Gilbert considers change to 'community preservation' violation notices

By Tom Blodgett
Mail |
X: @sp_blodgett

The Town of Gilbert is considering a change to how it notifies residents of violations under its "community preservation" ordinance, potentially allowing notices to be sent via first-class mail instead of exclusively by certified mail.

During the Feb. 11 council study session, officials discussed an amendment to Chapter 42, Article 8 of the Gilbert Municipal Code, which is about keeping up property. The current ordinance requires notices to be served personally or via certified mail. However, first-class mail was unintentionally omitted.

For the past six months since the ordinance was adopted, the town has sent notices via certified mail. Development Services Director Kyle Mieras said staff plans to bring back an amendment to allow for delivery by first-class mail in the next month or so.

The primary motivation behind the amendment is cost reduction. According to officials, certified mail costs approximately $9 per mailing, and the town has already spent nearly $3,000 on these notices.

"The certified mail is quite expensive," Mieras said. "In visiting with legal staff, the rule of law allows for first-class mail to be used for notifications as well."

If approved, the amendment would provide three notification options: personal service, certified mail or first-class mail. Council members raised questions about the criteria for selecting the method of delivery.

Currently, no formal policy exists, but Mieras indicated they would default to first-class mail unless a certified mailing was deemed necessary.

The proposed change is expected to return for council consideration in the coming weeks.

We would like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org. Tom Blodgett can be reached by email at tblodgett@iniusa.org or follow him @sp_blodgett on X.

Tom Blodgett
Senior News Editor | Gilbert

tblodgett@iniusa.org

Meet Tom
Tom Blodgett joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2022, when the company acquired Community Impact Newspaper's Phoenix-area properties. Raised in Arizona, he has spent more than 35 years in journalism in the state.

Community: He has served as an instructional professional in the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication since 2005, and is editorial adviser to The State Press, the university's independent student media outlet. He also is director of operations for an 18U girls fastpitch softball team from Gilbert.

Education: Arizona State University with a BS in Journalism. 

Random Fact: He lived in Belgium during his freshman year of high school.  

Hobbies: Tweeting enthusiastically about ASU softball (season-ticket holder) and grumpily about other local sports (pessimistic fan).