EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 El Paso City Council approved developing a safety inspection plan on Tuesday after multiple incidents of debris falling from downtown El Paso buildings, including one earlier this month that injured a person. <\/p>\n
During Tuesday’s meeting, City Council leaders approved developing a plan to inspect downtown buildings taller than two stories for potential safety hazards, prioritizing eight properties for initial review. <\/p>\n
According to officials, eight specific properties will get initial attention during the first 30 days, and city staff has 45 days to report back with findings and recommendations.<\/p>\n
City Rep. Alejandra Chavez, who represents West El Paso and the Upper Valley, said the goal is to be proactive.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we just want to make sure that we’re being proactive, that the community knows that we’re creating policy to protect them,\u201d Chavez said.<\/p>\n
The approval comes after part of a vacant building near San Antonio Avenue and Mesa Street came crashing down earlier this month, injuring one person. <\/p>\n
Another collapse happened in March, when part of a building fell on South El Paso Street.<\/p>\n
Downtown Management District Executive Director Joe Gudenrath said property owners who allow buildings to deteriorate put others at risk.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat they’re doing is posing a problem to everybody else, to the general public, to the taxpayers, the community at large,\u201d Gudenrath said.<\/p>\n
Gudenrath said the concerns extend beyond the recent incidents, noting that some properties have been deteriorating for years.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut a lot of those properties that were deteriorating when I arrived here 12 years ago for this position are still there, 12 years or more of deterioration,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
El Paso Code Enforcement Director Steve Alvarado said inspections are largely complaint-driven, but he believes additional inspections can help.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah. Our main goal is public safety. We want to protect the public, to make sure that they have a safe experience when they come downtown to visit,\u201d Alvarado said.<\/p>\n
However, getting inside buildings can be challenging because inspectors need permission from the property owner or a court order. <\/p>\n
Downtown and West El Paso city Rep. Chris Canales said that process could take time given the number of buildings involved.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the scale that we’re talking about, you know, potentially a few hundred buildings downtown, that would be a huge amount of time to go through the court process for all of this,\u201d Canales said.<\/p>\n
The plan will also consider whether property owners should pay for professional inspections and how to require repairs within 30 days of notification.<\/p>\n
Gudenrath said the city already has tools to enforce building codes and wants consistent enforcement.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor those people who don’t want to improve their properties and maintain the basic standards of code, they need to be held accountable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Alvarado said the city first issues a corrective notice to property owners. If the problem is not fixed within the required time, the owner can be summoned to court. <\/p>\n
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