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Residents press council on demolition delays, apartment maintenance, pump stations and uncovered city trucks
Summary
Multiple residents used non‑agenda and public‑hearing time to press Portsmouth officials about slow demolition enforcement, substandard apartment maintenance, sewer/pump station clarity and uncovered city trucks spilling debris; staff committed to follow up and to provide facts and next steps.
Several Portsmouth residents raised infrastructure and code‑enforcement concerns during public hearings and the non‑agenda comment period on April 8, asking the council for clearer timelines, stronger enforcement and written responses.
Demolition, vacant lots and enforcement
Brenda Rockwell (1701 Atlanta Avenue) told council a burned house at 1701 Camden Street has remained a nuisance since April 2024 and described repeated city inspections with “promised action” but no final cleanup. She said inspectors told her owners can begin demolition, stop, then resume—resetting the six‑month timeline—and that the cycle allows work to be delayed indefinitely. “It feels like there's this vicious loop that he can just keep going out there, doing a little work, and stopping and starting,” she said, and asked…
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