Ineptitude a contributing cause in 3 deaths?

sparks · **Joined:** Tue Nov 14, 2006 4:17 pm **Posts:** 3800

This thread is filled with misconceptions about NIPSCO and rental registration. First, NIPSCO doesn't notify local government when they shut off utilities. Under state law, public utilities can't shut off power between Dec. 1 and March 15.
Second, Hammond has a rental registration ordinance, not a rental inspection ordinance like many other cities and towns do. Mandatory rental inspections have been strongly opposed by a vocal minority since they were first proposed by Dave Hamm back in 2000.
If you look in the Times archives, you will see multiple quotes by Chuck Rocek opposing even the rental registration ordinances. In my opinion, Chuck and others like him have blood on their hands because of their political opposition to common sense attempts by Hammond to insure every rental property in Hammond meets minimum standards for safe housing.

justcallmetommy · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 8:25 pm **Posts:** 5662

sparks wrote:

This thread is filled with misconceptions about NIPSCO and rental registration. First, NIPSCO doesn't notify local government when they shut off utilities. Under state law, public utilities can't shut off power between Dec. 1 and March 15.
Second, Hammond has a rental registration ordinance, not a rental inspection ordinance like many other cities and towns do. Mandatory rental inspections have been strongly opposed by a vocal minority since they were first proposed by Dave Hamm back in 2000.
If you look in the Times archives, you will see multiple quotes by Chuck Rocek opposing even the rental registration ordinances. In my opinion, Chuck and others like him have blood on their hands because of their political opposition to common sense attempts by Hammond to insure every rental property in Hammond meets minimum standards for safe housing.

come on now sparks, your actually going to work at libeling individuals. So now Rocek now makes city policy? Is he a city employee? I don't see his name on the city employee roster or receiving a salary from the city.

So now Tom gave you marching orders to start pointing at others to hide the city's criminal neglect. Your criminal neglect?

nipsco certainly does inform the city when they cut off electricity and gas or, using a sparkism, are you too stupid to understand that?

who was the city inspector and that inspector's supervisor who left 3 kids in a house with out utilities? Not once, not twice, not three time, not four times, but five times services were disconnected. Sounds like potential criminal neglect by the city.

and Mr. David Hein or is it Hien, you were employed by the city as chief city electrical inspector for over a year now. did you go out to this house after the father twice reinstalled the electrical mete, re establishing electricity? Why not Mr. Hein? Have you developed a plan so when a meter is found illegally installed you jump into action?

Apparently, in this case, Hammond failed to insure this rental property met Hammond's minimum standards for safe housing and left kids in the house to be murdered.

To have saved the lives of these 3 children, all it would have taken is a phone call to Family Services.

no one in city government had that level of intelligence. Ok sparks Tom told you to start spreading the blame... sweet!

Tiger1 · **Posted:** Tue Jan 14, 2014 1:35 pm

sparks wrote:

This thread is filled with misconceptions about NIPSCO and rental registration. First, NIPSCO doesn't notify local government when they shut off utilities. Under state law, public utilities can't shut off power between Dec. 1 and March 15.
Second, Hammond has a rental registration ordinance, not a rental inspection ordinance like many other cities and towns do. Mandatory rental inspections have been strongly opposed by a vocal minority since they were first proposed by Dave Hamm back in 2000.
If you look in the Times archives, you will see multiple quotes by Chuck Rocek opposing even the rental registration ordinances. In my opinion, Chuck and others like him have blood on their hands because of their political opposition to common sense attempts by Hammond to insure every rental property in Hammond meets minimum standards for safe housing.

IF NIPSCO doesn't tell the city when they shut someone off, then how does the city know that the utilities are off for more than 30 days, triggering the stipulations of the ordinance for mandatory inspection of the property before the utilities can be put back on?

justcallmetommy · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 8:25 pm **Posts:** 5662

Quote:

http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/city-puts-rental-fee-hike-on-hold/article_ef50f569-805e-58b0-96a1-90d465ed9cd9.html

Chief of Inspections Jim Callahan said the increase will help his department with staffing necessary to ensure the city's rental units are safe, but a handful of property owners at Monday night's council meeting said the increase amounts to little more than a landlord tax.

"I think everyone in this room recognizes this is a tax, not a fee," said Peter O'Brien, vice president of Evanston-based Arnel Inc., which owns some of the city's larger apartment complexes.

Chuck Rocek, a Hammond property owner, said the city needs to go after negligent property owners, increasing its revenue through fines, rather than force all landlords to pay a higher fee. Anthony Dickerson, who has been renting in Hammond for three years, said the additional fee will be passed on to renters and provide an additional hardship, forcing some to move.

"There's going to be a lot of people who have to go back to a place they don't want to," Dickerson.

While some argued that the fee comes out to a nominal $10 a month, 3rd District Councilman Anthony Higgs said for some struggling families, that money can make a big difference.

"If you are raising three or four kids, that $10 or $15 can go along way. Ten dollars or $15 can buy you some food," Higgs said.

Quote:

Hammond eyes steep hike in landlord fees
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/local/lake/hammond-eyes-steep-hike-in-landlord-fees/article_598c241a-4577-5d36-908d-8f2a9e83fde0.html

But longtime property owner Chuck Rocek said the ordinance unfairly targets landlords who are already following the guidelines.

"It's a tax," Rocek said. "You're putting a tax on responsible landlords. You're taxing the compliant individuals."

Jim Banach, who's owned rental properties in Hammond for 40 years, agreed. He said the city should only be targeting derelict landlords, whom he said wouldn't comply with a registration process anyway.

"If a place is a piece of garbage, maybe that should trigger an inspection," Banach said.

It certainly appears Mr. Callahan, Chief of Inspections and his department have certainly failed to ensure the city's rental units are safe. Apparently Callahan has missed a number of properties.... http://www.northwestindiana.com/discussionforum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=10556&sid=788f59de3e0bcaf715daf4d87245198d

And it appears Rocek encouraged the city to go after problematic landlords... Sparks have you just libeled Mr. Rocek?

Maybe, just maybe the city could have effectively dealt with this problem, would have had more time, if it was not so busy going after such activities as:

a city attorney who appears to be padding their salary by extending cases, or

doing inspections on individuals and their business because they are political candidates, or

attempting to put business competitors opening across the street from friends of Tom's out of business, or,

as with the federal lawsuit pending, where it appears someone in code enforcement and/or management getting some type of kick back, having their hand out so the right contractor gets the job? http://www.northwestindiana.com/discussionforum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=11488&sid=788f59de3e0bcaf715daf4d87245198d

is McDermott ignoring a number of properties because they contribute to his campaign fund? http://www.northwestindiana.com/discussionforum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=10556&sid=788f59de3e0bcaf715daf4d87245198d

Sparks where is that quote you reference? Sparks?

Had you gotten off your fat ass and waddled over to this property after the first time the electrical meter was re installed instead of having a half dozen doughnuts, maybe those kids might have been alive.... must be feeling very guilty sparks?

Speaking of blood on your hands, have another jelly doughnut.

736

justcallmetommy · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 8:25 pm **Posts:** 5662

Quote:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gary-Free-Press/186249654744245

Gary Free Press
September 30
The High Cost of Free Speech in NWI:

The First Amendment to the US Constitution:

â€œCongress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.â€

One of many Americansâ€™ most valuable inalienable rights, is the right to free speech, right? Well I thought so until a few years ago. But in NWI, more specifically Gary and Hammond, we find the right to free speech often comes at a price. The high costs of freely expressing oneâ€™s opinions publicly are often met with some form of retaliation. The Constitution does not intend for us to be allowed to speak freely, but then be subject to reprisals by the government at which criticisms are being directed. It surely means that we Americans should be able to publicly criticize our governmentâ€”either local or nationalâ€”without the fear of reprisal.

Too bad this is not the case in NWI. In NWI, if you plan to exercise your right of free expression, you had better be prepared to field some kind of flak from whomever your criticisms are directed towards. This type of intimidation has been relatively effective. This tactic probably explains the reluctance of individuals or groups to openly be critical of their local government officials.

There have been numerous instances of local government officials abusing their powers of office to intimidate those who are critical of their performance or behavior. There have been illegal searches of private property. There have been many times when code enforcement has been used as a weapon to silence critics of different local administrations. There have been personal attacks against the character of individuals that opt to vocalize their opinions that local officials find displeasing. There have been either threats to litigate, or at times, even legal actions brought against private citizens that choose to speak their minds freely. There have been statements made which some individuals perceive to be threats to their well-being. There have been numerous cases of individuals that are critical of local officials being harassed by the police.

Citizens should not have to live in fear of these various types of retaliation just for voicing or otherwise expressing their opinions.

There is something very wrong when local government officials can tap the cityâ€™s coffers to hire attorneys to silence their critics or use the full resources of the government bodies over which they temporarily preside to intimidate certain members of the public.

This type of behavior is the province of tyrants; the likes of Hitler, Stalin, or Kim Jong IL. Our forebears fought to be Americans because we refused to submit to this kind of oppression. So donâ€™t now let it get a toehold in our own backyard! Speak freely. Speak truthfully. Speak fearlessly.

And speak as often and as loudly as necessary to communicate your views to your desired audience. Donâ€™t let them bully you into submission! Be heard! Be seen! Be read! Be â€œlikedâ€! Be â€œfriendedâ€! Tweet! Text! Message! Email! Network! Converse! Communicate with any and every tool at your disposal!

justcallmetommy · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 8:25 pm **Posts:** 5662

And Sparks, Dave Hein, since you brought it up, Hell, Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr sorta set the standard for Hammond rehabbed properties.... a nice 4 x 8 sign, with notifying potential home buyers these properties are eligible for College Bound....

read for a family to move right in....

Seems like Hammond itself has a problem with the property they rehab.

And what about these properties Mr. Inspector Hein

this property had to be standing like this for years......

well at least this place is not a home is it?

But someone with some political influence turned this garage in to a home....

these pictures were taken this summer....

and this is the home, the city spent months trying to get into......Mayor McDermott stating this home is owned
by a slum lord.

What about these other properties?
Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr has been mayor now for 12 years.....

774

mattlap · **Joined:** Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:24 am **Posts:** 2529

justcallmetommy wrote:

And Sparks, Dave Hein, since you brought it up, Hell, Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr sorta set the standard for Hammond rehabbed properties.... a nice 4 x 8 sign, with notifying potential home buyers these properties are eligible for College Bound....

read for a family to move right in....

Seems like Hammond itself has a problem with the property they rehab.

And what about these properties Mr. Inspector Hein

this property had to be standing like this for years......

well at least this place is not a home is it?

But someone with some political influence turned this garage in to a home....

these pictures were taken this summer....

and this is the home, the city spent months trying to get into......Mayor McDermott stating this home is owned
by a slum lord.

What about these other properties?
Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr has been mayor now for 12 years.....

774

How about addresses on those properties to find out what other slumlords own them? Because there are many of them in Hammond ........

mattlap · **Joined:** Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:24 am **Posts:** 2529

So Tommy ..........

IF those pictures of dilapidated properties that you have been posting turned out to be rentals.

Would you classify that as a slumlord?

justcallmetommy · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 8:25 pm **Posts:** 5662

mattlap wrote:

So Tommy ..........

IF those pictures of dilapidated properties that you have been posting turned out to be rentals.

Would you classify that as a slumlord?

Matt, it doesn't take entry to identify problematic properties, as it doesn't taken entry to know gas, electric, then water were turned off, making a property unfit for habitation.

As to giving address, if address are given, CE fails to go out and look for problemed properties. Maybe they just might find others while looking.

sparks · **Joined:** Tue Nov 14, 2006 4:17 pm **Posts:** 3800

Tiger1 wrote:

sparks wrote:

This thread is filled with misconceptions about NIPSCO and rental registration. First, NIPSCO doesn't notify local government when they shut off utilities. Under state law, public utilities can't shut off power between Dec. 1 and March 15.
Second, Hammond has a rental registration ordinance, not a rental inspection ordinance like many other cities and towns do. Mandatory rental inspections have been strongly opposed by a vocal minority since they were first proposed by Dave Hamm back in 2000.
If you look in the Times archives, you will see multiple quotes by Chuck Rocek opposing even the rental registration ordinances. In my opinion, Chuck and others like him have blood on their hands because of their political opposition to common sense attempts by Hammond to insure every rental property in Hammond meets minimum standards for safe housing.

IF NIPSCO doesn't tell the city when they shut someone off, then how does the city know that the utilities are off for more than 30 days, triggering the stipulations of the ordinance for mandatory inspection of the property before the utilities can be put back on?

NIPSCO is regulated by state law, not local ordinance. Cities in Indiana don't have legal jurisdiction over public utilities. When the utilities have been off for more than 90 days, the property is no longer considered continuously occupied. Once that happens, the local building department has the responsibility to inspect the property to insure it is safe to restore utilities. NIPSCO informs the customer that they have to have an inspection done on the property before they can restore power. The process is the same in every county in the state. The authority having jurisdiction inspects the building and informs the utility that it can restore power.
The most salient point of this discussion is that public utilities don't provide local governments access to their databases of property or customer information.

sparks · **Joined:** Tue Nov 14, 2006 4:17 pm **Posts:** 3800

justcallmetommy wrote:

And Sparks, Dave Hein, since you brought it up, Hell, Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr sorta set the standard for Hammond rehabbed properties.... a nice 4 x 8 sign, with notifying potential home buyers these properties are eligible for College Bound....

and this is the home, the city spent months trying to get into......Mayor McDermott stating this home is owned
by a slum lord.

What about these other properties?
Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr has been mayor now for 12 years.....

[/size]774

mattlap wrote:

How about addresses on those properties to find out what other slumlords own them? Because there are many of them in Hammond ........

I have been asking JCMT for months for the addresses of these properties. He has refused to provide them. His unwillingness to provide addresses proves that his motivation in posting the pictures is to make a political attack rather than concern about this city or any of the people who may be residing in those buildings.

mattlap · **Joined:** Fri Aug 15, 2008 7:24 am **Posts:** 2529

justcallmetommy wrote:

Matt, it doesn't take entry to identify problematic properties, as it doesn't taken entry to know gas, electric, then water were turned off, making a property unfit for habitation.

As to giving address, if address are given, CE fails to go out and look for problemed properties. Maybe they just might find others while looking.

You are evading the question .... If those pictures were of rentals, would you consider their owners slumlords?

Tiger1 · **Posted:** Wed Jan 15, 2014 12:31 pm

sparks wrote:

justcallmetommy wrote:

And Sparks, Dave Hein, since you brought it up, Hell, Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr sorta set the standard for Hammond rehabbed properties.... a nice 4 x 8 sign, with notifying potential home buyers these properties are eligible for College Bound....

and this is the home, the city spent months trying to get into......Mayor McDermott stating this home is owned
by a slum lord.

What about these other properties?
Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr has been mayor now for 12 years.....

[/size]774

mattlap wrote:

How about addresses on those properties to find out what other slumlords own them? Because there are many of them in Hammond ........

I have been asking JCMT for months for the addresses of these properties. He has refused to provide them. His unwillingness to provide addresses proves that his motivation in posting the pictures is to make a political attack rather than concern about this city or any of the people who may be residing in those buildings.

Sparks, you know the address of the one place, as my daughter and myself saw you there inspecting it with other city officials back a few months ago. Remember, the owners cute dog was tied up in the front yard to get him out of the way for the inspection, and my daughter and myself were having a blast playing with this very friendly dog.

Tiger1 · **Posted:** Wed Jan 15, 2014 12:33 pm

mattlap wrote:

justcallmetommy wrote:

Matt, it doesn't take entry to identify problematic properties, as it doesn't taken entry to know gas, electric, then water were turned off, making a property unfit for habitation.

As to giving address, if address are given, CE fails to go out and look for problemed properties. Maybe they just might find others while looking.

You are evading the question .... If those pictures were of rentals, would you consider their owners slumlords?

Some of the slumlords are city employees.

Tiger1 · **Posted:** Wed Jan 15, 2014 1:04 pm

sparks wrote:

Tiger1 wrote:

sparks wrote:

This thread is filled with misconceptions about NIPSCO and rental registration. First, NIPSCO doesn't notify local government when they shut off utilities. Under state law, public utilities can't shut off power between Dec. 1 and March 15.
Second, Hammond has a rental registration ordinance, not a rental inspection ordinance like many other cities and towns do. Mandatory rental inspections have been strongly opposed by a vocal minority since they were first proposed by Dave Hamm back in 2000.
If you look in the Times archives, you will see multiple quotes by Chuck Rocek opposing even the rental registration ordinances. In my opinion, Chuck and others like him have blood on their hands because of their political opposition to common sense attempts by Hammond to insure every rental property in Hammond meets minimum standards for safe housing.

IF NIPSCO doesn't tell the city when they shut someone off, then how does the city know that the utilities are off for more than 30 days, triggering the stipulations of the ordinance for mandatory inspection of the property before the utilities can be put back on?

NIPSCO is regulated by state law, not local ordinance. Cities in Indiana don't have legal jurisdiction over public utilities. When the utilities have been off for more than 90 days, the property is no longer considered continuously occupied. Once that happens, the local building department has the responsibility to inspect the property to insure it is safe to restore utilities. NIPSCO informs the customer that they have to have an inspection done on the property before they can restore power. The process is the same in every county in the state. The authority having jurisdiction inspects the building and informs the utility that it can restore power.
The most salient point of this discussion is that public utilities don't provide local governments access to their databases of property or customer information.

What about the 2 person per bedroom ordinance? With 8 people in the family, that apartment should have been 4 bedrooms. According to another city ordinace, there was supposed to be 150sqft for 1 person, and an additional 100sqft for each extra person. Was that apartment 950sqft, which would be the minimum?

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Ineptitude a contributing cause in 3 deaths?

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