New law to enforce repair of retaining walls

Alexis Barker
NLJ News Editor
 
Property owners in Newcastle who have crumbling retaining walls will face fines and/or jail time if they fail to repair them. The Newcastle City Council has approved an ordinance it hopes will enforce repair of damaged retaining walls on private property. The ordinance was introduced at the council’s Oct. 5. meeting, passed on second reading on Oct. 19 and is expected to pass on third and final reading Nov. 2.
Although some of the walls are considered historic, said City Clerk-Treasurer Greg James,  they are not eligible for grant funding. 
“Because they/it are privately owned, they do not qualify for any state historical funding,” James said. 
This ordinance would provide the city an avenue for requiring owners to repair retaining walls that are already part of a specified building code, according to city engineer Mike Moore.  For some time the council has discussed their attempts to get property owners to address retaining walls that have become a public safety hazard and have more recently led to the closure of at least one sidewalk in the city.
Moore has explained on several different occasions that previous attempts to engage the property owner have been unsuccessful and that the city was at a dead end as far as actions they would take, until an ordinance is passed by the council allowing for further action. 
The ordinance states “any owner of any fence, retaining wall, or other similar structure shall ensure that said structure is maintained in good repair, structurally sound and sanitary so as not to pose a threat to public health, safety or welfare.”
City Attorney Mike Stulken said that ordinance would allow the city to enforce repairs and, if the property owner failed to comply, the city could charge them with a misdemeanor. 
“It would become what is called unlawful, and under the general municipal code that makes it a misdemeanor,” Stulken told the council at its Sept. 21 meeting. 
The ordinance says that  “any person who maintains or permits the existence of the prohibited dangerous condition herein is in violation of the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings and the procedure for abatement of such condition shall be pursuant to such Code.” 
According to Stulken, Moore would be the person who would determine whether the  structure is dangerous. Moore would also be charged with enforcing the consequences. A property owner found to be in violation of the ordinance could be subject to a maximum penalty of 6 months in jail and/or a $750 fine.
At the Sept. 21 meeting, Councilman Tom Voss asked how the ordinance would help Moore do his job. 
“It will help me by giving me the way to notify the owner that there is an issue with the wall that needs to be addressed, and if it is not, there are enforceable actions for not addressing,” Moore said. “The ultimate goal is to get something down with that wall, for the owner to do something about it. That is basically the bottom line.”
Moore said that the building code also allows the city to repair the wall if the property owner does not comply. In that case,
the property owner would be responsible for the cost.