cenforcement gap\u201d to address illegal dumping, trespassing and \u201cimmoral acts,\u201d according to a staff report presented Tuesday during the city of Sacramento\u2019s Law and Legislation committee meeting.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have identified several codes within our municipal code that are antiquated,\u201d said Peter Lemos, a chief within the city\u2019s Code and Housing Enforcement.<\/p>\n
The city\u2019s programs do not address vacant buildings and storefronts, since these spaces are not required to be enrolled in the existing vacant lot program. Only about half of the eligible properties are registered as vacant lots \u2014 2,514 of the 5,112 parcels city staff have identified.<\/p>\n
Council members sitting on the committee said the code enforcement\u2019s new proposals applied a heavy burden to property owners of every size, echoing lobbyists, business advocates and real estate agents who arrived at City Hall to oppose the planned fees.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s nothing surgical in this proposal, it\u2019s an obvious cash grab,\u201d said Matt McDonald, the vice president of local public affairs with the California Apartment Association, a trade group representing rental homes and apartments.<\/p>\n
The city staff proposed three different models to inspect all vacant lots and vacant buildings: creating an enforcement team by hiring 22 staff members to inspect properties each month with a $628 fee for landlords; increasing registration and inspection costs for land to $690 and buildings to $887 for landlords; and a combination of both enforcement and registration costs.<\/p>\n
The current ordinance has code enforcement officers responding to complaints or to ensure fire safety, said Lemos. There is not a proactive approach, he added.<\/p>\n
But the proposal faced blowback from real estate agents, lobbyists and other advocates for properties. Many public speakers requested the council members rely on current programs and penalize irresponsible landlords rather than a single-handed approach targeting everyone.<\/p>\n
The fee structure presented Tuesday is too high and requires a rigrious monthly monitoring system and could add financial pressure for property owners, said Tishiana Mann, a policy and economic development manager with the Sacramento Metro Chamber.<\/p>\n
Jeff Kessler, the president of the Vacancy Project, said a new enforcement program is necessary because rents would decrease if more landlords were motivated to rent their spaces. However, rents have soared and long-term businesses instead must relocate, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are in a housing affordability crisis, and one key issue contributing to that is speculative land hoarding of real estate,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The new enforcement program comes as the number of vacant lots increased in recent months to 5,115 on Feb. 20 from 4,270 on Sept. 3, according to the city\u2019s presentation.<\/p>\n
Councilmember Roger Dickinson said there are two groups of property owners: developers who own land but are deterred by market conditions and longtime owners who are negligent in their maintenance.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a little bit of a challenge to reconcile those two different world views,\u201d Dickinson said. \u201cIt seems to me, personally, I think we need to do more.\u201d<\/p>\n
Council members tabled the proposal Tuesday and will discuss a different program with the city\u2019s staff.<\/p>\n
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