THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 6, 1996 TAG: 9610040224
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: GUEST COLUMN
TYPE: Opinion
SOURCE: BY ANDREW P. MCLAUGHLIN
LENGTH: 67 lines
This citizen is being unfairly judged by a city codes inspector.
In August, I received notice from the city inspection department that I had peeling paint on the outside of my home and directing me to remedy the situation within 30 days. I promptly called the inspections office and explained what I thought were my logical priorities in improvements and repairs to my home.
I explained that I was scraping paint off the rear section of my house, which is sided with clapboard. Some siding and fascia board has had to be replaced because of age and rot, so you can see my urgency in wanting to accomplish this task. I work, and only my off-hours and weekends can be spent on it. The inspector said I had to do something in response to the notice, and I did.
I removed the old fascia board from my porch and replaced it, stained it, primed it and painted it. I also scraped and sanded the porch roof.
As of Friday, Sept. 20, I was continuing the task of scraping paint off the framed portion of my house. But, on that date, I received a summons to appear in General District Court on Oct. 3 because, as I interpreted the summons, the brick portion of my house still has peeling paint.
Last month, I called the inspector's office to complain of a neighbor's notion that a front porch is designed to harbor discarded appliances and that the grass beneath the broken-down car in my neighbor's driveway equated to the jungles of Southeast Asia. This is when an inspection was made, not only of my neighbor's house but mine as well.
I bought my home in February 1988, mainly because my wife and I love big, old houses. I cannot begin to surmise the amount of money I have spent on my home. In the beginning, I concentrated mainly on the interior and then moved to the exterior.
I think I am pretty capable of prioritizing repairs or renovations to my home, without the intervention of Big Brother.
After all the sweat equity I have invested in my home, is it fair for the city to judge me so harshly, when you can look left and right and see the most heinous of housing violations that continue without a word from anyone at any level of city government?
If city inspectors and the city as a whole are so concerned about the facade of our city, why don't they go after the true neglect? Why don't they force the slum lords to shape up or ship out?
Just look around at some of the most beautiful homes in Suffolk, homes that have been reduced to cubicles of subsidized, low-rent housing. Every home on Franklin Street, except mine, is rental property.
After all that I have said in this letter, I feel I can now rationalize the actions and/or the inaction of the city, based upon the following conclusions:
In Suffolk, you can hide true housing violations by erecting a fence of corrugated metal and painting flowers and houses on it. That way, no one will notice the dilapidated and decayed house behind the fence.
Board up the windows on your house to make the city think that no one lives there, except crack dealers and pit bulls. No building inspector in his/her right mind would go there for an inspection. The city is so deathly afraid of the slum lords that they dare not make an inspection of their property.
In the meantime, and in the future, I will continue to work on my house. The rental property around me and most of downtown Suffolk will continue to degrade.
I hope the City of Suffolk does not take me to court too often. After all, I have a lot of house work to do. Andrew P. McLaughlin lives on Franklin Street in Suffolk. MEMO: Andrew P. McLaughlin lives on Franklin Street in Suffolk. by CNB