Arlington Park Neighborhood Action Strategy - City of Sarasota

AppearanceKeeping up the appearance of the neighborhood is important to Arlington Parkresidents. Homeowners believe that by improving their properties, they can increasethe market value of their homes. However, houses are more than a monetaryinvestment to residents, many take pride in their homes and spend much timemaintaining their property.The residents are not completely satisfied with the condition of their neighborhood. Inthe Satisfaction Survey, when asked, “What do you like least about the Arlington Parkneighborhood,” ‘appearance’ was most frequently mentioned. Residents also listedappearance as the aspect they would like to see addressed first and was consideredthe second most urgent concern of the neighborhood. Forty-seven percent ofrespondents said yards in the neighborhood were in fair or poor condition, and onlythree percent could say that yards were in excellent condition. At one of the NASforums, when broken into five small groups, a number of the groups said codecompliance was the highest priority. As one resident said, “The neighborhood coulduse a sprucing up.”The NAS forums and SatisfactionSurvey results were able to clarifythe specific complaints about theneighborhood. Residentsmentioned, in general, propertiesfrequently having large items thatclutter the front yard, includingboats, temporary carports,inoperable vehicles, too manyvehicles, large appliances at thecurb, and garbage cans taken tothe curb on the wrong days. Otherproblems concern upkeep, such asnot cutting the grass or maintainingthe landscaping. Citizens believethe failure to maintain property and remove clutter results in a messy, run-down look.Inoperable vehicle in Arlington Park neighborhoodHomeowners blame renters for some of the conditions in the neighborhood. Mosthomeowners take pride in their homes, and are frustrated by the lack of maintenanceexhibited by renters and their landlords. Relations between homeowners and rentersare generally sour, with many homeowners vocally wishing renters would leave theneighborhood all together. The renters resent the hostility, “over-zealous” codecompliance, and intrusive neighbors. It is interesting to note that there were fewrenters represented at the NAS forum meetings.Arlington Park Neighborhood Action Strategy 17