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Last night the Neighborhood Code & Compliance Team visited the Chesapeake Inn on Rt. 13 just outside the inner City area and did a Life Safety Check on ALL of the rooms in that Motel.
Tom Stevenson did visit the Motel the day before and warned the Owner/Manager that they would be coming by to inspect, so this was not a raid at all. I was there from the very beginning and it was handled with first class.
There was one room with one bed set up for one person that had 7 people in it. Another room for one had 5 people in it and one other room I witnessed had two beds and 5 people occupying the room. I believe there were 11 rooms in all in violation.
Chief Bryan Records was there from the SFD and from what I could tell, all of the smoke detectors were working fine but he did see violations. One room had hot plates in the room, (3 of them, I believe) and this is just not safe. They had chicken in the sink and so forth, so it just wasn't healthy.
The point of these investigations are to make sure these Hotel/Motel operations are running as they should be. Rather then throwing people out on the streets and considering how late it was at night, people had already settled in for the evening and Mr. Stevenson was very kind to leave things as they were for the night but tomorrow there's absolutely NO EXCEPTIONS!
The inspection started at 10:00 Pm and went to about 11:15 PM. The Salisbury Police Department had their own Team of Officers, one of which spoke 4 languages. So there was no getting away with any slang talk for this guy!
I personally think this is an excellent thing to do and although Tom's Office is so short handed, my hat is tipped for his over time as well as Susan Phillips, another class act. I should add, there wasn't a single situation there this evening. Everyone was cool, calm and collective. Quite honestly, if I had someone knocking at my door wanting to inspect my room, I wouldn't be too happy about it at all.
That clearly goes to show you how kind and cooperative everyone was. It should also be noted that each and every room was told, if they didn't want anyone coming into their room and or participate with these inspections, they didn't have to at all. Hopefully that gives you a clear idea just how well it was handled.
So Tom, Susan, Bryan and the group of SPD Officers there, nice work, seriously!
33 comments:
No objection to what they did, but let's not say it was not a raid with the police presence.
How DARE you pat these guys on the back for merely doing their jobs?
HAHA, just kidding, OF COURSE! Good job guys!
bet that scared the tarr outa them melon pickers...lmao, bet they had nightmares of INS
Joe:
Please let us know how many "relocate" to Church Street.
Tom Stevenson should now go the Temple Inn (owned by same family??). Both need focused scrutiny by Tom.
FACT: These two "inns" are, in fact, the affordable housing for Salisbury--thanks Barrie.
Just think, if a fire broke out in that motel, Salisbury would have made Fox News for sure with all those people crammed into a room. A scary thought. At least the smoke detectors were working. It is for everyone's on safety that they did the checks. it is like the restaurants, not enough inspectors or police to do everything. Therefore, it is good that John Q Public is looking out!
'Safety Inspections'?
Another term for No Search Warrant.
They let the officials in because they are ignorant of their rights.
While I understand, the town wanting to clean up the place of scurge if this was an overcrowded night club you would see a totally different scenario.
Why isn't the owner being charged for allowing more people in the room than what is stated on the placard on the back of each and every hotel/motel room door.
The owner is responsible for keeping the rooms in compliance with the law. There is no doubt when you see any of these type of weekly/daily places all across the country this is happening. However, the owner is probably taking a little extra money on the side (less than the cost of another room of course) to look the other way.
Living in such small quarters to for immigrants is not unusual during the last century it was the Irish and the Italians doing the same thing.
Hold the owner accountable!
Lately I have seen more SPD officers in that area. I wonder how long it will take to clean the area of rats.
Not suprising that Records was in on this. He should become a Po Po when he finally retires from the SFD.
No search warrant means lets use the fire deparment to get us in. So when the fire department becomes the bad guy in the process.
Joe:
This is the same establishment with all the prostitution nearby.
I think the cops should be going after the hookers & their pimps rather than hassling people who cannot afford a better place to stay.
When I read 5 to 7 people in a room designed for 2 to 4 people it does not sound like, as Borat would say "... a sexy time..." party.
It sounds like someone who is trying to keep a roof over their heads or their childrens heads.
Wymzie: You know I love you... but I always do the checking in and when one registers at a hotel / motel you are purchasing a "license" or right to use the room.
It's not your home or subject to the same rights as your home *IF* the owners of the establishment *CHOOSE* to allow officials to perform a "safety or compliance" check.
Often people who are living in a $40 a night or $180 to $200 a week hotel are the "working poor" earning around $200 a week. They need to share the room to have a dry safe place to live.
The government is in a no win situation, because regardless of the personal feelings of the persons conducting the "inspection" as Judge Dredd said, "... the law is the law and the law NEVER makes a mistake..."
As much as it sucks, you can't have it both ways. If you want the area cleaned up, you have to be willing to deal with the methods. If that means dispatching the fire department to perform "safety inspections", so be it. If it frustrates you that the city isn't doing anything to clean up the area, you can't get frustrated that now they ARE doing something about it, even if it seems unconventional the methods they use.
You'll find it in standard property management as well-- landlords taking advantage of the laws as they are written to make sure there is no "funny business" going on in their rentals. For a standard inspection, notice is required. HOWEVER, if the landlord has cause to believe that there is an emergency (something as simple as a plumbing leak, for example), they have the right to enter with no notice whatsoever. That is one consequence of renting, rather than owning.
I totally agree that it should be up to the owner to prevent the problems in the first place. It is up to them to enforce their policies and requirements, and therefore they SHOULD be responsible for any of the penalties they accrue.
Motels are also not permanent dwellings. I'm no expert and will never claim to be---but there definitely needs to be better options for these people. My thought is that in an apartment or single family home, the occupancy limits are two people per bedroom. You can go to Moss Hill (I believe) and get something for 4-600 per month, if I recall correctly. If you get something that's 3 bedrooms, you can have 6 people living there legally REGARDLESS of their relation to one another, and quite likely they can afford it. If they have valid social security numbers, there is no reason why they shouldn't be able to do this.
I own a nearby visit and i can tell you that this isn't the first time that this type of inspection has occurred. To my knowledge, its at least the third time in 18 months. Also, the SPD regularly investigate and patrol the area. The "professionals" will get rounded up, they spend 45 days in jail, and then they get released back onto the streets. It isn't the Police's fault. On numerous occasions, I've talked to the Mayor, the SPD, and the Neighborhood task force officials. They always respond. But solving these problems is easier said than done. Should more be done? You bet...but alot is being done. I know first hand the City is trying to help local businesses deal with this situation.
Do you suppose we can ave the same inspections at Mill Pond, the Hampton, the Marriott at 10 pm? Or how bout Nithsdale? I think not. How pathetic we have become to harass the less fortunate to make us feel better about ourselves. Shame.
"not enough inspectors or police to do everything."
Salisbury need more brown shirted storm troopers.
If they come knocking on my door at 11:00 PM they better have a warrant or a bigger gun than mine.
I have to give credit to sbynews here. Since the story on prostitution ran monday alot has happened. SPD has been out in force and discouraged the working girls. Motels have been inspected and the Super Soda has closed. The area will certainly improve. Without these problems being exposed and raising public awareness I do not think it would have changed. The Mare was forced to do something about an issue that she said didn't exist. Lets face it Barrie. You may not like Joe Albero, but he makes you do the right thing for the taxpayers of this City.
Call it what you want, but since the property owner was advised in advance and could have advised the room occupants as well, it was, technically, neither a raid nor a sting. I don't believe there is anything in the code that says the inspections have to take place between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. In fact, they are more likely to be scheduled for this time of night so as NOT to infringe on a person's right to privacy. They could just as easily come in during the day without asking permission from the individual occupants.
there a bunch of damn whores and pimps and illegal aliens, screw them, get them out of my town,my state, my country. these type of people are a dredge on society, deal with them and deal with them harsh. let all the foreiners buy up all thre motels and stores and this what youll get. wake up you fools. this is america and sometimes a corner or two may well need cut. if it wre up to me they would just go away.
Let me help you out on this one too, you Idiot! They're called Human Beings. Perhaps that's something a monster like you can't understand?
Don't tell me, ANY of you, that YOU didn't spend Senior Week or a family vacation where you didn't over pack a room!
Anyone who says they have never done so either never got out of the house or is a liar!
a monster, when the time comes you better believe it buddy. im sick and tired of watching low life scum destroying the fabric of this nation. our courts, our jails, our goverment and the corporate companies are eroding this nation away. your mere words will solve nothing on a national level. its all gonna collapse soon and maybe a monster is exactly what we need.
Maybe you young punks have been spoon fed all your lives? I remember growing up in NYC and seeing more of this than you'd ever believe. It's called survival. Granted, there are codes against it and this operation was a necessity. However, when you're paying people chump change to chase chickens and you or your children arfen't willing to do so because it doesn't pay enough or it's beneath you/them, this Country depends on these workers for these jobs. When you're charging $50.00 a night to stay in a Motel, it's a survival mode to pack more to a room. Happens ALL the time in Ocean City, yet because most of these people are white, it's no big deal, right? Put a hispanic or a black into the equasion and then they're scum?
Many of you have forgotten where you came from!
no joe, your wrong about me there guy. i dont care what color or race you are, if you are contributing to the destruction of my country, where my kids and grand kids will live your all the same to me. i look at it like we have two general types of people living in this country, those who try to live honestly and work hard to achoeve the american dream for themselves as well as their families. then you have the people that will never benefit society, will never be able to pull their wait, and dont much want to. these are the people that that are destroying us. race has nothing to do with it when im involved. i will give you the fact that there are alot of people working their ass off to try to live honest and contribute to the society but will never make enough money to ever catch the eight ball, their always going to be behind it. i blame this on goverment gone mad and corporate companies that control wages and their goverment friends that help keep it that way. were in a war my friend, thats all there is to it.
I feel for all poor, but my sympathy gets truncated a bit when it comes to illegal aliens. I've seen them perching on the balconies all summer. The hookers and drug dealers/pimps are across the street.
So, we are all supposed to be outraged about illegal immigration and now, we are all supposed to go "awwwww".
I'm not heartless, but how can people be overwhelming in favor no more illegals, but then defend their "right" to pack 12 in a two-fer room?
Joe - pick a viewpoint and stick with it. These are not poor Americans that you are remembering from your NYC youth, nor spring breakers. They are law breakers.
How do I know they are illegals? (I'm sure one of you will ask) - Because if they weren't they wouldn't be living that way, idiot.
Respectfully, ladies and gentlemen...
Accomack Transplant - expert in all matters pertaining to illegal immigration due to being from Accomack County...
Yea for Tom Stevenson and the police. Anyone who routinely drives past this area of Rt 13 sees the prostitutes and the apparent drug damage to these prostitutes. So everyone knows there are prostitutes, drug dealers, pimps, and other low life in this area. No matter how many busts and stings occur, the prostitutes are always in this vicinity, they just move from Church Street to North Division, to Elizabeth in Newtown, up to Friendly's. Unfortunately this blight is right in the middle of predominately residential neighborhoods that are making a come back! This needs to be dealt with on all fronts at the same time, the hotels need to be run correctly or shut down! And as far as permanent residents, the hotel says there are not any - however, I see the same cars in front of the same rooms, month after month.
anon 12:41 is right on it. Guys like you, who go to pains showing us pictures of all you got, are the ones who don't get it. Clean em all out of here. They should raid those places nightly. Maybe a public lashing of the back every other Wednesday.
Who is the one who is profiting here?
The City?
The County?
The Tenants?
or
The Landlord?
The Landlord! It is up to the property owner to make sure his property is in compliance. Period!
unbiased huh???????????
Yo 12:08, again, the Hampton, Marriott, Comfort or any other nationally branded hotels are NOT being inspected at 10 pm ever. I can assure you. This is simply no so veiled bigotry and harrassment.
And you 12:41, we recently had an example of the "monster you're wishing for. Can you say Jim Adkinsson? Tennessee Unitarian Church?
Get a grip people. Don't be blinded by ignorance and hate.
dont be in denial about the reality we all face in this country. its not hate, its common sense and self preservation.
Sorry 3:06, it's hate. Read you bible.
dont believe in god.
Isnt this motel in Station 2s first due?? Why we the volunteers not invited to attend this? Are they not good enough to do inspections?
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