Envision Livingston Group Walks Away From City Talks

The Envision Livingston group has decided to take a break from its efforts to update the community’s property maintenance codes.

“We all need a break,” Envision Livingston Member Barbie Roberts said. “It’s been really rough. I think it’s very sad, it’s sad for Livingston. We’re just going to regroup.”

Roberts said the group made the decision following Tuesday night’s work session with the Board of Mayor And Aldermen. She said the group saw no progress Tuesday, a third meeting between city leaders and the citizen group.

“They do a lot of kind of complaining, a lot of bickering, just a lot of talk and no substance to working on the codes themselves,” Roberts said. “We didn’t make any progress. They’re not doing their homework.”

Envision Livingston formed last March to work on “encourag(e) residents to take pride in improving and beautifying properties.” The group also studied the city’s property maintenance codes, which city officials said have not been updated in years. Such codes would give the city power to enforce rules on property owners.

“One of our big issues are these derelict dilapidated houses and buildings around town,” Roberts said. “No one lives in them. They’re overgrown. They’re falling in. Some of them are burnt up. They’re terrible eyesores to the neighborhood.”

Roberts said current ordinances do not allow city officials to do anything about such properties.

Members of the group studied property maintenance codes in Tennessee communities similar to Livingston. The list included Baxter, Bolivar, Carthage, Dayton, Gainesboro, Loudon, Pegram, Ripley, Smithville, Sparta, and Winchester. Roberts said all had a more robust set of rules than Livingston.

Envision Livingston used the rules from similar size communities in an effort to craft new codes for discussion with city officials. The group also checked the codes with the Municipal Technical Advisory Services (MTAS) officials in Knoxville.

“The codes that we put before them are almost exactly like these other towns,” Roberts said. “Some of the people said ‘we don’t have to be like these other towns, we’re Livingston.’ Well, no, but it just shows that we can’t make progress.”

Roberts said the group asked aldermen to take the proposed codes and read them. She said she doesn’t believe most did. Roberts said Mayor Curtis Hayes did bring ideas for the aldermen to consider Tuesday night.

Complicating the discussions, Roberts said citizens have been given the idea that Envision Livingston would enforce rules on how property looks in town.

“They keep saying they don’t want some committee to tell them how to take care of their place,” Roberts said. “We as a committee are only trying to get codes passed. If the codes got passed, we would no longer touch those codes. That would be the city’s job.”

Roberts said some residents also believe the committee wants to “go after” the poor or the elderly. Instead, Envision Livingston wants to find grant programs or low interest loans to help.

Though many residents have asked the group to reconsider its decision, Roberts said the committee members have decided to wait until after the election. Three aldermen face re-election this year.

“We think there could possibly be a change in the board,” Roberts said.

Roberts said Envision Livingston will continue its work in other areas including Beautification Awards, neighborhood cleanups and work on potential grants.