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Resident criticizes code‑enforcement fines; council clarifies citation quota
Summary
At the council meeting, resident Matt Cotro complained about multiple code‑enforcement citations he called unjust, including a $250 sign fine he says was grandfathered. Council members responded that officers have a quota system of 10 citations, and council directed staff to note the complaint.
A Clarksburg resident told the City Council he has been repeatedly and unfairly cited by code‑enforcement officers and urged the city to end what he described as a daily quota system for citations.
“My name is Matt Cotro. I live at 1633 Hoffman Avenue in Adamston,” said Matt Cotro during the public‑comment period, describing a $250 citation he said was issued for letters on a house that he contends were visible only from the street and grandfathered when he bought the property. Cotro said a police judge dismissed the charge after he showed documentation, but that code staff later issued additional citations, including one for a dumpster pickup he says Waste Management confirmed had been completed.
Cotro told the council the sequence — court dismissal followed by further enforcement action — was “a waste of my time” and urged the city to end what he characterized as a requirement that officers write multiple citations per day.
Council members responded during general discussion that officers are not required to write five citations per day, and one council member said the number in the code is 10. The council did not take immediate formal action on Cotro’s specific complaints during the meeting; staff said they would follow up.
The exchange highlighted competing concerns about effective code enforcement versus perceived over‑enforcement. Cotro requested that the practice he described be reviewed; council members asked staff to confirm enforcement procedures and the code language governing any performance expectations for officers.
