City council sends proposed downtown vacant-structure registry to committee after equity concerns

The Mobile City Council on Tuesday, Sept. 9, agreed to refer a proposed ordinance establishing a vacant-structure registry for parts of downtown to committee after Councilor Carroll raised concerns about whether the measure would be applied equitably across the city.

The proposal, introduced as an amendment to Chapter 52 (property maintenance and enforcement) creating an Article 8 vacant-structure registry covering properties including Henry Aaron Loop, would declare several structures public nuisances and authorize demolition orders in some cases. Councilor Carroll questioned why the ordinance was limited to downtown when vacant-building problems also exist in other neighborhoods and raised concerns about fines and potential financial pressure on owners.

Councilor Carroll said, "how do we address the equal justice under the law law portion of this,…