Norwalk City Council Approves Lien List For Unpaid Trash Fees

by
Shelley Henderson

At its regular meeting on July 20, three members of Norwalk City Council voted unanimously to approve a list of properties with unpaid trash fees and send that list to the Los Angeles County Tax Assessor to place a lien on each property. Two members of the Council were absent for the vote.
A lien for unpaid city fees clouds a property’s title. The lien must be paid before the property can be sold.
According to a staff report, 1,678 notices adding up to $402,000 were mailed on March 31 to property owners with unpaid trash fees. Of that number, 1,206 remain unpaid, adding up to $318,000. A lien will be placed on all properties with fees not paid by July 31, 2010.
In other business, the Council confirmed approval of two items in this meeting’s consent calendar that first came up for a vote at its last meeting on July 7. Both needed a second vote to become effective.
The first item, Ordinance No. 10-1631, amends the Norwalk municipal code in regards to charity car washes.
At the prior meeting, Councilman Michael Mendez noted that the city had no choice because restrictions on water runoff were mandated by the State of California. Without the change, the City would be open to huge state fines. He worried that schools would find it harder to raise funds.
Councilman Jesse Luera expressed concern for families raising money to pay for funerals.
Councilwoman Cheri Kelley worried about the safety of children trying to catch the attention of drivers.
Councilman Rick Ramirez asserted that it will be hard to educate the public about the change, and that the new ordinance will need consistent enforcement.
Despite these concerns, the ordinance passed unanimously at the July 7 meeting and received final approval at the July 20 meeting.
The second item, Resolution No. 10-24, amends the 2010-2011 City budget to pay for a school resource deputy and matching funds to qualify for a grant for upgrades to Vista Verde Park. The same resolution called for a reduction in hours of operation at the Norwalk Senior Center due to lack of funds.
As discussed at the July 7 meeting, the City expects that at least part of the expense for the school resource deputy will be recovered from a U.S. Justice Department Justice Assistance Grant (JAG). The City’s 2010 JAG allocation is $61,505 but the funds have not yet been awarded.
The resolution passed unanimously at the July 7 meeting and received final approval at the July 20 meeting without further discussion.
The last item of Council business, a request to waive property maintenance enforcement fees for the property at 16105 – 16115 Norwalk Blvd., was delayed to the next Council meeting at the request of Councilman Luera because of the absence of Councilman Mendez. A roll call vote on Councilwoman Kelley’s motion to deny the waiver was already in progress. Mayor Gordon Stefenhagen agreed to the delay over Kelley’s objections.
The meeting closed with an appeal from the Norwalk Girl’s Softball All-Stars (NGSA) for support to get the team to Hillsboro, Oregon. By placing fourth in state-level competition, the team qualified for the National playoffs for the first time ever. Some of the girls have worked for ten years to reach the National playoffs. This will be their last eligible year to play. NGSA is headquartered at Los Alisos Middle School, 14800 Jersey Avenue, in Norwalk.
Pastor Linda Crews of Community Church gave the invocation. Jana Stuard, Acting Director of Finance/Treasurer for the City of Norwalk, led the flag salute. Councilman Rick Ramirez was absent. Councilman Michael Mendez left before the meeting ended.
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