By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
The motto to “protect the serve” goes beyond handling burglaries and bar brawls for Bowling Green Police Division. It now also extends to trash, tall grass, stray dogs, and recreational vehicles that overstay their welcome.
It has been nearly two months since the police division took over responding to civil complaints like vehicles parked in the grass or inoperable vehicles sitting on properties.
Bowling Green City Council adopted the ordinance earlier this year intended to provide faster responses to neighborhood nuisances.
“For years we have heard calls from residents,” wanting faster responses to their complaints, Council President Mike Aspacher said when the ordinance was adopted. “I think it is a significant development. We should really see some progress in our neighborhood conditions.”
The ordinance is intended to speed up the enforcement of various nuisance issues, such as grass mowing, sidewalk snow clearing, garbage removal, and cars parked on lawns. With the change, complaints do not get missed since there is now a single point of contact at the police division for residents reporting neighborhood nuisances.
The shift to the police division is working as planned, according to Lt. Dan Mancuso, who oversees the civil enforcement section.
“I think it’s going very well,” Mancuso said, explaining that the officers are able to respond quickly to citizen concerns. “So that the complainant is happy, so they don’t have to look at the eyesore.”
Since taking over in October, the police civil enforcement section has handled 28 complaints about trash in yards, unmowed lawns, and garbage can issues, Mancuso said. They have also responded to 76 complaints about animals.
The officers have also handled “lots of” parking issues. That work is likely to increase with the new year, when the new parking kiosks are installed in all of the city’s downtown parking lots.
The civil enforcement division has two officers – Ray Baer and Kirk Cowan. They are available Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
“That’s why it’s working so well, because we have someone here until 9 at night,” Mancuso said.
Police Chief Tony Hetrick suggested the police take over the civil enforcement since the police could provide service into the evenings, and often got the phone calls already for the complaints.
“There was so much overlap of who would respond to certain incidents,” Mancuso said. Before the police taking over, citizens calling in concerns were often transferred to multiple different offices.
Plus officers patrolling the city often saw “nuisances” on their routes and were already responding before citizens called in, Mancuso said.
“We would like to get them corrected before it leads to a citizen complaint,” he said.
The police division hopes to hire a third person for civil enforcement so Saturday coverage can also be offered to citizens with complaints.
“We want to make sure we can follow up and talk to someone,” Mancuso said.
“It seems to be working well right now,” he said. “They’re on top of stuff and getting things corrected before it becomes a bigger problem.”
To report violations, contact the Bowling Green Police Division at 419-352-1131. E-mailed complaints will be received via Civilenforcement@bgohio.org.
