Franklin Township on verge of trimming property ordinance
FRANKLIN TWP — Township supervisors will vote next month on whether to eliminate a large portion of an ordinance regarding property maintenance.
At their meeting Monday, April 15, the three supervisors put together framework for amendments to an ordinance that has drawn scorn from residents — as well as at least one of the supervisors — for being unfairly restrictive.
The amendments would ax much of the language of the ordinance, including sections regarding garage/yard sales, trash and bulk waste, noise, keeping streets clear, storing junk vehicles, and recreational vehicles.
Only a tiny fraction of the ordinance would be retained. This includes language regarding the condemnation of blighted properties, standards for mobile home park maintenance, and buffer yards for agricultural use (with a modification).
“My whole issue with this entire ordinance is that it enables the township to act as a tyrant,” supervisor Nathan Wulff said. “I could literally drive around with a notebook and start taking photos and writing down addresses, and I could have a list of all the violations in this municipality, and we could start taking them to court.”
The township adopted the ordinance in August 2021 — though not unanimously. One supervisor voted against it.
Under the current ordinance, violators are handed a notice of violation and given 30 days to remedy the issue. If it is not taken care of after 30 days, they will be cited for a separate offense for each day the problem persists. In addition, violators can be fined between $300 and $1,000.
Trimming the property maintenance ordinance was one of the reasons Wulff, vice chairman of the board, ran for election. Wulff, who won election to the board in 2021, led most of the discussion about amending it.
“I believe it represents an infringement on our residents’ private property rights,” Wulff said. “Almost overwhelmingly, the folks that I’ve spoken to are in favor of making changes to the ordinance.”
Wulff said a previous public meeting regarding the ordinance drew about 300 residents to the Atrium event venue in Prospect.
“With the exception of maybe one or two people, every person who spoke was in opposition to this entire ordinance being adopted,” Wulff said.
During Monday’s meeting, sentiment regarding the ordinance remained much the same as before — almost universally negative, aside from some citizens who raised concerns that less enforcement of rules would lead to negative consequences.
In fact, one resident suggested going even further than what Wulff was proposing, by scrapping the ordinance completely. By contrast, Wulff was in favor of at least keeping the language regarding blighted property.
“That is something where we do have some level of responsibility,” Wulff said. “I care about the physical safety of the property.”
The proposed amendments to the ordinance will be available for review at the Franklin Township office on Election House Road.
This story was updated April 16, 2024 to reflect that the fraction of the ordinance retained includes language regarding the condemnation of blighted properties, standards for mobile home park maintenance, and buffer yards for agricultural use (with a modification). A previous version of this story said the language regarded the confiscation of blighted properties and standards related to mobile homes.
