Benton Harbor city leaders are looking for ways to ensure landlords are following local rules to protect the safety of their residents.

Speaking to the city Public Safety and Public Works Committee this week, deputy director of fire services Brian Kazmierzak said the city’s been having a lot of trouble with landlords who don’t register their properties.

“We found one gentleman, he had 13 unregistered rentals and he had people living in the basement with no way out basically,” Kazmierzak said.

Kazmierzak said these landlords, often from out of town, are a risk to their tenants and to the city.

“We have one landlord that owes the city $13,000 currently in rental fees. This landlord owns more property in the city of Benton Harbor than anyone else and disrespects our city and our residents on a daily basis.”

City Manager Alex Little said one way to address some of the violations being committed by troublesome landlords is to write them citations. However, Kazmierzak said the Berrien County court system doesn’t place a high priority on these situations. That’s partly why Little is pushing for the establishment of a city Civil Infractions Bureau.

The committee discussed the Civil Infractions Bureau with Commissioner Juanita Henry suggesting a proposed ordinance creating the bureau needs a little more work. It could get more discussion at the next Legislative Committee meeting.