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Cresco council discusses vacant-building registration, backflow prevention and sale-time sanitary inspections
Summary
Councilors reviewed sample language and enforcement concerns for vacant-building registration, considered a backflow prevention requirement for businesses with cross-connections, and discussed a point-of-sale sanitary/sewer inspection proposal; staff will collect peer-city examples and draft language for future meetings.
Councilors on May 4 took time to discuss three potential new ordinances: vacant-building registration, backflow prevention for cross-connections, and point-of-sale sanitary/sewer inspections tied to property sales.
Staff circulated three sample vacant-property registration models and asked the council whether to proceed. Council members raised enforceability questions (who would enforce, staffing resources and fee structures) and suggested staff research similar ordinances in peer communities. Staff noted some communities require annual registration fees with exemptions for properties actively for sale or temporarily unoccupied.
On backflow prevention, the water department described how certain business plumbing that uses chemicals or has cross-connections can introduce contaminants back into the distribution system; the draft would require backflow preventers at points where a backflow risk exists and annual inspections. Council members requested cost estimates for businesses and a list of neighboring cities already using similar requirements (staff provided examples including Grinnell, Storm Lake, Story City, Charles City and Coralville).
Staff also presented a point-of-sale sanitary inspection concept (sourced from a Minnesota example) to have sewer/water inspections at time of sale to identify hidden cross-connections or failing tile lines; staff noted potential costs (one local estimate cited roughly $250 per inspection) and suggested exemptions for recent inspections or court-ordered sales. The council asked staff to confer with the city attorney, real-estate stakeholders and county officials and to return with draft language and peer-city examples within a few weeks if possible.
No ordinance votes were taken; the council signaled interest in further research and review by the city attorney before any formal introduction and readings.
