A Columbus landlord was sentenced to 178 days in jail after failing to comply with the terms of his probation, which required him to maintain and comply with Columbus City Code.

According to court documents, the City of Columbus PACE Team (Proactive Code Enforcement) filed criminal cases last year against Jose Villavicencio, 55, for failure to make necessary repairs to four of his many properties. The goal was compliance.

Villavicencio was given probation for failure to make necessary repairs on two properties with the stipulation that he bring all properties that he is responsible for into compliance. According to Columbus Code Enforcement, the properties at issue in court are located at: 1664 Parsons Ave., 214-216 Dana Ave., 252 South Harris Ave., and 289-291 Brehl Ave.

“We put the PACE Team in place to deal with landlords like this who own multiple properties under different names, to work with the City Attorney’s office to flush out what they own and to hold them accountable,” said Steve Schoeny, Department of Development Director.

On September 11, Franklin County Environmental Court Judge Dan Hawkins found that Villavicencio violated the terms of his probation by having more than 30 properties that violated multiple sections of the Housing Code.

According to Columbus Code enforcement, their PACE team spent three days inspecting more than 40 properties. The properties in violation are located throughout the city. Villavicencio owns properties under his name and under the following LLCs: South German Village, LLC, South German Village Medical Center, LLC, and Argos, LLC.

As a result of his parole violation due to his failure to comply with maintaining these properties, Villavicencio was sentenced to 178 days in jail.