UPDATE: An updated copy of the ordinance has been added to this post (see last paragraph). Also, Bruce Woodward has just let us know that public hearings on this ordinance will begin in the next couple of months.

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It seems that momentum is building behind the proposed “neighborhood preservation/rental registration” ordinance that was proposed at Warsaw Common Council meeting last month.

At a neighborhood meeting, held at Saint Anne’s Episcopal Church on Aug. 12, several neighborhood associations, including the Prospect Hill Neighborhood Association, gathered to hear from a committee formed by Warsaw City Council about the ordinance and voice property concerns.

“This is a wonderful place to live,” said Bruce Woodward, a committee member and longtime landlord. “There’s been a lack of enforcement of our city ordinances. We want to bring a little pride back to our community.”

“I think this is a step in the right direction,” said councilman Mike Klondaris, a member of the committee. The ordinance, if enacted, would address safety issues for all properties in the city.

According to a document handed out at the meeting, “the overall goal of the city is to provide service to both tenants and owners with fair and objective practices. The city wants to know what is out there, to not only make sure that they are receiving the proper taxations from the property, but to help provide safe housing for tenants and homeowners alike.”

Most of the ordinance is re-establishment of standards established decades ago, with some added definitions regarding what is “safe” or “substandard.” But there is an addendum on this new ordinance that is getting objections from a few landlords.

As the draft is currently written, landlords would be required register their properties with the City of Warsaw Building Department. This step would help city government, including emergency service providers, keep up with rental properties. However, once registered, the property would need to be inspected by a building inspector. And inspected again every two years.

Chad Zartman, a local landlord and another committee member, is in support of the ordinance, but doesn’t think all the inspections are necessary. “You don’t want too heavy-handed an approach, you don’t want to run people out of town,” said Zartman.

The purpose of the ordinance is not be invasive. It’s to make sure the houses in Warsaw are safe, that emergency personnel have up-to-date information in the event of an emergency and that properties are properly taxed.

“We’re trying to provide safe effective housing to people who can afford to live where we own property,” said Will Brandt, landlord and committee member. “The city is having trouble holding homeowners to the standards already on the books.”

For the ordinance to yield the desired results, landlords, property owners, tenants and governmental officials will have to work together.“It takes the community banding together,” said Woodward. “It’s important to have meetings like this and to be heard.”

The ordinance has not yet been adopted. It hasn’t even made the rounds through local government bodies, but Warsaw officials are pursuing it.

To read the draft of the ordinance, click here. Any suggestions or concerns should be taken to city council representatives.