Resident urges city action over years-long safety and code problems at 5502 Briston Wood

At the Oct. 6 University Place City Council meeting, resident Dan Novogratzky asked the council and staff for help addressing what he described as a multiyear safety and code-enforcement problem at 5502 Briston Wood. Novogratzky said the homeowner — identified in his remarks as Gerald Lucas — has intimidated neighbors, flown a Confederate flag at the property, displayed profane signage and created conditions that neighbors link to debris, suspected drug activity and repeated police calls.

Novogratzky described a longstanding pattern of complaints to code enforcement and repeated but insufficient responses. “We’ve gone through code enforcement for years...we haven’t had the level of support we’ve needed from code enforcement,” he said. He told the council he and other neighbors have been threatened and that some neighbors have moved away or reduced their asking prices because of the property’s condition. He said neighbors reported an incident that led to a forced police entry and an unlawful-imprisonment charge that later “evaporated.”

Novogratzky noted the property is about three blocks from Chambers Primary and said the proximity concerns parents and neighbors because of children walking to school and after‑school programs nearby. He asked the council to help because residents are “ready to give up.”

The mayor acknowledged that police officers have been helpful in specific incidents but said residents described insufficient outcomes from code enforcement; the clerk said staff will follow up with the commenter to answer questions. No formal council action was taken during the public-comment period and staff did not announce a specific enforcement step at the meeting.

The council record shows staff and council heard the concerns and that follow-up from city staff was promised; Novogratzky and other residents indicated they may provide additional documentation to the city’s homeowner association and staff.