A pilot program launched in 2017 to clean up unsightly properties in Saint John has been pretty successful so far.
Chris McKiel, manager of the enhanced community standards program, says they resolved 82 cases in 2017 and hope to achieve another 50 in 2018.
McKiel tells us unsightly properties can range from a couple of bags of garbage on the side of someone’s building to an illegal dumping site.
“We’re trying to have a lot of those properties cleaned up so it increases property values and so that people aren’t afraid to invest in their own properties anymore,” says McKiel.
McKiel says their goal is to work with property owners to have the properties cleaned up, but if they refuse, the city will take on the work and send the owner the bill.
“When we’ve gone in with city staff and cleaned up a property, we’ve noticed that other property owners were cleaning up as well,” he says. “That is the hope and the goal.”
The enhanced community standards program will also focus on improving the overall visual appeal of St. James Street in the uptown.
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(Photo credit: Saint John growth committee report)
