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Council affirms one building-and-safety assessment, continues other property appeals
Summary
After public comment from property owners, the council rejected one appeal of a Department of Building and Safety assessment and affirmed the charge; other residential assessment appeals were continued for further review and local council follow-up.
The Los Angeles City Council rejected an appeal of a Department of Building and Safety assessment and affirmed the assessment by roll call, after hearing testimony from the property owner and department staff. Separately, the council continued other assessment appeals for further staff-council district review.
On item 11, homeowner James Murphy appealed a Building and Safety assessment, arguing he had not received adequate notice and that the property's condition could have been corrected in a few days. "Whenever I've been actually contacted I responded immediately. I was not contacted," Murphy told the council. The Department of Building and Safety responded that an order had been issued in August 1997 and mailed by certified and regular mail; the certified mail was unclaimed and department attempts to locate the owner by phone were unsuccessful. The department said it cleaned and secured the property after repeated complaints.
Council discussion and vote
Council members debated outreach and whether the department had taken reasonable steps to notify the owner. Councilmember Ridley-Thomas defended the department's practice and emphasized neighborhood impacts from blight. After a short recess for staff and appellant to confer, Councilmember Feuer moved to reject the appeal and affirm the assessment; the motion passed by roll call (11 ayes).
Other appeals and public comment
A separate appeal heard the testimony of an elderly homeowner who described difficulty understanding notices and paying a bill she said initially arrived without an itemized statement. She said she later received paperwork listing a cleaning cost of $2,152 and, she reported, an additional charge tied to a percentage or minimum fee that increased the final amount she was being asked to pay. The council continued that appeal to March 21 and asked the district office to meet with the homeowner to seek resolution.
Ending
Council action affirmed the assessment on item 11 and continued related appeals to allow council district staff and Building and Safety to work with appellants.
