By Linda Seida, Staff Writer
LAMBERTVILLE — Shifty landlords will face a new range of penalties if the City Council’s proposed changes are made law next month.
Going from the current three-step penalty scale to a wider range of fines allows more room for judicial discretion.
”You still want to give your prosecutor and your judge some flexibility,” Mayor David Del Vecchio said Tuesday.
The purpose of the proposed penalty changes is to encourage compliance, not the collection of fines, according to the mayor. He said, “You want enforcement. You don’t want the fine on something like this. Your goal here is to get compliance and enforcement. That is our first and foremost goal.”
A public hearing will be held Oct. 18. The hearing will give residents an opportunity to voice their opinions and concerns before council members vote on the amendment. A vote is usually taken immediately following the public hearing.
The public hearing will be held at the Justice Center, 25 S. Union St. Council meetings begin at 7 p.m.
The proposed amendment that spells out the new range was introduced Monday night. It was crafted in response to complaints from residents this summer. They said they wanted the city to discourage overcrowding.
In response, the council is proposing to change the fines for violation to a range from a three-step scale. The proposed penalties would be at the statutory limit, city attorney Philip Faherty said.
The fines would range from $100 to a maximum of $2,000. According to the proposed amendment, any person who has a violation that garners a fine of more than $1,250 would be given 30 days to correct the violations. Following the 30-day period, if violations have not been corrected, the maximum of $2,000 may be imposed by the Municipal Court.
Landlords also would be fined $250 for refusing entry to a housing enforcement officer who visits to inspect the premises.
The ordinance now calls for a three-step scale of fines. A first offense carries a $250 minimum fine, plus court costs. A second offense carries a minimum fine of $1,225, and each offense thereafter carries a $2,000 fine.

