Property owners fight nuisance charges

WAUSAU, Wis. (AP) — Wausau officials have scheduled a series of trials as nearly a dozen property owners fight allegations that their properties are chronic nuisances.

The city considers properties chronic nuisances if there have been three or more arrests or citations there in six months, according to Daily Herald Media. The arrests or citations could be for anything from building code violations to making or selling drugs.

Wausau designated about 50 properties as chronic nuisances in December. Most are rentals.

Eleven property owners have been fighting the charges. One has been fined about $2,600 for missing a Dec. 10 court appearance, while two others are awaiting pretrial conferences. The rest are scheduled for trials from February through May after pleading not guilty.

Property owners are deemed chronic-nuisance landlords if they own three or more nuisance properties or if 10 percent or more of their properties have been designated nuisances. Those landlords must file a formal plan with police outlining how they will address the problems.

Information from: Wausau Daily Herald Media, http://www.wausaudailyherald.com