The movement to clean up nuisance properties is gaining steam throughout the state and across the nation, with a concerted effort underway in Blytheville, located in Mississippi County.Mountain Home has been at the forefront of the movement, with the city taking action multiple times since Mayor Hillrey Adams took office in 2019.
He says nuisance properties were a topic he heard about consistently while running for office, as well as being something he is personally concerned about in the City of Mountain Home.
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Adams describes what lands a property on the list.
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While unsightly, it’s not always the appearance of a property that lands it on the list of nuisance properties in the city. It’s the accompanying behavior in those properties that make them a priority to be dealt with, the mayor says.
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Once a property is reported as, or identified as, a nuisance, it is examined by both the code enforcement officer and the city building inspector. Adams says the city will reach out to the property owner multiple times to try and get the problems rectified. Only after those steps, does the city turn to the legal process of condemnation.
Just because a suit is filed, doesn’t mean property owners lose all their rights. After the alleged nuisance property is presented to the city council via ordinance, and after three readings, City Attorney Roger Morgan will file a lawsuit against the property owner. The city announces the addresses of potential properties to be dealt with by the council, which in turn has to go through three readings of the ordinance before taking action.
Unless invoking an emergency clause, the readings take place at three separate council meetings, giving the owner up to six weeks to deal with the property, before the suit is filed. Even after the suit is filed, the property owner has 30 days to respond and more time after that before the case ever reaches a judge.
One property, the Mountain Home Motel on Main Street, had been ordered by the court to complete improvements to avoid condemnation. Mayor Adams says while the property owners have done a lot of work, he isn’t sure if enough has been done to satisfy the judge’s order. Court documents indicate Judge Gordon Webb set June 15 as the deadline for improvements to be compelted at the Mountain Home Motel.
But the Mayor adds it was the court’s ruling that finally made the owner attempt to rehabilitate the structure, as well as mentioning what he considers another success story.
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Adams says nuisance properties will continue to be addressed regularly due to the full-time code enforcement officer at the Mountain Home Police Department.
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While most property owners take action to rectify the situation before the court weighs in, Adams says the city has demolished several properties, including two located near the Baxter County Sheriff’s Office. In those cases, the city does the work and presents a bill to the property owner, or the court asserts a lien against the property.
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