The city's planning committee is set to discuss the controversial issue of boarded-up buildings.

This summer, members of the Pleasant Hill Community Association demanded that the city address "third-world conditions" in the neighbourhood and do something about a large number of boarded-up homes in the community.

According to the Saskatoon Fire Department, Pleasant Hill has 56 boarded-up locations, while nearby Caswell Hill has 16. Both neighbourhoods are reporting an increase in boarded-up buildings.

In a report headed to council's planning committee on Tuesday, the fire department came up with two potential solutions to the issue: either more urgent inspections of the boarded-up buildings, or the introduction of permit fees.

The fire department is recommending the first option. Boarded-up buildings would be designated "Priority 1," with the department inspecting all the homes and issuing orders to improve the buildings or, in some cases, tear them down.

Assistant Chief Wayne Rodger said the fire department often doesn't know why properties are boarded up and what led to the situation in the first place.

"These are questions we don't have answers to," he said. "And we thought this first option is where we can get some of those answers."

The other option would be to charge permit fees for boarded-up buildings, much like Hamilton and Winnipeg have done. The report recommends against that option as it would require additional staff members and may not address the issue.

In a letter this summer, the Pleasant Hill Community Association complained people were breaking into and living in boarded-up homes, even though the buildings had been condemned.

The letter also said the "bare minimum" was being done to get the homes to meet inspection standards and that many properties in the area were unsafe.

Rodger said it's important to listen to the community's concerns.

"They feel that this is a significant issue within their community and [recognize] that there may be some underlying issues with respect to property maintenance that resulted in these other buildings being boarded up by their owners."

Landlords supportive

The fire department held consultations with the Saskatchewan Landlord Association to find out why homes are boarded up.

Landlords that had boarded up their properties in the past said they did so in response to fire damage, for security reasons and during renovations.

According to the report, three-quarters of landlords in the association have never boarded up their homes. For the landlords that have, 40 per cent of them said they boarded up their homes for less than two weeks.

The association said it was pleased with the report and was willing to work with the city on the issue.

"With proper inspection and with a Priority 1 approach, these buildings are going to get looked at faster and a resolution can be brought forward," said association CEO Cameron Choquette.

Choquette said it's in landlords' best interest to have their apartments ready for rent. He said it was wise to focus on "problem" properties.

"Hopefully we can reduce the number of long-standing boarded-up buildings because that's the ultimate concern here," he said.

"We're in favour of cleaning up the neighborhood and ensuring that these buildings either get demolished or cleaned up to a standard that is safe for everyone to use and ultimately improves the community as a whole."