MIDLAND, Texas — The City of Midland is taking a change of direction when it comes to rundown and abandoned buildings in the Tall City.
On Tuesday, city leaders heard the second reading on the "Substandard Buildings" code that will replace the heading of the "Dangerous and Dilapidated Buildings" city code that's under Title IV Chapter 8.
Midland City Council voted to adopt the amendment.
"The current code requires us to notify the property owner and give us quite a few different hurdles before we're able to secure the building," Midland Mayor Lori Blong said. "This change allows us to secure the building and notify the owner at the same time so that we don't have the time lapse in the in the restrictions."
The item will go into effect on April 1, 2024. According to Mayor Blong, the cost of boarding the buildings will be paid for by the owners.
"The city will initially incur that cost but a bill will be sent to the property owner; in the event that they choose not to pay that building a lien will be filed against the property for the amount of that invoice," said Mayor Blong.
One building that is at the center of the conversation regarding this topic is the Vaughn building located in Downtown Midland. According to Mayor Blong, the building was last fully occupied in 1986.
"When you look at some of the concerns of buildings that are related to vacant buildings in our community, many of them have existed in their in their dilapidated state over the past 40 years," Mayor Blong said. "We have knowledge of criminal activity that takes place in some of these areas, people who are unlawfully entering these dilapidated and making structures and we need to have the ability, not only to prosecute the criminal activity that's taking place there, but to secure the building and prevent further hotspots for crime."
Mayor Blong reiterated that one of the main concerns with enforcing this code is to ensure and work towards improving public safety.
"We've had instances in the past where people have been injured and even one who was killed in a dilapidated building," Mayor Blong said. "We believe that the need to secure these buildings is critically important for our community. It's part of having safe clean streets in Midland."