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Home My WebLink AboutA042 - Motion directing staff to begin proactive Code Enforcement for Campustown Business DistrictITEM #:45 DATE:10-13-26 DEPT:FIRE SUBJECT:PROACTIVE CODE ENFORCEMENT FOR CAMPUSTOWN AREA BUSINESSES COUNCIL ACTION FORM BACKGROUND: The City Council received an email from Luke Jensen dated August 6, 2026, (attached) regarding the condition of the commercial properties in the Campustown area. Council reviewed the email at the August 11, 2026, Council Meeting and directed staff to investigate potential violations in the Campustown area. Staff completed an initial review of the area and identified 11 properties that were in violation. To date, 10 of the 11 properties are in compliance. The property not in compliance is 108 Hayward, which will require some structural repairs that will take some time to complete. Staff drafted a memo (attached) outlining all of the violations and actions taken to resolve the issues. The City Council reviewed the memo at the September 22, 2026, City Council meeting. A motion was approved to place the item on a future agenda to discuss proactive enforcement in the Campustown area to be performed twice per year by Inspections staff. Staff currently enforces property maintenance concerns on a complaint-only basis with the exception of the Near Campus Neighborhoods, which receive proactive enforcement for items such as garbage, furniture, and grass height. Regular proactive enforcement has been helpful as staff is able to quickly address violations so that non- compliance is not normalized. ALTERNATIVES: 1. Direct staff to begin proactive enforcement for commercial properties in the Campustown Business District twice per year. 2. Direct staff to begin proactive enforcement for commercial properties in the Campustown Business District throughout the year. 3. Direct staff to continue complaint-based enforcement for commercial properties in the Campustown Business District. CITY MANAGER'S RECOMMENDED ACTION: Staff believes that regular enforcement in the Campustown business district would be more effective than the current practice of sporadic enforcement on a complaint-only 1 basis. However, rather than merely perform inspections on a biannual basis as suggested by the Council, the staff would recommend performing proactive inspections throughout the year. The additional enforcement would not greatly increase the current workload and would help set a standard expectation for the area. Therefore, it is the recommendation of the City Manager that the City Council approve Alternative No. 2, as described above. ATTACHMENT(S): 4. L. Jensen - Campustown Cleanup (2).pdf 3. S. Van Meeteren - Campustown Area Property Maintenance.pdf 2 1 Hall, Renee From:Luke Jensen <luke@resgi.com> Sent:Thursday, August 6, 2026 10:02 AM To:City Council and Mayor Subject:Campustown Needs Attention Attachments:Site_Photos (2).pdf [External Email] Council, I'm writing about the condition of Campustown. Over the last 10 years there has been a substantial deterioration of the district. We really have not seen meaningful investment (public or private) in the area since 2018. I understand enrollment fluctuations have created challenges. From our experience our 2026/2027 rents are pretty much the same as 2017/2018 rents but our operating expenses have increased over 35% during that same period. This impacts how property owners can maintain their properties. We need to find ways to increase vibrancy and attract more people to the district to support the area year round. I encourage the council to look at the conditions in the area...sadly you will see a lot of challenges:  High commercial vacancy  Weeds and lack of property maintenance  Trash containers littered everywhere including the right of way and on city property  Unregulated compost pile full of old tree branches  Dirty sidewalks  Bent/broken street signs and garbage cans We need to clean this up by enforcing our city codes. I don't know if anyone is monitoring the area. Then we need to make it easier to invest in the area and promote growth. Campustown is in bad shape and a poor reflection of the community. We need a healthy and vibrant Campustown, and sadly we are far from it. My family and I have invested in the district and are one of the few remaining local ownership groups. We take a lot of pride in our property and have maintained our offices here since 2004. We serve close to 250 residents in the area and they deserve more than just a nice apartment. They deserve an area they are proud of. Please consider developing an improvement plan so we can generate investment in this area and get things back on track. Attached are some pictures for reference. Luke -- LUKE JENSEN, CCIM RES Properties | RES Development 2519 Chamberlain St., Ste 101 Ames, IA 50014 | 515.290.3487 3 2 To help protect your privacy, Microsoft Office prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet. Licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Iowa 4 Photo 1 of 9 - IMG_1959.jpeg 5 Photo 2 of 9 - IMG_1960.jpeg 6 Photo 3 of 9 - IMG_1961.jpeg 7 Photo 4 of 9 - IMG_1963.jpeg 8 Photo 5 of 9 - IMG_1964.jpeg 9 Photo 6 of 9 - IMG_1965.jpeg 10 Photo 7 of 9 - IMG_1967.jpeg 11 Photo 8 of 9 - IMG_1972.jpeg 12 Photo 9 of 9 - IMG_1974.jpeg 13 MEMO 515.239.5153 main 515.232.5261 fax 515 Clark Ave. P.O. Box 811 Ames, IA 50010 www.CityofAmes.org Fire Department Inspections To: Mayor & City Council From: Date: Sara Van Meeteren, Building Official September 10, 2026 Subject: Campustown Area Property Maintenance The City Council referred a letter to staff regarding property maintenance in the Campustown area from Luke Jensen (attached) at the August 11, 2026 City Council Meeting. City staff toured the Campustown business area (commercial properties from Lynn to Hayward and Lincoln Way to Knapp) on August 12th and identified 11 violations of the Ames Municipal Code including litter/appliances, vegetation, and improper siding material. Each property owner was contacted and have already complied with or have plans for compliance. Each violation is summarized below: 1.) 2530 Chamberlain – Dead/dangerous tree. A code case was opened 8/12/26. The owner responded that a contractor has been hired for removal. They have a compliance date of 9/11/26. Compliance verified on 9/10/26. 14 2.) 113 Welch – Noxius Weed. A code case was opened 8/13/26. Owner responded that it will be taken care of. They had a compliance date of 8/20/26. The tree was not removed on that date. They were given a second notice with a compliance date of 8/28/26. Compliance was verified on 8/27/26. 3.) 109 Welch – Garbage/Appliance behind dumpster area. A code case was opened 8/13/26. They had a compliance date of 8/20/26. The garbage was not removed on that date so they were given a second notice with a compliance date of 8/28/26. A final 15 violation notice was mailed on 9/3/26 with a deadline of 9/17/26. A citation will be issued if not in compliance on that date. 4.) 2516 Lincoln Way – Noxious weeds. A code case was opened 8/12/26. The owner responded that they had a contract for mowing and are now aware that they have not been getting mowed per the contract. The property was in compliance on 8/17/26. 16 5.) 115 Welch – Noxious weeds. A code case was opened 8/13/26. Compliance was confirmed on 8/19/26. 17 6.) 121 Welch – Garbage, Litter, TVs in garbage area. A code case was opened 8/13/26. Compliance achieved 8/14/26. 18 19 7.) 115 Welch – Litter in City lot. Public Works tries to do a clean-up a few times each year, but there is no regularly scheduled litter maintenance in City parking lots. 8.) 133 Welch – Appliance by garbage. A code case was opened 8/13/26. Compliance was confirmed 8/19/26. 20 9.) 218 Welch – Noxious Weeds/Yard Waste. A code case was opened on 8/4/26. The property sold on 6/23/26 and the new owners (Green State Credit Union) are obtaining bids to have the exterior cleaned up with a compliance date of 8/31/26. They have plans to remodel the post office into a credit union and create a green space with the rest of the area. A contractor was on site on 8/27/26 to begin mowing. Compliance was confirmed on 9/15/26. 21 22 10.) 2420 Lincoln Way – Litter. A code case was opened 8/13/26. Compliance achieved 8/13/26. 23 11.) 108 Hayward – North Wall is covered in plywood. This was the solution for a previous case in which bricks were falling into the alley. The plywood was added to keep the bricks from falling. It is now a violation of the public nuisance ordinance but was not a violation at the time it was installed. A code case was opened 8/13/26. The owner is working with a contractor and the Planning Department to find an appropriate siding material and determine if there are any façade grant opportunities. They have a compliance date of 9/14/26. Mr. Jensen’s letter referenced dumpsters placed in the right-of-way at 119 Stanton. Staff verified that the adjacent property owners had obtained a Temporary Obstruction Permit to allow the dumpster to be placed along the curb during tenant move-in/move- out. Temporary Obstruction Permits currently require staff approval. If the Council would like to restrict the locations for dumpsters they will need to provide staff with additional direction. 24 Staff noticed that there were several dumpsters placed within Lot X in Campustown that do not have any sort of obstruction permit. Some are tucked away and screened while others are placed within parking spaces. Council may want to consider looking into a screened collection area for all businesses to share to limit the number of dumpsters and the amount of litter. 25 In years past, staff has worked with the Campustown Action Association (CAA) to address general concerns in the area. The CAA was invested in the upkeep and vibrancy of this business district and played an important role keeping code violation cases to a minimum. Staff believes that seeking assistance from this group to help reinforce with property owners the importance of keeping this area well maintained would be beneficial. 26 Another idea would be to create an ‘adopt-a-‘lot’ program where businesses, fraternities/sororities, or churches could sponsor a city-owned lot to ensure the area remains clean and welcoming. 27