Belleville resident may be forced to pay for city workers to clean up property
Time may be running out for a Belleville resident to clean up his yard, which has been filled with furniture, trash and vehicles in various stages of disrepair for years, according to neighbors and city officials.
George Green, 62, failed to show up for his last municipal court date on Feb. 5 to give an update, St. Clair County Circuit Court records show.
At Green’s next court date on Thursday, Assistant City Attorney Lloyd Cueto plans to ask the judge to allow city workers to go in and clean up his three parcels of property on South 19th Street and send him the bill. He also would be responsible for paying more than $4,000 in outstanding fines for alleged ordinance violations in the past.
“My understanding is that the property is not in compliance,” Cueto said. “It may be worse than it was back in October.”
In September, Green and city officials reportedly entered into an agreement in which he promised to clean up the property by Oct. 9 in exchange for leniency on past violations.
As that deadline approached, code enforcers reported that Green had made some progress, so with the city’s blessing, the judge gave him more time.
“We were trying to afford him the opportunity to do it on his own, without court or city intervention,” Cueto said last week. “But we’re pretty much past the point of making those overtures.”
Green didn’t respond to a request for comment on this story. His wife, Debra Green, declined comment.
Feud continues with neighbor
For years, the Greens have been feuding with Kathy Draper, 70, a neighbor across the street, over the condition of their yard. She has filed hundreds of complaints with the city’s health, housing and building department.
Draper said Friday that problems continue with clutter and vehicles, some with hoods up or tires off, parked in Green’s yard and along South 19th Street and Bunsen Avenue.
“There are cars everywhere,” she said.
Police cited Green in 2013, 2015 and 2016 for operating an auto-repair business from his home without a license, court records show. He didn’t appear for court dates, so judges found him guilty in absence and fined him.
Enforcement of the ordinance related to vehicle repair on residential property can be tricky, according to Scott Tyler, the city’s director of health, housing and building.
“(Green) claims that he’s working on family members’ vehicles, which would be allowed,” he said last fall.
George and Debra Green have owned their home at 411 S. 19th St. since 2004, county parcel records show. Four years ago, he bought two adjoining parcels. Property taxes are delinquent on both.
Sheds and garages stand behind a fence on the parcel at 503 S. 19th St. The parcel at 507 S. 19th St. has a small home on it. The city petitioned the court in 2023 to allow it to hire contractors to demolish the home and outbuildings and send the Greens the bill.
“The Commissioner of Buildings has determined the buildings to be deteriorated and so weakened that they are dangerous and were declared to be public nuisances and are beyond reasonable repair,” the petition stated.
However, the process has been complicated by the property’s delinquent tax bills, Cueto said.
Seven vehicles already towed
Police have issued 16 misdemeanor citations to George Green for alleged property-related ordinance violations in the past 25 years, specifying “nuisances” ranging from accumulation of trash or debris to tall grass and weeds, court records show. They’ve arrested him for not showing up for court dates and taken him to jail.
The city towed away seven vehicles, some derelict or unregistered, in November 2024.
Last fall, before Green reached the agreement with city officials, his yard was filled with barbecue grills, furniture, lawn mowers, bicycles, construction materials, tools, appliances and trash.
“His property is a junkyard, against ordinance, and it has to be cleaned up,” Police Chief Matt Eiskant said at the time.
Last week, fewer items cluttered Green’s three parcels. There were eight trucks and cars and one motorcycle parked in front, at least three behind the fence and four more along South 19th Street, for a total of 16 vehicles in the immediate vicinity.
Draper has long maintained that the city hasn’t been aggressive enough in holding Green accountable. Other residents of the neighborhood, where most people keep yards neat, have questioned why problems that seem obvious have persisted for years.
“(City officials are) not doing their jobs at all,” Draper said. “I don’t think they should have their jobs. But I’m just one person.”
Officials have said they must follow the law, which balances rights of property owners and the community; go through the court process, which takes time and requires patience; and rely on tools such as fines to encourage compliance in non-criminal cases.
Last fall, Debra Green, a school-bus driver, told the BND that the family tries to keep up the property, but it gets messy due to her 13 grandchildren coming to visit and her husband repairing vehicles.
“We’ve also been working on the house and trying to clean out the garage,” she said.
Debra Green argued that many of Draper’s complaints were petty, prompting officials to stop by the house but leave without taking action and wasting taxpayer money, and that Draper was harassing the Black family because she is “racist.”
Draper, who is white, has rejected that characterization. She said the neighborhood has been integrated for many years without issues among residents.
