City of Nicholson Ga not enforcing codes

[ajclockga]

Nicholson Ga. 30565

1 yr ago we bought property on a private road owned by each property owner.They city finally agreed to take over the road as it had gotten so bad no ambulance,fire,or police could navigate through it. Now they have begun to redo the road.And now we have a owner who owns 7 properties on our road.I have reported him to code enforcement numerous times for violations concerning trash.And each time nothing is done.On numerous properties there is garbage everywhere.The mobile homes are in such dis-repair they are literally falling apart.Now he has moved one mobile home from one property to another,and hid it in the woods,but the city is aware it is there,yet nothing is done.He is dumping trash right at a creek bed on one property,and our whole neighborhood has well water.The rodents from the trash are impossible to keep out of our house.I have just replaced all my sheet rock only to have rats chew their way in and eat holes in it.Each time I call the city to complain they say they are doing something.Yet has been a year,and nothing done yet.They come out,issue citations,but nothing is done about the garbage.Question is,what is my next course of action?The county will not get involved. Have spoke with Governors office,they referred me back to city.Small town,and I am at my wits end as to where to go to next.

 

[bdancer]

You keep complaining and enlist other neighbors to also complain.

If you have city council meetings, show up at every meeting with as many neighbors as you can muster and bring up the problem. I suggest you bring pictures to that meeting.

Good luck.

 

[FarmerJ]

do you think its time to take pics where you can and send them to a local tv station public affairs desk along with your story ? http://static.11alive.com/about/contactus/ go for it.

 

[154NH773]

I don't mean to be critical, as this type of situation can be intolerable, but the conditions didn't develop only over the last year. Why did you buy into such an area?

First, you need to research the laws and ordinances that control the problem. The town can only enforce regulations that apply, and often that takes a long time, with warnings and periods to correct the situation before enforcement can commence.

Towns also have discretion to ignore violations, which they often do if they think it will be too costly to prosecute. In that case you can go to court to try and force them to act. You may not have standing to take any such action if you are not an immediate abutter or in close proximity.

I have found that enforcement of ordinances often is skewed by friendships, politics, and sympathetic or unfriendly judges.

Often there is sentiment that people should be allowed to do whatever they want on their own property, but most states allow zoning regulation as a means to protect the value of surrounding properties.

Keep raising the issue and don't stop complaining. Perhaps bring local media into the discussion.

 

[FarmerJ]

If you do not find town ords that address a situation then county or state laws are the next place to look, so line here for example the county is the one to is the enforce the states laws for septic systems, Bottom line some times it takes media attention to get people in office to act only because they do not want any further media attention. SO if you cannot find city /county laws that would force properties to be cleaned up , if they are in watershed areas its possible your states department of natural resources may have some jurisdiction or say in the matter if its in a watershed area. If your town claims its too poor to do anything then I suggest you start attending meetings to push for steep fines as penalty to help pay for the cost of going after them & including taking people to court say if they got x number of written warnings and still did not comply.

 

[Gail in Georgia]

I'm betting this booming town of Nicholson (population 1,247 by the 2000 census) hasn't the finances to do anything regarding code enforcement for trash pickup. Do they even HAVE code enforcement?

Gail