03/12/1984 Meeting (3) - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

e e - has filed an appeal. He said that a letter signed by 35 neighbors asking the city council to take action on these properties was received by the building department today. The public hearing was opened. Linda Cassassa, of 2051 City View, Unit 11, wrote a statement (read by a friend), speaking not against the action itself but because she believes the City of Eugene has shown a neglect of tenants' rights during the notice procedures. She believes that even though condemnation should occur, the tenant still has a right to proper notice. The tenant should not be punished for the landlord's neglect and lack of responsibility. She said that each tenant of a condemned building should be sent proper notice by certified mail or a personal call. Appropriate notice should be a legal requirement. Ms. Cassassa gave details of the condition of the apartments (units)" such as plumbing problems, lack of repairs, and no garbage collection. Utility bills were not paid which resulted in stoppage of water and garbage service. The owner, Mr. Knight, asked tenants to help him pay some utility bills, in addition to rent. When Ms. Cassassa tried to get the apartments inspected when repairs and improvements were neglected, she was told that the City had no housing inspectors due to budget cuts. In December 1983, she arrived home to find that the building had been condemned (posted). She felt the City was callous in dealing with the tenants in that there was no protection under the tenants' rights laws. Two weeks before Christmas, she found that it was illegal for her to enter her own home. The tenants of Eugene need a caring council that they can approach with problems of this sort. Speci- fically, Eugene City Code, Section 8.005 should be clarified and amended to require a personal written notice to any tenant in advance of action proposed. Karen Townsend, 2080 City View, across the street from the apartment, said that they are in very bad condition. She is afraid to let her children play in front because of derelicts and transients living there. The gas lines are open, windows are broken, and floors are badly damaged. There is no running water, and the rain water is caught in buckets. Some refrigerators are not dismantled. There is human waste and garbage inside the vacant units. It is evident that there have been dogs and rats. She wants the apartments to be torn down. Kathryn Williams, 2080 City View, agreed with Ms. Townsend's comments about the undesirabilty of the apartments across the street. She also would like to see them razed. Allen Pierce, 2515 Terrace View Drive, said that while he was not an immediate resident, he has lived in the area for 15 years. The traffic pattern is such that people living higher up on the hill must pass the property in question. The impact is larger than that to the immediate neighbors. The public hearing was closed. MINUTES-Eugene City Council March 12, 1984 Page 7