By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com

Most would agree that the amount of vacant commercial buildings in Los Alamos is a problem but what isn’t so certain is how to resolve this issue.

Los Alamos County Council discussed a potential new solution to the ever-growing list of vacant properties – a vacancy ordinance – during its Tuesday night work session.

No proposed ordinance has been drafted but as a reference council was given an ordinance recently adopted by the City of Raton. According to agenda documents, in general, the ordinance requires the owner of any structure or building that is unoccupied or occupied by unauthorized persons for 180 days to obtain a vacant building permit for the period that it was unoccupied.

The agenda documents further report that there is an escalating annual registration culminating in a fee of up to $2,500 per year by the fifth year of registration depending on the property’s square footage. Also, the ordinance calls on the property owner to provide police with a list of persons who are authorized to be in the building.

During the discussion Tuesday night, County Manager Steven Lynne emphasized that this is all a starting point.

He also pointed out there are several different options to address vacant properties. Agenda documents explained one option is the state’s “clean and lien” statute, which allows the County to find a property to be a hazard to public comfort, health, peace and safety and require removing either the building, structure, ruins, rubbish, wreckage or debris.

Another option at the County’s disposal is code enforcement, Lynne said, which includes inspections by the Chief Building Official and Fire Marshall. Code enforcement also addresses building’s maintenance, he said.

Regarding a vacancy ordinance, Lynne said one thing that needs to be considered is the fourth amendment, which prohibits the government from unreasonable searches and seizures.

Councilor David Reagor wondered whether adopting a vacancy ordinance would achieve what everyone would like it to – mainly addressing the large vacant properties at the front of town.

He argued that the ordinances presented to Council seemed to be for smaller properties.

“We should address the two big problems … the main problem is still the front of town … this is a distraction leading us away from what we really want,” Reagor said.

Many on council, however, felt a vacancy ordinance is worth investigating.

Councilor David Izraelevitz said looking at other municipalities, such as the City of Raton, would be a good reference for possibly drafting a local ordinance.

“There is a lot to learn from other communities …,” he said.

Izraelevitz further pointed out that registering vacant buildings could be helpful because it would allow the County to have point of contact for these properties.

Council Vice Chair James Robinson agreed that investigating similar ordinances adopted by other municipalities would be a good idea. He also mentioned that a citizen proposed a vacancy ordinance to council, which would be worth investigating, too.

“A vacancy is another natural way … to make sure we get something into that building,” he said.

“I believe a vacancy ordinance is worth looking into,” Councilor Denise Derkacs said. “We clearly have commercial buildings in town that are a nuisance …”

She added she thought the council was given excellent examples of ordinances including the City of Raton’s and citizen’s proposed ordinance.

Councilor Sara Scott said pursuing a vacancy interests her, especially from a health and safety perspective. She added she felt it would be worthwhile to have County staff investigate a vacancy ordinance, which includes looking into case studies and lessons learned from municipalities that adopted similar ordinances.

Additionally, Scott said she would like to see the pros and cons of having a vacancy ordinance as well as the cost of this type of ordinance. By cost she said she meant in terms of staff’s time and stakeholders’ time. Finally, Scott said any ordinance would need to be coordinated into the downtown master plans being developed for White Rock and Los Alamos.

“I would like to understand how all those points would be addressed …,” she said.

Council Chair Randall Ryti also said he felt that investigating the timeframe, staff obligations and options for a vacancy ordinance would be valuable.