Niles council, mayor fill housing nuisance board

March 10, 2008 at 12:49a.m.

The five-member board will hear appeals of citations.

NILES — Council and Mayor Ralph Infante have completed appointments to the city’s housing Nuisance Abatement Board, enabling the city to implement its nuisance ordinance passed late last year.

The five-member panel will be chaired by Niles Safety Director Maurice Guarino. Council appointments to three-year terms are Samuel Sloban, 70, Shadowridge Drive, a General Motors Lordstown retiree, and Jane Tock, Sayers Avenue, who has long been active in the Niles community. The mayor’s appointments who will serve two-year terms are James Costello, North Road, a Delphi retiree and Brenda Claypool, 47, Lawnview Avenue, chief executive officer of Check ’Em Out Inc., a background screening company.

Under the ordinance, the police chief can issue fines after three nuisance calls requiring a police response within a calendar year. Among the incidents defined as public nuisances are disorderly conduct, drug abuse, health and safety issues, alcohol violations and weapons offenses.

“Most of our problems have been at rental units,” Mayor Infante said. “We’ve had incidents where police had to make up to 15 calls at the same address because of disturbances.”

The ordinance contains a provision for property owners to appeal their fines to the police chief. If the chief rules against them, owners can then appeal to the abatement board. Should the property owners get an unfavorable ruling from the board, they can contest it by appealing to Trumbull County Common Pleas Court.

“The fines will be based on officers’ hourly wages and costs for the time police spend on all of these calls,” Infante said.

According to the mayor, Niles is the first city in the area to create a nuisance abatement board. Boardman Township has passed a similar ordinance but does not have an abatement panel.

Boardman’s zoning ordinance authorizes the police chief to impose fines of $250 for a fourth offense during a calendar year and increase the fines if the offenses continue.

“Violations of police, fire and zoning ordinances lead to citations,” said Darren Crivelli, township zoning inspector. “Anyone who wants to appeal has to take it to county court.”