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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW 'Storm' was not very wet for Rogue Valley, but did dampen fire threat ... Calling out the troops ... Pot businesses have eyes on Medford ... 'Storm' was not very wet for Rogue Valley, but did dampen fire threat ... Calling out the troops ... Pot businesses have eyes on Medford ... NEIGHBORHOOD BLIGHT Vagrant magnets: Abandoned houses plague Medford neighborhoods By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 26, 2015 @ 2:00 am Updated Aug 26, 2015 at 3:33 PM By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 26, 2015 @ 2:00 am Updated Aug 26, 2015 at 3:33 PM --> What can you do? If you see an abandoned house and want to report it to police, call 541-774-2016 or fill out a complaint form on the city's website, www.ci.medford.or.us. ... » Read more X What can you do? If you see an abandoned house and want to report it to police, call 541-774-2016 or fill out a complaint form on the city's website, www.ci.medford.or.us . Go to the home page and click on "Code Enforcement Request" on the lefthand side. What is the law? Various Medford municipal codes address abandoned properties, but two sections in particular are used the most by code enforcement officers: Section 7.954: Maintenance Requirements. This ordinance requires lenders to water, mow and prune the property; keep pools and spas in working order or drained; hire a local property management company to perform weekly inspections to verify requirements are met; and post a direct contact name and 24-hour contact phone number for persons to report problems or concerns. Section 7.955: Security Requirements. Lenders must secure windows, doors, gates and other openings to prevent access by children and unauthorized people. » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> Abandoned houses in Medford are a magnet for bad behavior and a nuisance for property owners who live nearby, neighbors say. Karen Elliott owns a duplex that is next to a boarded-up house at 619 Palm St. that has been a problem for years. “The place is a disaster,” she said. “My tenants tell me people go in and out of there.” Medford code enforcement officers counted 42 houses in the city that are characterized as blighted or boarded up, including the house on Palm. Earlier this year, City Council member said they wanted to put more teeth into ordinances to deal with abandoned houses, but no action has been taken yet. Currently, the city has no limit on how long a building can be boarded up. Elliott said the Palm Street property next to her duplex and another abandoned house on Peach Street are an eyesore and attract vagrants and drug users. She said she wishes the city would tear the houses down or someone would buy the properties and fix them up. “It brings down everybody’s property values,” she said. “Families around here are trying to lead good lives. And kids are going by on their way to school.” Other areas have been plagued by abandoned houses. Earlier this year on Jeanette Avenue, a property was burned in a fire and another one a few doors down had graffiti on the front wall and an expletive visible from the street. Both sat unattended in that state of disrepair for months. Medford police Sgt. Don Lane said the last time his code enforcement officers went to the Palm Street property was in April when they found someone had been living illegally in the back unit. On Tuesday, a mattress and clothes were still visible inside the back unit. Lane said there could be other calls for the police at the same address but he deals with code enforcement issues. The city of Medford had posted various warning notices on the door of the Palm house. The Peach house had a notice that it wasn't safe for occupation. Lane said it takes his officers a considerable amount of time to deal with these properties, particularly the ones that are bank-owned. “Banks are so far removed from the situation,” he said. “It is difficult to find somebody to talk to who is the responsible party.” If all else fails, the city will step in and board up a house, then put a lien on the property to get reimbursed at a later time, he said. Even if officers find someone living in an abandoned house, they have to take legal steps to kick that person out, Lane said. “We have to do due process,” he said. “We have to find the owner, and say this is a problem.” He said one of the worst houses he dealt with was on Queen Anne Avenue. The bank took over the property after the owner died. Vagrants moved in, and the junk started piling up. “That property attracted a lot of problem people and a lot of complaints from the neighbors,” he said. “The squatters worked with us and agreed to take some of their property out of there. We didn’t have to pay abatement costs.” The city then boarded up the property. Code enforcement officers say there's a recurring pattern of abandoned houses being boarded up, then broken into again — sometimes by the same intruders rousted by police the first time. Some buildings in the city have been boarded up for decades. Simon Rickaby, who lives near the Palm property, said he had an abandoned house next door that attracted a half-dozen people every night. “Police were here several times for disturbances,” he said. “One time there was this good-looking lady camping in the alley behind the house.” Finally, someone bought the house and fixed it up, Rickaby said. He said he hasn’t had any run-ins with vagrants, but he did have a $500 GPS unit stolen from his pickup. The thieves yanked out a wire attached to the rear-view mirror and broke the front windshield. He said he gets along with his neighbors, whom he described "friendly." But they are all being victimized by the three or four abandoned houses in the neighborhood. “It’s a shame,” he said. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 541-776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] . Follow him at www.twitter.com/reporterdm . By Damian Mann Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Damian Mann Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 26, 2015 @ 2:00 am Updated Aug 26, 2015 at 3:33 PM » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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