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Residents press Webster board for stronger property‑maintenance enforcement during public hearing
Summary
At a public hearing on a 46‑page package of proposed code changes, residents described persistent nuisance properties and asked the town to tighten property‑maintenance, abandoned‑vehicle and RV rules; staff said recent code revisions have strengthened enforcement and prosecutions have recently succeeded in town court.
Supervisor Flity opened a public hearing on proposed revisions to Webster’s town code, telling the room the packet runs roughly 45–46 pages and that the hearing’s purpose was to gather public feedback before possible future adoption. "We would come back at future board meetings to show those tweaks," the supervisor said when he explained the process for the public hearing.
Diane Cole, a neighbor who said a nearby property had been damaged by fire and remained in poor condition, asked what enforcement mechanisms the town would use. "They were keeping garbage out in their driveway for a while. They have commercial vehicles there. They're operating a business," Cole said, asking what consequences the town would apply after multiple citations.
Jan Armen Trout, who said she lives at 670 Willow Lane, urged the board to change how recreational vehicles and house trailers are treated. She proposed adding RVs and house trailers to Chapter 324 (junked and abandoned vehicles) so older, non‑roadworthy trailers could be addressed under the same disposal rules as other junk vehicles. "Simple inclusion of recreational vehicles and house trailers in chapter 324 would solve a myriad of problems with yards that are turning into junkyards," Trout said, and also requested limiting storage of RVs on residential lots.
Josh Artuso, director of community development, told the board most property‑maintenance matters resolve voluntarily but that a small set of "egregious" repeat cases frustrate code officers and prosecutors. He said some proposed code changes aim to give the town more enforcement "stick," while the town still prefers voluntary compliance. The supervisor and staff said enforcement‑related changes finalized in July of last year have improved the town’s ability to sustain prosecutions; they noted town prosecutor John Demarco has had recent success bringing cases in town court.
Board members emphasized the hearing’s role as a fact‑gathering step and said the board will consider tweaks based on public input. The supervisor said the revisions could return for possible adoption at a future meeting (the board discussed October 16 and November 6 as potential next steps).
