Council to hold special meeting Mon. to discuss draft ordinances on blighted property and code enforcement

City officials say this house at the northwest corner of Higgins
and Turner Streets has been abandoned for about 60 years.

The Midway City Council will have a special meeting Monday night for what seems likely to be a final workshop on the ordinances that Mayor Grayson Vandegrift has been trying to get passed since he was first elected in 2014, to crack down on owners of blighted property.

The meeting at City Hall is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. All council meetings are open to the public, but the agenda for this meeting does not specifically include citizens' comments, as the agendas for regular council meetings do. The council has already held two workshops on the ordinance.

Vandegrift said in his annual report to the council Monday night, "I’ve been very encouraged by the discussion and progress surrounding the proposed Blighted Property and code enforcement ordinances, and this week I will be sending members of the city council the latest draft we’ve been working on together, with the intention of holding a first reading at our meeting on Dec.16 and a second reading and vote on Jan. 6. I understand that this may require a final special meeting on the topic if it appears one is necessary to move forward. I firmly believe this is the only way to truly tackle the problem of blight and abandonment, and the current version is a great example of cooperation and compromise."