Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom put landlords on notice: Keep up your apartment complexes — or else.
That “or else” could mean the county coming in, fixing things, and sending landlords the bill.
Segerblom told State of Nevada he launched his campaign two weeks ago after noticing a fire-damaged apartment complex in his district with no sign repairs were in the works.
He said the complex's landlord decided to sell the apartments following the public pressure.
“We just got proof of a sale, that the landlord is actually selling to somebody else, I believe, because of what we’re doing," Segerblom said. "Hopefully, the new owner will move forward. We’re not going to back down until we see that.”
Segerblom said one of the problems is many of the landlords are not from Nevada.
“A lot of out-of-state landlords who just hold onto the property thinking they’re going to get rich and meanwhile the people who live in those neighborhoods are having to put up with it,” he said.
The commissioner said he wasn't aware of the problem until he started on the commission. He said he was "appalled" at the condition of some of the apartment complexes.
“It is hard to believe in this day and age you could have something so dilapidated and so unkempt that close to the Strip,” he said.
The county has the authority to clean up substandard properties, something that was done 275 times last year at a cost of $438,000.
Segerblom said his new effort is experimental and he's working with code enforcement to see what powers county government has to bring the landlords into compliance.
He hopes to see this effort spread to other districts that have similar problems.
“This is one neighborhood and I intend to go way beyond that," he said.
He is also working on an easier way for people to report abandoned or dilapidated apartments. For now, renters with concerns about the condition of their residences can call the Southern Nevada Health Health District tenant hotline at (702) 759-0697.
Tick Segerblom, Clark County Commissioner