City expands vegetation enforcement to include brush and woody vines

Property maintenance cracks down on abandoned 'ghost properties'

Neighborhood trash removal tonnage spikes 156 percent

Property maintenance assumes enforcement of abandoned vehicles on roadways

Code violation grace period extended to 15 days

Clarification clears path for tax auctions of chronically blighted homes

Topeka DREAMS housing rehab program opens citywide

City expands vegetation enforcement to include brush and woody vines

TOPEKA, Kan. — The city is actively enforcing an expanded vegetation ordinance that now requires property owners to clear woody vines, brush and volunteer saplings in addition to tall grass and weeds. Property maintenance director John Schardine told the Public Health and Safety Committee that the city currently has 600 open vegetation cases and has abated over 200 properties so far this year. Because removing brush and saplings is an expensive and time-consuming process for residents, the Property Maintenance Unit is granting extended compliance timeframes to property owners who are actively working to address the violations.

Property maintenance cracks down on abandoned 'ghost properties'

TOPEKA, Kan. — The city has implemented a stricter enforcement approach for "ghost properties" — abandoned lots with no active utilities, unpaid taxes and a history of unmaintained vegetation. Property maintenance director John Schardine announced that his department is now issuing only one notice per season to these neglected properties before the city directly abates the weeds and bills the owner. By identifying these properties before the weed season officially began May 1, inspectors aim to reduce the burden these abandoned lots place on surrounding neighborhoods.

Neighborhood trash removal tonnage spikes 156 percent

TOPEKA, Kan. — While the total number of city-ordered trash abatements has dropped, the sheer volume of debris removed from Topeka properties has skyrocketed this year. Property maintenance director John Schardine reported that the city has abated 159 properties this year compared to 259 at this time last year. However, crews have removed 892 tons of rubbish, a 156 percent increase from the 348 tons removed during the same period last year. Schardine attributed the increase to a concerted effort to clean up massive, long-hidden dump sites and large-scale blighted properties that have generated significant community complaints.

Property maintenance assumes enforcement of abandoned vehicles on roadways

TOPEKA, Kan. — The city's Property Maintenance Unit recently took over the responsibility of enforcing abandoned vehicles on public roadways, a duty previously handled by the Topeka Police Department. Vehicles reported through the city's SeeClickFix app are marked by inspectors, and owners are given 48 hours to move the vehicle or prove it is operable. If a vehicle is registered to the adjacent home and properly parked, inspectors will generally work with the owner, but legitimately abandoned vehicles left on random streets will be towed.

Code violation grace period extended to 15 days

TOPEKA, Kan. — In response to resident complaints about slow mail delivery, the city has officially extended the compliance window for property maintenance violations from 10 days to 15 days from the date of mailing. Property maintenance director John Schardine noted that residents frequently reported receiving notices with only a few days left to address issues like trash accumulation or tall grass. The extension aims to give homeowners a fair opportunity to fix the violations themselves before facing fines or city-ordered abatement.

Clarification clears path for tax auctions of chronically blighted homes

TOPEKA, Kan. — City officials are preparing to aggressively push chronically blighted and tax-delinquent properties to the Shawnee County tax auction following a legal clarification. For years, the city hesitated to send abandoned properties to the tax sale under the mistaken belief that Shawnee County would be forced to maintain them if they did not sell. With that misconception corrected, the city plans to systematically submit problem properties — some of which have accumulated dozens of code violations — to the auction to transfer them to new developers and relieve the city of repeated mowing and abatement costs.

Topeka DREAMS housing rehab program opens citywide

TOPEKA, Kan. — The Topeka DREAMS housing rehabilitation program has expanded its eligibility, opening its grant funding to all qualifying residents across the city. Previously, the major home rehab funds were restricted only to neighborhoods with active Neighborhood Improvement Associations that successfully applied for the grants. Community Programs Administrator Bianca Burnett announced that the citizens advisory council recently decided to eliminate that restriction, allowing any low- to moderate-income homeowner in need of major interior or exterior repairs to apply directly through the city's housing services division.

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