What’s Right In Handling Blight?

Is it tall grass, wildflowers or a sign that someone needs help?

Sometimes something as basic as a home with overgrown grass that hasn’t been cut in months can be a sign of a more complex issue. How do you determine the difference between blight and a cry for help?

What needs to be done — is a blight ordinance the answer, or should a community task force address the issues?

These were among the questions raised earlier this month when Adam Hansen and Madeline “Buzz“Clem (pictured above) brought their concerns to the Rules and Ordnances Committee (R&O) of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM). 

A discussion about a whether Branford needs a blight ordinance brought five town departments heads together to discuss the issues at the Feb 17 R&O meeting. After two hours of discussion, it was obvious there are no easy answers.

Hansen: A Task Force

Hansen and Clem initially approached the RTM about establishing a blight ordinance to help deal with dilapidated properties. Hansen, who is the RTM clerk and a Democratic representative from the 4th district, is a professional firefighter and paramedic in Milford.

When he addressed the RTM a few weeks ago, he made it clear he didn’t want an ordinance to be a punitive law—he wanted something with compassion to help people who are unable to take care of their properties. He said private contractors could possibly do pro-bono work or volunteer groups could raise money to help people with hardships.

Hansen told the R&O committee that blight can be a serious problem. He said as a fire lieutenant he knows that blighted homes can be risky for first responders and can be safety hazards for children. And he said blight can cause an economic impact on a neighborhood which affects the resale value of homes.

But Hansen also knows that blight can result from underlying personal problems. He said he doesn’t want a blight ordinance to just set fines and take people to court—- he wants provisions for people who are elderly, or people who have financial difficulties or mental health problems.

“In my heart of hearts, I’d like to see it be more of a community-based group,” Hansen said, adding that he doesn’t want a regulation that would be enforced with “a heavy hand.”

He said if an ordinance doesn’t solve the problems, then maybe neighbors could help neighbors through a community task force.

Clem, who serves on various town committees, is a member of the Board of Fire Commissioners. She is aware of properties in town that are blighted, and said other towns have also experienced an increase in blight problems in the past few years. She said if an ordinance is enacted, “It’s got to have enforcement behind it.”

The neighboring towns of Guilford and East Haven both have blight ordinances, which also make provisions for extenuating circumstances due to age, disability or economic problems. Those ordinances listed blight examples such roofs, windows and doors that are broken or damaged; yards that are filled with broken furniture and appliances; and overgrown grass and shrubbery.

Zoning Issues Or Blight?

Jennifer Acquino (pictured), Branford’s Zoning Enforcement Officer, said she typically receives at least one phone call a day in the spring and summer months about property complaints and blight-related matters. ​“Most people in the town think we have a blight ordinance and think that I enforce it.”

She said about 90 percent of the calls can be covered by the zoning regulations, and she sends a letter to the property owner. ​“Usually the property owner will take care of it,” she said. However, zoning regulations do not cover blight problems like tall grass. 

She said zoning violations can be enforced with fines and the town can take court action against long-time violators in serious cases.

Acquino said she works informally with the fire department, the health department and the counseling center in regard to zoning and blight problems that have underlying issues. She said there are provisions in the zoning regulations that permit her to make referrals to other departments for special circumstances.

She said some people can’t clean up their property, or afford the cost of hiring someone to do it, and they can’t pay a fine if one was levied. She said a blight ordinance might help in some situations, but not in others.

“A blight ordinance on a commercial piece of property is probably needed,” Acquino said, but added that residential problems are more complex. She said she would be in favor of a task force to help resolve problems

A Police Perspective

Branford Police Chief Kevin Halloran (pictured) said he has mixed feelings about a blight ordinance, depending on whether he looks at it from a law enforcement point of view or from that of a taxpayer.

“From a law enforcement perspective, it could be a helpful tool…if these properties are attracting crime,” he said.  However, from a taxpayer point of view, he said there would be costs involved with enforcing a blight ordinance.

“There’s a lot of things we need to think about,” the chief said in regard to an ordinance. “What weight does it hold…Who’s going to enforce it?”

Halloran said blight ordinances are necessary in large cities where there are widespread areas of blight.

Robin Sandler, who chairs the R&O, said East Haven’s blight ordinance includes fines and liens that can be placed on properties for noncompliance. Sandler said if the town has to step in to rectify the blight problem, such as having town crews cut the grass, then the property owner is charged and a lien can be placed on the property.

“I wonder if an ordinance is the wrong way to go, or maybe it should be a task force,” the police chief said.

However, he said there are some blight cases that need an ordinance, adding that there is a vacant property in town where the grass hasn’t been cut in years.

“You have to do a balancing act when you think about it,” Halloran said.

No Easy Answers

“Anything about a blight ordinance is complex. There are no easy answers,” said Michael Pascucilla (pictured), director of the East Shore District Health Department. “Eighty percent of cases are people who want to maintain their house but for whatever reason, they can’t,” he said.

Pascucilla, who has been a public health official in urban and rural settings for 20 years, said there are issues of age, poverty and mental health that prevent people from maintaining their properties.

Pascucilla said that in a few weeks, as the weather warms up, his phones will be “ringing off the hook” with people reporting problems of uncut grass and broken windows.

“What’s effective is spending the time to find out what’s going on,” he said, adding that someone may have lost his job or have cancer or there has been a death in the family. “Then you start bringing in the services to help them out.”

Pascucilla said Branford is different than big cities in terms of blight. He said it shouldn’t be up to the Public Works Department to maintain homes and yards and then try to charge the residents. He said that’s a financial burden that sometimes can’t be resolved through liens.

He said a blight ordinance could work in Branford but in his experience, a task force is a better way to deal with issues. “You have to correct the source of the problem,” Pascucilla said.

But he said there are also people who play games and claim “that’s not tall grass, it’s wildflowers,” because they don’t want to admit there’s a problem.

Pascucilla said it’s a different matter in cases where the landlord isn’t taking care of property. 

“On a blight ordinance, where are you going to draw the line?” Pascucilla said, adding that in terms of enforcement “it can be a Pandora’s box.”

Safety Rules

Acting Assistant Fire Chief Ron Mullen said he is 100 percent in favor of a blight ordinance, but he also agrees with Hansen about the possibility of forming a committee or task force.

He said the fire department has dealt with situations where hoarding has become a safety concern. He said sometimes hoarding spills out to the yard and becomes a blight problem. “It’s a real problem and it could be a fire hazard,” he said.

He said statewide codes allow fire marshals to issue written warnings in hoarding cases. He said sometimes it helps to contact family members to assist the hoarder. “Some of these people are at the end of their rope,” he said.

Mullen said an ordinance could be useful for commercial blight problems, and in instances of public safety.

“A blight ordinance is needed,” Mullen told the R&O committee, adding that the zoning enforcement officer’s powers are limited and so are his.

Counseling Services

Peter Cimino, director of the Branford Counseling Center, said he has dealt with blight cases when they involve mental health problems or hoarding. He said they are difficult, multi-faceted issues.

“There’s no black and white,” Cimino said when it comes to residential cases of blight. But he said when safety hazards are involved, “It’s a community issue.”

Cimino said an ordinance would need flexibility to deal with individual cases, or a task force could be another possibility. “If you’re going to have a task force, it has to be backed by the town,” he said.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Following the discussion, Sandler asked the committee members whether the blight ordinance should remain on the agenda or be removed. “I’m not sure this committee is equipped to deal with all these issues,” Sandler said.

“I don’t think an ordinance for blight at this time is needed,” said John Leonard, an RTM member who represents the 5th district. He said there are other avenues to consider.

Hansen asked if the RTM could create tack force.

Sandler, an attorney, said creating a task force might be an executive decision that the first selectman would address.

Peter Black, who is not a member of R&O, but is a Republican RTM representative in the 3rd district, said the RTM could pass a resolution asking the board of selectmen to develop a task force. “I would prefer it to be an executive decision,” Black said.

Alphonse Ippolitto Jr., one of the newest members of the RTM, made a motion to remove the blight ordinance issue from the agenda. 

Chris Sullivan, the Democratic minority leader on the RTM, who represents the 6th district, said he did not want the item removed. “Taking it off the agenda would end it. We’re just at the beginning.” He said the town may need a commercial blight ordinance, or they may need to refer it to the selectmen.

James Walker, a Republican who represents the 2nd district, said he agreed with Sullivan about not removing the item from the RTM call.

Ippolitto,  a Republican who represents the 7th district, said he doesn’t think the town needs a blight ordinance, but that the RTM could continue to talk about the issues.

The motion to remove the item from the agenda passed by a 3-2 vote, with Sandler, Leonard and Ippolitto voting to remove it. Sullivan and Walker voted against the motion. Two committee members, Maggie Bruno and Paula Gladdys, both Democrats, were absent.

Following the vote, Clem remarked “Back to the drawing board.”

Hansen told the Eagle that he and Clem will continue to pursue the issue and will offer their assistance to the RTM and the board of selectmen.

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