City as slumlord

I was pleased to see that the city has started enforcing the disruptive property ordinance to target city landlords whose tenants are creating disturbances at their properties.

I recently moved into a home in Beechview. The house next door is vacant; the grass is knee-high, the front steps are crumbling and there is trash strewn about the side and back yards. I was prepared to call the city to report this house as a nuisance, hoping it would fall under the disruptive property ordinance. While the house is not occupied by problem tenants, it is an eyesore, a danger to my children (broken glass is among the trash I've picked up), and a magnet for criminal activity.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the owner is actually ... the city of Pittsburgh! Perhaps the city needs to follow its own policies on being a responsible homeowner.

To paraphrase the Disruptive Property Appeals Board Chairwoman Aggie Brose: The neighbors and I can't monitor this property on a daily basis ... you have to.

ERIN VUONO
Beechview