SULPHUR SPRINGS - Residents had more questions than answers received from the mayor and city council members during their July 11 regular session after Sherman Buckley, Mayor Bobby Simon’s code enforcement officer, sent certified notices to mailboxes, hung red tags on doorknobs and hammered into the ground “red tag special” signs on sticks.

One such sign standing tall in front of Todd Bumgarner’s house on Bush Street read, “This property is unsafe and unsanitary,” and in a larger print-type the word “condemnation.”

Talk about town raises the question of why certain people received notices and others, with homes obviously violating the same ordinances, did not. Several residents spoke up at the meeting about receiving notices and having signs stuck in their yards.

Retired third-grade Gravette teacher, June Murray, had her say during open forum. She walked into the meeting with a fist full of papers and called Mayor Simon’s and Buckley’s notices on her property - at 116 S. Bush Ave. - contrary to city ordinances. She said she felt personally harassed and bullied by the mayor and Buckley’s notices.

“I purchased my property March this year,” Murray said, adding that she had spent a lot of time and money cleaning it up outside by trimming trees, cutting out overgrown brush and mowing grass. “I received a red card (about May 6) for violation of ordinance 13-02,for storage tanks, and 9.04-04-01, for cleaning alleyway.”

“About June 15th, a large orange sign was stuck in my front yard, ‘This Property is unsafe and/or unsanitary,’” Murray said.

Murray also brought a certified letter she said she had received in her mailbox. The paper not only had the two previous violations circled, but also had circled ordinance 13-07, a “Final Notice,”which demanded she tear down all structures on the property within 10 days.

“How could one receive a ‘final notice’ before being notified beforehand of ordinance 13-07?” Murray asked.

“Is this harassment or illegal enforcement or both?” she asked. “And building permits,” she continued. “Mr. Buckley told me I had 30 days to buy a building permit or a demolition permit so the city would know the property would not set the same as it is now. I’ll buy a permit when I’m ready to renovate,” she said.

According to Murray, Buckley had told her all she had to do was to buy a building permit and renew it every six months to satisfy the ordinance.

After some research, Murray said she found the city’s building permit ordinance has nothing in it about a six-month permit renewal. It does, however, say that once a permit is purchased, the holder has six months to start construction. If not, the homeowner must then purchase another permit.

“If the council would like to see the town cleaned up,I would think the city would be happy that I’m restoring one of its landmarks,” she said.

Seth Bickett, city attorney for Sulphur Springs, said he was taking a look at the application of ordinances and will report on them during next month’s meeting. He also reassured Murray that he had put on hold any action against her and that any notice she had received he would review and get back with her.

Other council actions included the approval of two new volunteer fire fighters.

News, Pages 1 on 07/17/2013