It's about public safety and healthy neighborhoods, not about punishment
- The ordinance allows police officers to manage rental properties that disrupt your quality of life.
- The ordinance allows the City to work with landlords to find solutions for problem tenants.
- The ordinance empowers landlords to be kept informed of problem activity on their property.
It's about your tenant, not your house guest
- The updated ordinance addresses individuals that live in a property that you own that is not your residence.
- The updated "Lets" vs. "Rent" language allows better management of tenants who don't pay rent or have difficulty proving they pay rent.
- The ordinance does not in any way, shape or form question your ability or require you to register to have a house guest or family member who is visiting or lives with you in your own home.
It's about managing problem property, not about big government
- The ordinance contains chronic nuisance enforcement provisions that may be initiated if arrests occur or citations are issued at a property on three separate occasions within a 120-day period.
- The ordinance targets tenants that aren't good neighbors and aren't contributing to your quality of life.
- The revised ordinance is about offering solutions at the request of Rockford Apartment Association (RAA) due to its frustration of the original narrowly focused ordinance and at the request of citizens who are constantly dealing with neighborhood disorder caused by poor behavior.
It's about inclusion, not exclusion
- The City worked with the RAA, at its direction, on the original 2013 ordinance.
- The City met with the RAA last month and, based on feedback, developed a new ordinance and provided it to RAA members for review.
- The new ordinance addresses the challenge RAA landlords indicated the original ordinance prevented them from engaging in actionable and impactful measures to eradicate problem properties.