Council pushes rental housing plan to next year

Creston City Council took no action Tuesday on advancing a rental housing inspection policy waiting until next year which is when a new council member and mayor starts.

On the agenda, Mayor Gabe Carroll had appointed a committee of council members for the policy, including Jocelyn Blazek, Steve Wintermute and Kiki Scarberry. For months, council has reviewed and discussed a proposal to have a rental housing inspection policy to ensure adequate rental housing.

Blazek said the committee stopped meeting in June because of a complaint filed with the Iowa Public Information Board how committee meetings were conducted. Blazek said the committee has had meeting training since and has an “open and transparent as possible” process. Blazek said the last time the policy was discussed was in September with council. She said it has not been discussed since then.

Blazek said public works reviewed the notes from that meeting and made suggestions. The policy was to be discussed earlier this month but was removed from the agenda. Blazek said she was not comfortable with the wording and to make sure the discussion complied with public meeting rules.

Blazek said she still has some revisions and has informed city officials of them she thought were redundant, inconsistent or confusing.

At the request of Carroll, council member Kiki Scarberry also pointed out some safety items that need to be included in the policy and how ensuing inspections will be handled. Council member Josh Thompson questioned the efficiency of having some violations repaired in a 48-hour timeframe as stated in the proposal. He said it may be difficult for a landowner to find a contractor and supplies in time to repair the issue in two days.

“I think we need to do something,” said council member Richard Madison. “I’ve taken a beating even voting for this rental inspection but at the same time I don’t want to rush in and do it haphazardly.”

Madison moved to pass the policy but with a July 1 effective date, rather than Jan. 1. During those six months, council would make necessary revisions.

“I think it needs to be done, I just don’t want to rush in to something,” he said.

Blazek responded saying council can continue to correct every “potential pitfall.” “We’re never going to be able to do it. It will just set out here in limbo. I’d rather see it start sooner or later,” she said.

She said she was not in favor of taking action on the policy proposal.

Member Steve Wintermute wants the next council to take action on it but, “it still needs to get done.”

Madison’s motion died because of a lack of a second.

Council did approve a memorandum of understanding with Iowa Inspections LLC, hired to execute the rental inspection policy. Blazek said the action only updates the fee structure and the memorandum can be terminated by council at any time. Council members John Thompson and Richard Madison voted no.

During public forum, Loretta Harvey questioned the rental inspection policy. She expressed her concern about not knowing who will be the administrator, track records and registrations. She also asked about the Constitutionality noting how Orange City property owners and tenants sued that city and won.

Harvey, who has spoken previous times, again noted the conflict of interest regarding council. She said Scarberry is a licensed real estate agent has a property management business. She said incoming council member Martin Graham is married to one of Scarberry’s agents .

“I am not going away and I am gong to keep asking questions. Furthermore, there is a quiet majority of landlords, tenants and citizens who are paying attention to all of this,” she said.

Council did not respond to Harvey.

Tuesday was the last meeting for council member Brenda Lyell-Keate, who was not in attendance, and Carroll. Martin Graham was sworn in as a council member and Waylon Clayton as mayor. Both won their respective seats in the November election.

Carroll thanked the council for its efforts to improve the town during his time on council and emphasized the rental inspection plan considering the attention and debate it has received.

“It would have been easy to ignore the issue or pass an ordinance without any real teeth or enforcement particularly in the face of nasty people accusing you of doing so for personal gain or calling you Joseph Stalin,” he said. “I’m proud you decided to listened to a competent lawyer that understands the law and does not have their own selfish personal agenda.”