COLUMBIA DEPENDS ON PERMIT PROGRAM

COLUMBIA -- In this college town of three campuses, city officials long ago realized the potential for depreciation of Columbia's large number of rental units.

Equipped with a minimum property maintenance code, the city in 1978 went a step further with the adoption of a "rental conservation law," which mandates a three-year permit for every rental unit in the city.

A high turnover in the student population was blamed for maintenance problems and violations of the property code's housing density restrictions. But Larry Monroe, the city inspector who heads the program, said the rental conservation law has helped preserve the city's more than 15,000 rental units.

"We have probably the best housing stock in the state of Missouri, along with Springfield," Monroe said. "Certainly one of the reasons for that is this code."

The inspector explained that without some type of enforcement arm, a minimum property maintenance code is limited.

"The property maintenance code does not give you the right of entry except upon the written complaint of a tenant," Monroe said. "Without our rental conservation law, we can't get inside the structure without going the search warrant route."

But Monroe said a property maintenance code alone is better than no standards.

"At least you've got a law on the books that dictates what condition property must be in, although enforcement is a problem," he said. "I can go into Cape now and complain about the building I'm living in, and there's nothing the city can do about it."

Regardless of the way a city chooses to enforce property maintenance standards, Monroe said inspectors must understand that existing buildings ought not be held to the same standards as new structures.

"When you see a situation, you immediately determine if it's a safety or health issue," he said. "Once you determine that, then you apply the code. It's not the other way around."

Dale Kiepe, Columbia's building regulations supervisor for the past eight years, said inspectors used to dealing with new construction often are ill-equipped to enforce a property maintenance code.

"They have to realize it's an old house, and although things might not be just right, the overriding question has to be one of health and safety," Kiepe said. "You've got to make sure you have someone who can see it both ways."

The rental conservation law, like occupancy permits enforced in other Missouri cities, ensures that every rental property in the city is regularly inspected in this case at least every three years.

Complaints can trigger inspections anytime, though, and also apply to commercial and owner-occupied buildings.

Fees for the program include $25 to apply for a permit; $5 per unit for an inspection; $15 for a re-inspection fee if violations are found; and $10 for failure to meet with officials for an inspection.

Penalties for non-compliance can go as high as $500 per day there's a violation, but average about $100. The maintenance code is enforced by three inspectors.

Kiepe said the city recently has taken a harsher stance against code violators.

"One of the difficult things for this program, and something we've tried to streamline, is trying to get convictions and trying to impose some fines," Kiepe said.

He said the city went through a period where it repeatedly was conducting hearings to deal with vacant buildings that weren't up to code. "Now, instead of having hearings, we can file charges in municipal court," he said.

The city council also includes in the city budget money to demolish condemned buildings. Another law enables the city to assess demolition costs against the property.

Columbia recently added a new requirement to its building maintenance code that requires a mechanical contractor to certify that heating systems are in good working order. The measure was adopted in response to a fatality that resulted from a blocked furnace flue.

Has the increased regulation and stricter enforcement of the code hindered development in Columbia? Kiepe doesn't think so.

"This community is growing by leaps and bounds, with rental units in particular," he said.

When the city was considering adopting the rental permit program, Monroe said, many landlords objected, fearing the procedure would be costly.

The day that the rental program took effect a number of landlords filed suit against the city, charging that the policy would be discriminatory because it placed landlords under a burden not shared by other property owners.

But in 1985, the Missouri Supreme Court ruled in favor of the city.

As it turns out, Monroe said, most of the violations found during inspections don't require costly repairs.

Kiepe also said he knows of no developers or landlords that were forced out of business because of the law.

"If properties are really run down, it's usually more of a cash flow problem than a problem with enforcement," he said. "We're not the ones that run them out, it's the banks."

Still, the program has had problems. With a large student population Columbia is home to the University of Missouri, Columbia College and Stephens College the city has been embroiled in many landlord/tenant disputes that sometimes have little to do with whether buildings are safe and sanitary.

"At the beginning of every semester we get a lot of complaints," Monroe said. "Some of them are valid complaints, but a lot of it is students wanting to break their lease."

Monroe said some of the maintenance problems are created by tenants. After three false complaints against a landlord, the tenant gets fined.

"Some of our most violent tenants complaining we're not enforcing it, we find out they're months behind in their rent," he said.

Wednesday's installment of the series will look at Carbondale where 70 percent of the city's residential properties are rental units and how the city enforces its minimum property maintenance code through voluntary inspections.