Some local residents may be upset that the City of Belen has taken action that might cost them some money, but we say it’s about time.
The city council this week passed an ordinance that will require the owners of vacant buildings to make sure the structures don’t slowly melt back into the earth, cause neighbors to complain or passersby to wince. There are way too many — mainly absentee — owners who let things look rundown and abandoned.
We’ve heard many complaints over the years about why someone doesn’t do something. The city looks better right now than it has in the past couple of decades, but there are still a few people who won’t get with the community spirit and clean up their property. They allow junk to pile up, walls to fall down and vandals to come in and trash things, making the mess just that much harder to clean up.
The city has in Julie Baca the best planning and zoning expert it’s ever had. She works tirelessly to improve things, sticking to the book even when it’s not the easiest thing in the world to do.
It’ll take courage for the city to require that vacant commercial businesses be improved, but it’s something that absolutely must be done. The council is right.
Property owners must realize that they too must have civic pride, that the municipal government can’t do everything else. We’ve got to stand on our own two feet.
The Valencia County News-Bulletin is a locally owned and operated community newspaper, dedicated to serving Valencia County since 1910 through the highest journalistic and professional business standards. The VCNB is published weekly on Thursdays, including holidays both in print and online.
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April 19, 2024
