Council Debates Dilapidated Vs. Vacant

City Manager Robert Herron says collecting fees from vacant building owners will encourage property development, but Mayor Andy McKenzie is not sure the city should charge owners of buildings in good repair.

During City Council's Rules Committee meeting Monday, members engaged in a spirited discussion concerning how the three pillars of the city's home rule program - the authority to impose fees on vacant building owners, greater authority to collect liens for demolishing dilapidated buildings and the authority to issue conditional use zoning permits - should be implemented.

Before voting to accept or reject the planned home rule ordinances at a regular council meeting, members are reviewing each piece of legislation they plan to enact.

"The ordinance currently says that if your building is vacant for more than one year, you are subject to the registration fee," Herron told members, noting that no dollar amount for the fee has been determined.

But McKenzie said citizens are complaining about "dilapidated" buildings - not "vacant" buildings.

"I don't like taxes and fees. ... I don't know if you should tax people for holding onto property," he said.

Herron, however, said vacant buildings negatively impact nearby structures.

"The longer it (a building) is vacant, the more property values around it decrease," he said.

Councilwoman Gloria Delbrugge does not believe anyone should buy property in Wheeling without doing something with it.

"If people buy property just to keep it there, those people should have to pay a fee," she said.

Councilman Don Atkinson raised the issue of how many city employees it would take to enforce the vacant property registration fees.

"We need someone who does this stuff. ... Do we have enough staff to do enforce this?" he asked.

Herron said staffing levels would need to be examined, and it is possible additional personnel would be hired to enforce the new regulations.

"We will channel the revenues back into the program," he said, noting the extra money would fund the additional employees.

Herron also noted that property owners who refuse to pay the yet-to-be-determined fee would have a lien placed against their buildings.

"If you do not pay the registration fees, you could become subject to a forced sale of your property," he said.

But Vice Mayor Eugene Fahey is concerned about how citizens would perceive such a program.

"People will have a perception that the city is just trying to take property," he said, leading Herron to assure him that is not the case.

"We are trying to get the taxpayers' money back," said the city manager.

As for the conditional use zoning permits, McKenzie said it is important to maintain the integrity of both residential neighborhoods and business districts.

"The business district in the city has left downtown and gone to National Road. I am for business and growth, but you have to preserve neighborhoods," he said.

Herron said the purpose of the conditional use permits provision was not to intrude upon anyone's neighborhood.

"We wanted to put back in play structures that could no longer be used," he said of buildings that previously were used for commercial purposes in residential zones.

Members then agreed to have the first readings of the ordinances involving the conditional use permits during the Nov. 5 council meeting. There will also be a public hearing concerning the ordinances that evening during which Herron will deliver a presentation regarding the plans.

"I want the general public to know what we are doing. Most people are not going to read this packet," McKenzie said in asking Herron to explain the home rule plans.

Council's Rules Committee will meet again at 4 p.m. Oct. 20 in Herron's office to continue discussion of the home rule ordinances.

Wheeling gained the right to home rule in May when the West Virginia Municipal Home Rule Board also admitted Charleston, Huntington and Bridgeport, W.Va., to the home rule pilot program that terminates on July 1, 2013.

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