The New Port Richey City Council has given preliminary approval to an ordinance requiring a $35 permit to rent property in the city.
By PHIL DAVIS
Published November 17, 2005
NEW PORT RICHEY - The City Council is once again edging toward a requirement that landlords apply for a permit before renting property in the city.
The council voted 3-2 Tuesday night to give preliminary approval to a residential rental ordinance that would require a $35 permit to rent property in the city. Council members Marilyn deChant and Thomas Lackey cast the dissenting votes.
Lackey supported the ordinance, but wanted to charge more for the permit to ensure city taxpayers won't end up footing the bill for landlord regulation.
DeChant said she thought the city could handle bad landlords without "adding another layer of government bureaucracy."
A final vote on the ordinance is set for the regular council meeting on Dec. 20.
Discussion on the ordinance lasted more than an hour. Several tenants voiced support for the law and said they hoped the city would crack down on landlords who don't maintain their properties. A handful of landlords spoke against the fee, citing redundant rules and unfair additional taxes.
"What does this ordinance do that we don't already have in place?" landlord David Schrader asked the council. "This is just another tax. You call it a fee. It's a tax. What am I getting for it?"
This is the second time this year a rental ordinance has made it to second reading. A similar ordinance failed to gain council approval in April.
New Port Richey has more than 1,700 rental properties, a statistic that prompted former council member Tom Finn to call the city "the rental armpit of Pasco County."
City Manager Scott Miller and police Chief Martin Rickus requested the rental permits in an effort to gain leverage over landlords who fail to maintain their properties. They say it will be easier to track down property owners who don't respond to complaints about litter, rundown buildings and drug sales. Landlords who fail to respond could lose their permit - and their rental income from a property.
"Code enforcement is not the answer to everything," Rickus told the council. "In my opinion, we have to do something to get control of these properties. I think this is our best option."
Later in the meeting, the council gave Miller a 41/2 percent pay raise - the same raise given to most city staff - and praised him for an "excellent" first year on the job. Miller's annual salary is now $104,104.
Miller last year scored "very good" or "excellent" on all 39 evaluation points.
"I personally think he's an excellent fit," New Port Richey Mayor Dan Tipton said of Miller. "I like the idea that he is not sitting behind his desk all the time. He gets out in the city."
