Christine James, 73, looked out her kitchen window the other day and saw groundhogs playing in the yard next door to her home at 30 Lincoln Ave. in Wheatland.

She said the house at 32 Lincoln has been vacant for about seven years and is in deplorable condition. She and her late husband considered buying it years ago but decided not to after he became ill. Someone else bought the house but never fixed anything, she said. Now, she says, she has to mow the grass 6 feet into the neighboring property just to keep her house looking decent.

"I'm to the point now where I'm trying not to look in that direction when I come home. It seems sad that you have to live next to something like that. It's an eyesore. Who is supposed to inspect it and why hasn't anything been done?" she asked Wheatland council Wednesday.

Several other residents also complained about dilapidated properties in their neighborhoods.

Wheatland hadn't had a code enforcement officer in years. In April, council hired Ed Buczo, who is also in charge of building codes and zoning. Buczo said when he was hired eight years ago, code enforcement wasn't included in his job description. He has helped fill in "here and there when they asked," he said.

The new part-time job pays $4,000 a year, which council scraped up to get someone to follow up on houses that violate borough codes, said Councilwoman Lorraine Jones.

Since being hired last month, Buzco said he has cited 14 property owners for violations ranging from tall grass and junk cars to collapsing structures and open windows. He said he hasn't gotten to all of the neighborhoods.

Donald Stinedurf, council vice president, told the residents, "We didn't need a code enforcement officer in the past, but now we're looking to have one. We're well alerted to what's going on and trying to move as fast as we can."