On March 11, 2020, the City Council held a special workshop to discuss a number of issues related to code enforcement.  One of the strategies discussed was development of a policy by which, under certain conditions, existing code enforcement fines could be forgiven at the City Manager's discretion.  Conditions included resolution of the code violation, lack of  other existing code issues on the property, and payment of any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the City to mitigate the violation. Staff is currently developing an ordinance to establish such a process, which will be brought for Council consideration at a future meeting.

This particular agenda item is related to a code enforcement case discussed during the March 11, 2020 workshop (and one of the initial reasons a need for such a workshop was recognized). Since the workshop, the property owner has been awaiting adoption of the ordinance that would provide for the waiver process, which has not yet occurred.  The original code violations have long been resolved, and the City has incurred no out-of-pocket expenses associated with the lien.  Specific details related to the case are contained in the attached letter from Clark Stillwell.

It is clear that the current owner, once made aware, addressed the code violation, but not before a sizable lien had accrued.   Staff recommends that the City Council authorize the waiver of fines associated with this code enforcement case, which would then allow staff to process the lien release.