STRUTHERS, Ohio - City leaders in Struthers are at odds over the way a vacant residential property on 6th Street is being used to store vehicles for a local lawncare business and construction company. 

“I've seen them with my own eyes, that they've been parking on the grass,” City Councilman Ron Carcelli told 21 News Monday. “We have an ordinance, and I just want to see the ordinance followed. That's all. I'm not sitting here to pick on him.”

To park a vehicle on “any lawn, grass or landscaped area” in a residential property violates an ordinance passed by the city council in January. 

In addition to Carcelli’s account, 21 News heard from a neighbor who supplied pictures of trucks and trailers parked on the lawn, and our crews saw vehicles that appeared to be parked fully or mostly in the grass on Friday and Monday. 

Carcelli has submitted multiple complaints to the code enforcement office, but no action has been taken. That’s not likely to change anytime soon, as the city’s mayor and code enforcement director both told 21 News Monday they don’t believe the property owners have violated any zoning laws. 

“We just have, we'll say, incompetent city council members who try to stir things up when they don't like people,” Mayor Catherine Miller said. “Our code enforcement officer basically drives past here every day just to make sure they're in compliance, and we haven't had issues since we've been in constant communication with them.”

Carcelli declined to respond to Miller’s characterization of him as “incompetent.” 

According to the Mahoning County auditor’s office, the property has been owned by Good Ole Boys Lawncare, LLC and Pure Quality Construction LLC since May. Brandon Stonestreet, who owns Good Ole Boys Lawncare, told 21 News he didn’t know at first about the ordinance. Since learning of it, he says he has stopped storing his trailers there, and installed a gravel driveway on the property.

A recording of a city council meeting in June shows Stonestreet asked the council about the process for rezoning the property from residential to commercial. On Monday, Carcelli expressed doubts about the effort.

“I don't think it's going to happen, because I don't think he'd get the support from the administration and council,” in addition to neighbors, he said.