Agencies Team Up to Enforce Housing Codes

Landlords responsible for run-down, ill-managed apartment buildings are being targeted by a coalition of municipal agencies called the Neighborhood Enhancement Team.

Police Chief John R. Robertson said his seven-member bicycle patrol has banded with officers from code enforcement, fire, health and other agencies to clean up deteriorating neighborhoods and prevent new slums from forming.

“Orange is a nice town, but we do have some areas we have to consider a cancer,” Robertson said. “If we don’t treat them now, the cancer will grow in a very short period of time.”

The program has been in the pilot phase since the end of July, when the team arrived unannounced at a 53-unit apartment complex at 100 S. Hamlin St. and wrote 602 citations for offenses such as vermin infestation and inadequate plumbing and sanitation. Buildings in the 1700-1900 block of East Adams Avenue also received notices of violations.

Police said the team will be a permanent force to help the city overcome its reputation as a “paper tiger” when it comes to code enforcement.

“We warn, warn, warn and never take them to court,” Robertson said of the violators. “We have to mean what we say.”

Robertson said he is seeking grant money to help hire another code enforcement officer and an attorney to help prosecute cases.

The team, which was modeled on a similar program in Buena Park, includes a group that helps landlords with tips for managing buildings, drafting proper leases and evicting disruptive tenants.

City Council members, who learned about the program this week, gave the team their full support.

“It’s our own fault it’s taken so long,” Councilman Fred L. Barrera said. “We should have been on this 15 years ago when these things were built and we saw the changes coming.”