OSHKOSH, WI (WTAQ) – The Oshkosh Common Council has passed an ordinance for mandatory city-wide inspections of rental properties on a regular basis.
The council voted 6-1 in favor of the ordinance Tuesday, despite some citizens who spoke out against the measure during the meeting.
About a half dozen people , including renter Lynn Kolf, passionately asked the council to reject the creation of a rental property registry and a mandatory five year inspection schedule.
“Redundant and unnecessary. Any renter is already able to ask for and schedule an inspection of their apartment if issues can’t be resolved with their landlord”
The measure passed, despite opposition claims it goes against state law and the 4th Amendment.
But Allen Davis, the city’s community development director, says the move is legal, because an indoor inspection would be voluntary for the tenant
“The tenant could let us in and we could do the inspection and then we’d give the landlord the results of any violations they need to correct.”
Under the new ordinance, outdoor inspections from the street will still be mandatory.
Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce President John Casper says this is the wrong move for the city.
“If they really want to make some improvements they need to make some investment in the infrastructure in those neighborhoods, because public-sector investment spurs private-sector investment”
Landlords will have to pay the city about $150 for each inspection, whether the inspector goes inside or not. That will add up to nearly $2 million every five years.
Critics say it’s a money grab. Supporters disagree.
Davis said it’s up to the city to ensure apartments are safe.
“They typically have not been inspected and we wanna make sure that there’s a lot of codes that are complied with from smoke detectors, to plumbing, to electrical, to a lot of dangerous situations”
Still, Kolf and other opponents are concerned about the loss of privacy and a possible rise in rent if landlords pass on the fees.
“It’s expensive and the cost will be absorbed by me and other renters”
The proposal was introduced in May of 2016.
The ordinance is supposed to go into effect on January 1st of 2017.
A group, made up of landlords and renters, has pledged to bring a lawsuit against the city to stop the ordinance.
