It can be easy for mayoral candidates to say they’ll improve neighborhoods if elected, but what does that really mean?
For Elkhart Mayor Rod Roberson, it’s meant a city government that’s proactive rather than reactive, that requires residents with problems to contact as few city departments as possible, and that tells people what they can do rather than what they can’t do.
Midway through the final year of his first four-year term, and facing no opponent in the Nov. 7 general election, Roberson held a press conference Wednesday in Weston Park. He announced several things his administration has done in recent months to improve neighborhood life.
Since January the city’s four code enforcement inspectors have been working solely out of their vehicles, so they’re out in neighborhoods more. They’re flexing their hours so that one inspector is always working from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., to better interact with people when they’re home instead of working.
The city also has tried to encourage the formation of more neighborhood associations, growing them from four to 11. At one time, decades ago, there were 40 or 50 such associations.
A new effort by Code Enforcement in May to educate residents on the zoning ordinance, and tow non-working, unregistered vehicles when it’s necessary, has resulted in the removal of over 50 non-working or unregistered vehicles from streets, yards and alleys.
And on Monday the city’s common council will give first reading to an ordinance to move code enforcement from the Development Services Department and creating a new Building and Code Department.
Roberson said such changes have made it easier for residents to report the non-working and unregistered vehicles.
“We need to have our eyes and ears open for proactive relationships that start with how we see each street, each block, and how the residents engage with it,” Roberson said. “The way our residents live is the way we want to serve, and that’s the biggest part of this initiative.”
