The Sweet Home City Council last week held the first reading of an update to the city’s chronic nuisance property ordinance that will allow the police chief latitude in voluntary compliance agreements.
The ordinance allows the city to address properties where crimes are repeatedly committed. Under the ordinance, they are viewed as chronic nuisance properties, and property owners can enter into voluntary compliance agreements to reduce the amount of crime associated with a property.
After repeated criminal offenses, the Municipal Court can prohibit the use of chronic nuisance properties.
Under the ordinance, after two criminal incidents in a 90-day period, the police chief will contact responsible parties and then enter into a voluntary compliance agreement. After a third incident, the City Council will be advised and then may direct city staff to take action, including taking the case to court, where fines may be imposed and the property closed to use for 30 to 180 days.
The council adopted the ordinance in 2014.
In recent months, city committees and staff have been working on updates to the ordinance.
“(Police Chief) Jeff (Lynn) and (City Attorney) Robert (Snyder) have spent a significant amount of time with it, including working with some local landowners to address some of their concerns,” said City Manager Ray Towry during the regular City Council meeting on Sept. 12.
“I think the big thing you’ll see in this, the change is to allow the chief to be a little bit more effective in how he constructs the voluntary compliance agreement.”
The ordinance has been used once, Snyder said.
“When you do that with an ordinance, you find things you want to change and modify and what will work better and what you don’t want, that sort of thing. That basically is what generated this amendment.”
The update includes two amendments, Snyder said. The first recognizes that not all responsible parties may be party to the compliance agreement, and the second sets a term for the compliance agreement.
The first amendment was brought about to recognize that not all responsible parties may be available, for various reasons, to sign the compliance agreement, although the parties need to enter into the agreement so that a solution can be obtained, Snyder said.
The second amendment puts a term of up to 12 months on compliance agreements, as determined by the police chief or his designee, based on the specific facts of each case.
The second amendment “is to give the chief of police the flexibility to try to gain compliance using the voluntary compliance agreement before the case goes to the City Council or court,” Snyder explained.
An example of how the amendment changes the process is when a third violation occurs before a compliance agreement is in place.
After a second violation, the police chief begins the compliance agreement process, but a third violation occurs –a minor in possession charge, curfew violation or littering, for example.
Snyder asked whether that means it automatically goes on to the council.
Under the amendment, the chief can consider several factors, such as the gravity of the offense and the cooperativeness of the parties, and continue with an agreement instead of sending the case to the council.
The amendment gives the chief similar latitude to consider continuing the agreement if a third offense occurs after an agreement is in place.
The council voted 5-0 to hold the first reading of the amendments. It will hold the second reading at its regular meeting on Sept. 26. After a third reading on Oct. 10, the council may decide whether to adopt the ordinance amendments.
Voting to approve the first reading were councilors Susan Coleman, Lisa Gourley, Mayor Greg Mahler, Dave Trask and Diane Gerson. James Goble was absent because he had to work.
In other business, the council voted to purchase new software from Tyler Technologies for Municipal Court at a maximum cost of $22,000 for licenses, $3,525 in annual maintenance fees and $6,625 to convert data from the old system.
The city changed software in 2003 when its current software provider no longer supported municipal courts, said Finance Director Pat Gray. With updates to the current software two years ago, reports are difficult to run, and several have been lost. It I also difficult for clerks to view multiple cases in a single viewing.
With a desire to use customer friendly services like auto calls for jury selection, court reminders and warrant notification and online payments, court staff began looking into different software options, Gray said. Tyler was recommended in many courts.
The software is compatible with the software used by the Sweet Home Police Department, Gray said, and it will allow upgrades to electronic ticketing.
The council also held the first reading of an ordinance organizing city committees into a single ordinance. They include the Parks Board, Traffic Safety Committee and Tree Commission. The Library Board was not included because it is governed by state law.
In another action, the council adjusted its Public Transit Grant Fund for 2016-17 to reflect an excess of $7,260 in grant funds received by the Senior Center in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year, which ended on June 30.
The 2017-18 budget includes a 10-percent buffer to account for the possibility of additional funds during the fourth quarter when it’s too late for the council to pass a supplemental budget prior to the end of the fiscal year.