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I still say that the city is not aggressive enough with respect to this guy. The city doesn't have to buy the property.

Get a court order to compel Agapion to either make the property liveable, or whatever it's purpose is to be, according to the cities specifications, or if Agapion doesn't comply, proceed with tearing it down, sending the bill to Agapion for the demolition expenses. If he doesn't pay, put a lien on it.

This procedure is enacted all of the time in cities where this situation occurs.

Agapion for so long of a time has played our city leaders as patsies and called their bluff time and time again with respect to his many uninhabitable properties.

There are Agapion's everywhere, unfortunately, our team doesn't know how to deal with them.

Oh, that's right, they let Skip A, our vaulted GCCommissioner, sort of slide too until the media got a hold of his apartment escapades and "pricked" his conscience.

I guess if Agapion feels if it's good enough for one of our leaders to try to dodge the bullet, good enough for him.

Agapion's property at Cedar street is now (barely) up to code, making it very difficult under NC law for the city to acquire it by condemntation / eminent domain. Agapion is a genius at staying just within the limits of the law.

Allen,

I really think this warrants some space from your newspaper regarding why this city has put up with this guy's shenanigans for these many years and how other municipalities are successful in handling these situations.

I assume that many of his rental property tenants are Section 8 renters. Hey, the feds are tough on these matters. I wonder if they're aware of the constant problems associated with Agapion's rental properties.

If you do take my advice, I will forgo the story recommendation fee I usually require in these circumstances.

David,

If this is the case, then it sounds like to me this state oughta revisit it's standards for human habitation.

Especially since this character constantly abuses the process. Where is the point crossed that a habitual offender of the housing code is allowed to continue repeatedly abusing the code without any consequences to his/her conduct?

Well it looks like now that he's "in code" the city won't have to buy the property.

I kind of like the idea of some special provision for "habitual offenders" -- but Agapion is wily enough that he could probably evade that, too, using shell companies, family members, etc.

I have it from city staff (and from my own experience) that Agapion is not the only landlord of this kind: there are about a dozen or so like him around here who manage to stay under the radar.

One solution to the problem might be adjusting the tax structure so that Agapion and his ilk are encouraged less to milk those old properties of their low rents and encouraged more to sell them to investors who might like to fix them up.

That's a good idea, David, so long as the many don't have to suffer for the sins of the few. Obviously, the current system isn't much of a deterrent.

A "good" code inspector can always find enough wrong to bring a property down low enough to be condemned. I can assure you that there are inspectors who can cost Agapoin more money than it is worth to keep his "low rent" profit machine. It only takes one time for him not to be in compliance for the city to act. However doing what I have stated takes guts and perhaps someone would rather have the money in the pocket rather than to keep pushing the code bar until the property is what it should be or the man is out of business.

Any landlord that accepts Section 8 vouchers has to pass a housing inspection by HUD's standards, not just the city's. I know landlords who won't do Section 8 because they don't want to do everything you have to do to pass the inspection. As for whether Mr. Agapion has Section 8 housing, I don't know. But if he does, the properties have passed a HUD inspection. Info about Section 8 and the inspections is available here: http://www.hud.gov/offices/pih/programs/hcv/forms/forms.cfm

I checked with a Greensboro low-income housing source. Mr. Agapion is not a Section 8 housing provider.

Cara, I have spoken with City Council members, developer/Realtors and affordable housing advocates. Many seem to agree that the housing enforcement lacks teeth. Some complain that it is more of a burden on law-abiding landlords than the bad guys. That appears to be the root of the Agapion problem. He's making us pay for his sins.

The Section 8 housing rules are set by the feds and enforced locally by GHA. As for the City's housing enforcement, I believe that it's long past time to enforce housing codes in order to protect people. And there should be a way to do that without sacrificing the good landlords in the process. (Or so I hope!)

Who has any doubt Agapion is only one of a host of robbers who make a killing off substandard real estate? This is one of the oldest games in the book. Half the shelves at Barnes & Noble scream at you to make a million as a landlord. It's a step away from the feudal system.

Late capitalism is in trouble. I am no Marxist, but you gotta believe at some point the collective human conscience will finally say to these unethical slobs: go to hell now, we're not waiting for karma to kick in!

Think about Agapion. He buys properties low, probably grosses the full cost in the first year, and thumbs his nose at housing code enforcement just because he can. It costs Agapion less to ignore the code than to bring his properties up to code.

Someone mentioned section 8. Yes, the feds require houses to be habitable before they will subsidize housing. State law and city laws also require housing be habitable. But if no one enforces the city law, it is as if there is no city law.

The City Council reads in the paper about the little lead poisoned girl at Cedar Street, they pass a "tough" ordinance requiring not only lead testing but requiring landlords to repair lead hazards at properties. Does anyone in Greensboro think that this ordinance will ever be enforced? As soon as they pass this "tough" ordinance, we start hearing they are close to voting to pay Agapion more than market value for his property. Gee, I wish I could get more than market value for mine!

I have heard the City council members justify this as a way to close down Agapion's shameful Cedar Street apartments. Seems to me that the City's desire to buy Cedar Street has nothing to do with providing safe housing for the poor among us and everything to do with providing beautiful space for people with money.

Here's what I say, if the city will not enforce its own laws, and little children are now being hospitalized with dysentery from roaches, and permanently brain damaged from lead, who is left to protect the poor except the lawyers? A lawsuit against Agapion will put the issue before some citizens in Greensboro. Let's let them decide if Agapion should have to pay for harming children-- and others. The city could have prevented the harm by requiring safe housing from landlords-- or the city could have prosecuted the landlords once they learned they weren't complying. The city has failed its children.