LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom placed abandoned and blighted property owners on notice Monday.
Segerblom used a burned-out apartment building on Calcaterra Circle in the Palos Verdes neighborhood as a prime example of what would no longer be acceptable in Las Vegas.
Priscilla Miller has lived a few doors down from the problem property for two years, and, despite loving her apartment, she says the vacant complex has attracted crime and squatters to the area.
“You want it gone because you want to be safe in your neighborhood and have it look nice," Miller said.
Segerblom said the Calcaterra blight wouldn’t be the only building targeted by code enforcement with hefty fines if absentee property owners don’t bring them up to code.
“How did this place get so run down?” Segerblom asked. “You look around and see buildings like this, and it’s because landlords let these places go."
Code Inspection Chief Jim Anderson placed notices on the building and warned owners that they had until May 1 to address code issues or be fined $1,000 a day.
“The goal is to get their attention,” Anderson said.
He also said the county could step in and decrease any issues on their own if code violations go unaddressed, and then bill the property owner for any costs.
Nearby property owner Vernice Williams, who owns six of the 12 area apartment buildings, said it would be nice to see the building demolished.
“The whole community benefits,” Williams said. "Less crime, fewer drugs, better tenants, that mindset of the community.”
People living near vacant, blighted, or unkempt properties can file complaints with the Clark County Public Response Division here.
