Again denied: Bloomington BPW rejects resident’s appeal of citation, OKs cleanup order

On Tuesday night, Bloomington’s board of public works denied the appeal by Joe Davis for a citation by the city—for what the city staff considers to be violations of the health and sanitation parts of city code (Title 6) at his South Washington Street property.

In a separate action, the three-member board granted the request from the city’s housing and neighborhood development (HAND) department for a continuous abatement of Davis’s property. That means that the city can come onto the property and put it into a condition that the city believes is compliant with local code.

After Tuesday’s meeting, Davis told The B Square that he intends to challenge the board’s decisions in the Monroe County circuit court.

Davis has experience with that kind of legal challenge. He represented himself in connection with a previous abatement order, which the city started to enforce in the second week of August.  For that order, Davis did not prevail in his court action, but did run out the clock on the city’s abatement order, which expired on Aug. 11.

This week’s action by the board of public works follows last week’s decision by the city’s board of zoning appeals (BZA), to deny Davis’s appeal of a different citation—for backyard parking and storage (Title 20).

Davis told The B Square he will also challenge the BZA’s decision in circuit court.

On Davis’s property various materials and artifacts are visible, which the city concludes are a violation of local code. B Square photographs of the property are included below.
Continue reading “Again denied: Bloomington BPW rejects resident’s appeal of citation, OKs cleanup order”

Bloomington BZA denies resident’s appeal of citation for backyard parking, storage violations

Parked in Joe Davis’s backyard at 530 S. Washington Street are three vehicles and a trailer that have various materials stacked on them. Stacked outside in other places in the backyard, and on Davis’s front porch, are more materials.

The city of Bloomington contends that the conditions at 530 South Washington violate two parts of city zoning code—one about parking on unimproved surfaces and another about outside storage.

The city sent Davis warnings in August of 2021 and October of 2022, which had compliance deadlines that the city considers unmet. So in mid-August of this year, the city’s planning and transportation department issued a notice of violation with fines totaling $7,650.

Davis appealed the notice of violation.  But on Thursday night, Bloomington’s board of zoning appeals (BZA) upheld the notice.

Within the city’s process, that ends the options for Davis to appeal. But in the Monroe County circuit court, he could appeal the notice and the amount of the fine.

Related to the same conditions on his property, Davis is scheduled to appear next Tuesday in front of the board of public works, to appeal a notice of violation for a different part of city code, which deals with health and sanitation. The city’s housing and neighborhood development (HAND) department is also asking the board to approve a continuous abatement order. Continue reading “Bloomington BZA denies resident’s appeal of citation for backyard parking, storage violations”

Two kinds of code, zoning vs. garbage: Bloomington man’s appeal of zoning citation set for this week

At least as far back as 2021, South Washington Street property owner and resident Joe Davis has been cited by the city of Bloomington for violations of city code.

There are two basic kinds of violation for which the city has cited Davis. One kind are  citations under Title 6, for “garbage” that the city contends Davis has placed on his property. The other kind are citations under Title 20, for violations of the zoning code, which involves outdoor storage and backyard parking.

It’s the citations for Title 20 zoning code violations that Davis will be appealing on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. in front of Bloomington’s board of zoning appeals (BZA).

Davis’s appeal of the Title 6 citations was postponed last week by Bloomington’s board of public works. The Title 6 appeal will be back on the board of public works agenda for Oct. 24.

Continue reading “Two kinds of code, zoning vs. garbage: Bloomington man’s appeal of zoning citation set for this week”

Bloomington board: No action on ‘garbage’, or gateway, or Griffin Realty services for police HQ sale

After two and a half hours on Tuesday night, Bloomington’s board of public works adjourned its meeting without acting on three controversial agenda items.

The items involved: the Miller-Showers gateway project; a professional services agreement with Griffin Realty in connection with the sale of the 3rd Street police station; and the city’s enforcement of city code against “garbage,” which it says Joe Davis is keeping on his South Washington Street property. Continue reading “Bloomington board: No action on ‘garbage’, or gateway, or Griffin Realty services for police HQ sale”

Skirmish over “garbage” between homeowner, city of Bloomington set for next week

For more than a year, and probably much longer, the city of Bloomington has been trying to convince Joe Davis to take a more conventional approach to his South Washington Street house and yard.

But Davis describes himself as an “unconventional guy.” Parked in the backyard with building materials stacked on them are a truck, and a van with a trailer. The county’s online property lookup system has aerial imagery showing the two vehicles sitting in the backyard at least as far back as 2014.

Davis has old bathtubs arranged around the place as catchment basins, and a compost pile.

Davis describes the place as an active building site, where he’s been working to renovate the house. He bought the place in 2009 for $65,000. He has described how the house was damaged by fire before he bought it and had sat abandoned for two years.

During that period all the pipes burst because there was no heat, the wiring was stolen and homeless people were living, Davis has said.

Where Davis sees an “organic building site,” the city sees a raft of code violations.

So next Tuesday’s meeting of Bloomington’s board of public works marks the start of another chapter in the saga of attempts to enforce city code against Davis’s property. [Updated Tues., Sept. 26, 2023: Davis was notified by public works staff shortly after 8 a.m. on the day of the scheduled hearings about his property that the proceedings would be put off—until the next meeting of the board of public works, which falls on Oct. 9, 2023. The reason given was a staff illness. This is the second time the hearings have been delayed by the city.] Continue reading “Skirmish over “garbage” between homeowner, city of Bloomington set for next week”

Duke Energy appeals Bloomington fines over use of right-of-way during power line upgrade project

The city of Bloomington has fined Duke Energy a total of $4,200 in connection with one of the power company’s new transmission line towers along South Rogers Street.

But Duke has appealed at least some of the fine amounts.

Duke’s appeal appears on the Tuesday meeting agenda for the city’s three-member board of public works. Continue reading “Duke Energy appeals Bloomington fines over use of right-of-way during power line upgrade project”

Parking notebook: Fully staffed enforcement crews mean more tickets in downtown Bloomington

Anecdotally, the number of parking tickets visible on windshields in downtown Bloomington over the last couple of months has increased.

It’s not just a gut feel.

Based on data provided by the Bloomington city clerk’s office, in January of this year 4,550 parking citations were issued by parking enforcement officers. In February they issued 5,537 citations.

The combined total of 10,087 tickets for the first two months of 2023 is the highest number of citations in any year for the last 13 years.

The next highest two-month total was 20 percent less—8,051 in 2012. Continue reading “Parking notebook: Fully staffed enforcement crews mean more tickets in downtown Bloomington”

Appeal of noise violation ticket, with some wrinkles, given routine denial by Bloomington

At its regular Tuesday meeting, Bloomington’s three-member board of public works denied an appeal by a resident for a noise violation ticket.

This scan is from a revised information packet provided to the Bloomington board of public works for its Jan. 3, 2022 meeting. (1) The social security number of the ticketed person was removed only after initial publication of the packet. (2) The fine amount was a part of the scan in the initial packet, but was added after the ticket was issued—which is standard practice.

That’s par for the course when a noise ordinance violation is appealed to the board—in part because the local law establishes a low and clear bar for what qualifies as an unreasonable noise.

Between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m. any sound that is audible for a person with normal hearing, who is outside the premises where the sound is originating, counts as a violation.

The case heard on Tuesday included a couple of wrinkles. One was the delay between the issuance of the ticket and its appeal. The ticket was issued just after midnight on Aug. 21, 2022.

The three-month delay got some questions from board members at their work session, which was held an hour and a half before the regular meeting.

The other wrinkle did not get any board discussion: Included in the initial publication of the board’s meeting information packet was an image scan of the ticket, which featured the violator’s social security number (SSN).

Indiana’s Access to Public Records Act prohibits a public agency from releasing a SSN, unless it’s specifically required by a state or federal statute .

In a subsequent version of the meeting information packet, the social security number had been scrubbed from the image, not redacted with a more typical black box.

The citation was for excessive noise on Aug. 21 last year, in connection with a party in the 1300 block of North Washington Street. Continue reading “Appeal of noise violation ticket, with some wrinkles, given routine denial by Bloomington”

Bloomington BPW affirms order to AT&T: Take gear off Johnson’s Creamery smokestack by May 31

At its Tuesday evening meeting, Bloomington’s board of public works voted to affirm an order from the city’s housing and neighborhood development (HAND) department, which requires AT&T to remove its communications equipment from near the top of the Johnson’s Creamery smokestack—by midnight on May 31.

The removal of AT&T’s equipment will help set the stage for the owner’s partial demolition of the smokestack—from 140 feet down to 60 feet. The building, with its smokestack, is owned by Peerless Development.

The partial demolition was ordered by HAND because an engineering study determined the smokestack is unsafe.

If AT&T doesn’t comply with the order to vacate, it could face a daily fine of $500 from the city of Bloomington. Continue reading “Bloomington BPW affirms order to AT&T: Take gear off Johnson’s Creamery smokestack by May 31”

Lack of compliance with traffic plan: $25K in fines on student housing developer upheld by Bloomington

At its regular Tuesday meeting, Bloomington’s three-member board of public works upheld about $25,000 in fines on Landmark Properties.

The developer is constructing a 1000-bed student-oriented housing development a few blocks south of Indiana University’s football stadium.

Landmark had appealed the fines, which were imposed for violations of its maintenance of traffic plan. That’s a plan that the city requires all developers to submit and follow in the course of construction. It includes signage and barricades for pedestrian walkways when sidewalks are closed, with directions to an alternate route.

The photos accompanying this article were taken on Jan. 31, 2022, and show what appear to be conditions that have now been put in compliance with the maintenance of traffic plan. Continue reading “Lack of compliance with traffic plan: $25K in fines on student housing developer upheld by Bloomington”