Ludington, Scottville considering sharing rental inspector.

Ludington, Scottville considering sharing rental inspector.

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief.

Correction: This story initially stated that Ludington City Council would take action on this item tonight. It’s building and licensing committee has given the approval for the proposal but the item has not yet been placed on the council’s agenda.

LUDINGTON — The City of Ludington may provide residential rental inspection services for the City of Scottville if both city boards agree to a proposed agreement. Ludington City Council’s building and licensing committee has given its OK to recommend moving forward with the agreement while Scottville’s personnel committee has also given its OK to recommend moving forward. Scottville City Commission will take action during its next regular meeting on Monday, Feb. 15. 

Both cities have passed rental inspection ordinances over the past few years. Scottville had been contracting with an individual from Manistee to perform the inspections and then send the reports to the city. The contractor was responsible for billing. However, that individual failed to properly file the reports with the city. Recently Scottville Interim City Manager Matt Murphy has been discussing the situation with Ludington City Manager Mitch Foster and the two came up with a solution. 

The City of Ludington would provide the inspector and reports associated with each inspection at a rate of $100, which would be split 50/50 between both cities. A re-inspection would cost $50 with a 50/50 split and a no-show would cost $75 with no split. 

The agreement would not burden any additional costs on the City of Ludington. Scottville has 180 rental units and has a three year inspection period, which equates to 60 unit inspections per year. The City of Ludington has over 1,200 rental units. 

“Cooperation with our neighbors is identified in the Master Plan as a good best practice but also to provide more efficient services,” Foster wrote in a memo to the city council. “This agreement would not impact City of Ludington residential services but would enhance those in Scottville.”

Scottville’s personnel committee has recommended that its city commission approve the agreement when it meets next week. It’s likely Ludington will take action following approval of Scottville’s commission.

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