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Residents tell council neighborhood conditions worsening; council members say they will continue coordinated response
Summary
Residents at the Sept. 8 meeting described encampments, squatters and apparent utility-tampering on Highland Avenue and other neighborhoods; council members said police and city staff have been engaged and pledged continued coordination with enforcement and planned development remedies.
Multiple residents at the South Bend Common Council’s Sept. 8 meeting used the privilege-of-the-floor period to report worsening conditions in parts of the city, citing illegal encampments, property damage, utility hookups and suspected false Airbnb listings on condemned properties.
Rodney Hagedorn, who gave his address as 2220 Highland Avenue, said several houses were illegally connected to others for power and that people had been living under cars and occupying properties across the city. He asked for help and said the problem had spread beyond his immediate neighborhood to streets including DuBell and Milton.
Hagedornorn and another resident described campers and oversized grass on tagged properties and said previous cleanups were temporary. Councilwoman Neskovsky said she had forwarded photos and information to the police sergeant and to staff and that development planned in the area should help address some issues; she encouraged residents to report suspected criminal activity to the police.
Council member Karen L. White thanked residents for bringing the issues to the council’s attention and said the council and administration must develop strategies and coordinate entities to address neighborhoods where people report unsafe conditions and quality-of-life concerns. She said the council would continue to work with the mayor’s office and staff on nuisance-property enforcement and other remedies.
No formal action was taken during the privilege-of-the-floor segment; council members said they would continue work in committees addressing nuisance properties and enforcement and encouraged residents to keep reporting incidents to the police and council staff.
