W. PAUL MARTIN
            MAYOR
              
        JOHN R. PICK
        EXEC. OFFICER
              
				M A R Y L A N D


				October 26, 1995





Mr. Robert M. Caldwell
Council President
Councilmembers
City of Salisbury
Government Office Building
Salisbury, Maryland 21801

Dear President Caldwell and Members of the Council:

	After careful thought and consideration of the testimony given,
I feel it is in the best interest of our community for me to veto the
Ordinance establishing a residential rental unit licensing/inspection
program that has been delivered to me for approval.  I have disapproved 
Ordinance No. 1615.

	We have made great progress in our overall Housing Code
enforcement in the last few years.  There seemed to be a general
consensus among those testifying on this Ordinance that the quality
and condition of the rental housing stock within the City of Salisbury
has improved greatly.  There was also general consensus that the
Department of Building, Housing and Zoning is doing an outstanding job
in enforcing our existing Ordinance.

	The Department of Building, Housing and Zoning responds
aggressively to all complaints from tenants or others on alleged
violations of Housing Code standards.  There are few complaints, if
any, being filed by tenants stating that the Department of Building,
Housing and Zoning is not responding.  Rather, the complaints we
receive are that the Department of Building, Housing and Zoning is
being too aggressive.

	Based on the information that is available to me, it
is my opinion that the City's current efforts are effective and that
the proponents have failed to demonstrate that the benefits of the
proposed program justify the additional cost.

	I do not believe it is necessary, in this time of tight budgets
at all levels of government, to establish another level of bureaucracy
that, in my opinion, is not needed.  It is also of great concern to me
that the proponents have not developed a credible estimate of the cost
of this program. The roughest estimate at this time is at least
$180,000.00. The fees that have been discussed would not generate
sufficient revenue to offset this cost.

	I am also very concerned that this proposed Ordinance would make
it more difficult for people in our community to find affordable
housing.  There is no doubt in my mind that the cost of this Ordinance,
if adopted, would be passed down to the ones who are least able to
afford it and those are the tenants themselves.

	While I am not convinced that this residential rental unit
licensing and inspection program is needed, I do believe that the
quality of rental housing in Salisbury is a matter of concern to our
community.  However, it is my observation that more can be accomplished
through cooperation by all interested parties than by legislation.

	Accordingly, I call upon all interested persons and institutions
in our community to join in a cooperative, voluntary effort to identify
units that do not meet Code so that our enforcement effort can be
targeted on them. Specifically, I request that property owners who are
working for compliance apply pressure to those who are identified as
maintaining substandard units.  I request that neighborhood associations
become more active in searching out and assisting any tenants whose
problems are not being addressed by property owners and reporting them
to the Department of Building, Housing and Zoning.  In order to make
this easier, I am directing that a "hot line" number be established so
that tenants can report problems with anonymity.  This number will be
advertised and will also be entered on all City water bills.

	I also suggest that a rental housing task force be established
with representation from all interested segments of our community.  The
purposes of this task force would be to determine the extent to which
we have a problem with substandard housing and to investigate
alternative approaches to dealing with the problems identified.  Among
the alternatives that this task force may wish to consider are voluntary
efforts similar to the program established in Escondido, California,
which was brought to the attention of the City Council recently.

	The safety and welfare of the citizens of this City is and will
continue to be a matter of my highest priority.  I charge the City
Council, tenants, property owners and community associations to work in 
a joint effort to assure compliance with the City's Codes.

					Very truly yours,


					W. Paul Martin
					Mayor

November 1, 1995 W. Paul Martin 

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