Joe Davis is a self-described “unconventional guy.”
But the city of Bloomington wants him to take a more conventional approach to the appearance of his residential property at 530 Washington St.
The city contends that it’s not just a matter of appearance. The housing and neighborhood development (HAND) department sees Davis’s property as violating the local law that says you can’t “throw, place, or scatter any garbage, recyclable materials or yard waste over or upon any premises, street, alley, either public or private…”,
That’s the basis of a series of warnings and fines that the city’s HAND department levied against the property last year. Davis appealed the fines to the board of public works, but they were upheld.
Based on the notices of violation that are included in the information packet for this Tuesday’s meeting of the board of public works, the fines total $200.
It is at Tuesday’s meeting that HAND will ask the board of public works for an abatement order, which would, if granted, allow the city to go onto Davis’s property to take the steps the city thinks are needed, in order to bring it under compliance with city code. The city would then send Davis a bill for the work.
Davis has responded by sending the city notice of a tort claim—against the city of Bloomington, the HAND department, the department of public works, and the board of public works. Continue reading “Building material or debris? Bloomington wants order to enter owner’s property, remove “garbage””