Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min<\/p>\n
Upper Darby<\/a> may soon hand out tickets for more than a dozen property maintenance and \u201cquality of life violations,\u201d including improper waste disposal, overgrown grass, and illegal dumpster placement. <\/p>\n Upper Darby\u2019s council earlier this month advanced an ordinance that would allow the township\u2019s licenses and inspections department to dole out \u201cquick tickets\u201d for 17 property-related violations. Tickets would range from $50 to $100 and would, according to officials, allow the township to enforce property-related infractions without engaging in a drawn-out compliance process each time. <\/p>\n \u201cThis is something that we really need. Our inspectors really need it,\u201d Amrinder Singh, Upper Darby\u2019s director of licenses and inspections, said at an Aug. 19 meeting. <\/p>\n Singh said the program would give inspectors \u201canother practical tool to address routine violations more quickly and encourage prompt, corrective action\u201d with the ultimate goal of \u201ctrying to change human behavior.\u201d <\/p>\n Council voted to advertise an ordinance establishing the property maintenance quick ticket program and is set to vote on the ordinance on Sept. 2.<\/p>\n Upper Darby currently addresses property issues through a violation and compliance process, which Singh said can be lengthy and delay corrective action. Under the existing system, code enforcement officers conduct an inspection, either proactively or following complaints. If a violation is detected, the property owner receives written notice describing the infraction and required action with a deadline. After the compliance period, the property is reinspected, and, if the issue isn\u2019t corrected, enforcement actions can be taken, including fines, citations, and criminal proceedings before a district judge. <\/p>\n Ultimately, Singh said, many property owners just ignore the citations. <\/p>\n The proposed program would send tickets straight to property owners after violations are documented, bypassing the existing, and sometimes protracted, process. Money collected through tickets would go into Upper Darby\u2019s general fund. Property owners will be able to appeal tickets to the township, Singh said. The township\u2019s existing violation process would still exist, Singh said, and would work in tandem with the quick tickets. <\/p>\n Norristown<\/a> and Reading<\/a> have implemented similar programs. <\/p>\n The township selected the 17 specific violations because they contribute to unsafe conditions, neighborhood blight, pests, and pedestrian obstructions, Singh said. <\/p>\n Upper Darby\u2019s licenses and inspection department has received over 7,000 complaints this year, according to Singh, with around 40% being for grass and trash violations. <\/p>\n At recent council meetings, residents have complained of rat infestations and improper trash storage in their neighborhoods. <\/p>\n If passed by council, the quick ticket program ordinance would go into effect immediately, but fees and penalties wouldn\u2019t be collected until Jan. 1. Singh said the four-month wind-up would allow the department to train inspectors, establish payment procedures, and engage in education and outreach with residents. <\/p>\n Council members at the Aug. 19 meeting seemed poised to approve the program. Council member Myron McNeely said it is \u201cway overdue.\u201d <\/p>\n Here\u2019s a full list of the violations proposed for enforcement under the quick ticket program: <\/p>\n Accumulation of rubbish, garbage, or debris<\/p>\n Improper dumping or disposal of waste<\/p>\n Failure to clean up animal waste<\/p>\n Improper storage of trash containers or recyclables<\/p>\n High weeds or overgrown grass<\/p>\n Overgrowth obstructing sidewalks or public rights of way<\/p>\n Outside placement of indoor furniture or appliances<\/p>\n Exterior accumulation of construction debris or materials<\/p>\n Improper storage of hazardous materials<\/p>\n Illegal placement or storage of dumpsters without authorization<\/p>\n Unregistered, uninspected, unsafe, immobilized, or inoperative motor vehicles <\/p>\n Unsafe or noncompliant swimming pools<\/p>\n Snow and ice removal violations<\/p>\n Graffiti defacement<\/p>\n Failure to obtain required permits<\/p>\n Failure to post required permit placards<\/p>\n Failure to secure vacant unoccupied structures<\/p>\n This suburban content is produced with support from the Leslie Miller and Richard Worley Foundation and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism. Editorial content is created independently of the project donors. Gifts to support The Inquirer\u2019s high-impact journalism can be made at inquirer.com\/donate<\/a>. A list of Lenfest Institute donors can be found at lenfestinstitute.org\/supporters<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min Upper Darby may soon hand out tickets for more than a dozen property…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":273899,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[147,149,148,150,115185],"class_list":["post-273898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-upper-darby","tag-upper-darby","tag-upper-darby-headlines","tag-upper-darby-news","tag-upper-darby-township","tag-upper-darby-quick-tickets-property-maintenance-violations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273898","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=273898"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/273898\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/273899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=273898"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=273898"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=273898"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}