The New Nuisance Abatement Ordinance

    This ordinance went before city council fora second reading on July 7, 2015 and a week later City Hall started rollingthrough the neighborhoods sending out certified letters to the home ownersabout the condition of the properties.
    One lady was told she had 30 days to paint her house and she told cityhall she did not have the money. She said she had saved money to buy schoolclothes for her children and pay their school fees or she could buy painthowever she could not do both…and then she had the problem of paying for thelabor to paint the house.
    Another couple was told that theyneeded to paint their house within thirty days and she asks for an extension whichthe city refused to do. She explained that they only had one hundred dollarsextra that month to purchase the painting supplies because her husband’s hoursat work had recently been cut.
    The city gave them a list of organizationwhere they could call in hopes of getting funds to help repair theirproperties.
    Doesn’t city hall understand that the “workingpoor” of Middletowndo not have an extra couple thousand dollars in the bank to paint and repairtheir houses on demand within a thirty day period?
    The local organizations and churchesare already having a difficult time providing food for all the needy familiesin Middletown.
    I find these actions an unduehardship on the “working poor” home owners of Middletown.