Ask the Chie

Every spring, I am faced with enforcing City Ordinances and without fail I find some people who become very angry when I approach them on the topic of parking, mowing lawns or cleaning up their property.

It seems that no matter how delicately I approach the subject, some people will immediately take offense and some will even start looking for other people to blame or point out their violations.

With this in mind, I want to help people understand the purpose of city ordinances.

It is important to recognize that we live in a diverse community filled with people that have their own ideas and beliefs about almost everything.

This can be a great asset but it can also cause conflict when community members disagree. Most often these disagreements can be resolved by two reasonable people talking to each other in a respectful manner.

However, when this fails, the parties involved often appeal to the local government for a resolution. Any resolution coming from the local government must be supported by a form of authority.

The most common form of local authority is City Ordinances. City Ordinances are similar to State Statutes in that they regulate individual behavior and set standards for community conduct so that people may live together in peace.

City Ordinances are different than State Statutes in that they are most often the result of specific concerns in the community and are written into law by the locally elected government.

This means that all of your City Ordinances have been reviewed by your local government and adopted in order to address the concerns of community members.

In short, you as a community members control your local ordinances through the election of local leaders, complaints shared with local government and in working with your neighbors.

Now that we have a basic understanding of City Ordinances, I ask that you respect yourself and your neighbors by obeying YOUR ordinances.

They exist to protect you. They exist to protect your property value. They exist to protect your tax dollars by taking care of infrastructure and development.

When I come to you regarding an ordinance violation, I am asking for your help to resolve a concern. I am not trying to embarrass you nor do I want to write a ticket.

I am simply trying to help our community and you. Please keep this in mind.