HUTCHINSON — The Hutchinson City Council will take action on the new rental inspection program during Tuesday’s agenda session.
The city is proposing a licensing fee structure with incentives rather than the current permit fee. The Housing Commission has denied a recommendation on the proposal. That came during a meeting on Oct. 19 on a 4-2 vote.
“There were still some concerns from the housing commissioners that is this really going to solve any of the problems,” Planning Director Ryan Hvitlok said. “We also had two new slots filled on the commission so that changed the vote a little.” Several other members of the commission were absent, which also skewed the numbers, according to Hvitlok.
Hvitlok says the reason this has drawn so much attention is that most landlords in Hutchinson are not used to this kind of program, which is usually seen as routine business by owners of larger apartment complexes in metro areas.
“If you look at where the majority of rental licenses programs are in Kansas, they are in the K.C. metro area. They tend to be the larger landlords and it’s more of an expectation. They just see it as a part of doing business,” Hvitlok said. “We have a lot more individual landlords. These are generally local people that have put some money into the community to try and invest. So for them, I think it is a bit of a cultural shock.”
Hvitlok says that, while this program may not be the full answer, he feels that the council is wanting to keep the ball moving forward when it comes to better rental housing.
“Obviously we’ve made some good progress on it (condition of rental housing) with the international property maintenance code, but also the rental registration program,” Hvitlok noted. “I think that is the concern with some of the Housing Commission and (what) City Council members have voiced is they really don’t want to lose that momentum and kind of start going back to where we were 10 years ago.”
Tuesday’s City Council meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the Hutchinson city offices.