Gosport Town Council approves fall event, discusses making ordinances accessible

The Town of Gosport may soon make efforts to make their ordinances more accessible.

At the July 28 town council meeting, deputy clerk Wanda White said the town needs to “make a concerted effort to bring together all of our ordinances in one place and have those accessible.”

White said the physical copies of the ordinances are difficult to parse through and find what she is looking for, such as what the town has to say about whether it or the resident is responsible for replacing sidewalks.

The council also approved a Pumpkins in the Park event for Oct. 10 at the Gosport Town Park. In past years, the event has included a silent auction, concessions, games, pumpkin painting, bounce house, potato sack races and more.

Additionally, Marian McGee and Michael Miller, the two council members present, approved three water adjustments for a bad meter reading and two pool adjustments.

Town employee and laborer Troy Stallsmith reported that the streets were in “pretty good shape,” and said a large hole on Main Street had just been patched.

“You guys did a good job on that,” McGee said.

Finally, the town council discussed a property at 246 E. South St. that town attorney Terry English said “was essentially full of debris and refuse and weeds, burned up, this and that. It’s not only an eyesore but a health hazard.”

English sent a letter to the property owner on July 20, 2026, requiring that the rubbish be cleaned up immediately and by Aug. 3.

“This letter shall advise you that the violation set forth above must be remedied by the date set forth above or the Town will begin assessing fines against you,” the letter reads.

English previously sent a letter to the property owner on July 21, 2025, with a similar mandate, but no action was taken.

“It’s just as bad now as it was a year ago,” he said.

Town resident Ron Neibel said the owner started to clean up around the house, cutting the grass and throwing debris into the house.

The town council agreed that the house is unrepairable due to fire damage and needs to come down. English said a council member should visit the property before the next meeting to report back on the property conditions.

The next step would be filing a lawsuit to collect the fines accumulated since the last letter and requesting interest onto the property by the town, English said. A ruling would likely be required to determine if the town could start the cleanup process at the owner’s expense.