Protecting property – Workshop informs property managers about meth use, production

Protecting property
Workshop informs property managers about meth use, production
By Joshua Palmer
Times-News writer
TWIN FALLS – The Idaho Housing and Finance Association hosted a workshop Wednesday morning with the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s office to inform property managers and landlords about methamphetamine use and production.

The workshop was organized to help property managers identify illegal drug activity, as well as its possible impact on residential property.

“It’s a major problem for everyone from the people who use it to the people who invest money into the property that it’s used in,”said Kelly Wilson, senior specialist investigator with the Twin Falls County Sheriff’s office.

Methamphetamine production, he said, creates dangerous toxins that seep into walls and carpets – a hazard to future tenants or homeowners.

The cost of properly cleaning up a home or apartment where methamphetamine was manufactured can cost up to $500,000.

“If you put down $60,000 on a property to rent, you might as well kiss that money goodbye if that property gets contaminated,”Wilson said. “Furthermore, what you might not know is that if we (law enforcement) catch someone making meth on your property a second time then we have the authority to seize your property.”

He said property managers need to recognize the signs of meth use and production.

“Use common sense,”he said. “If someone has a bunch of cans of acetone laying around but they don’t refinish furniture, that person might be making meth.”

He added that meth production often creates a pungent odor.

However, none of the property owners attending the workshop said they knew what meth smelled like, which Wilson described as an “unrecognizable odor.”

He said property managers should contact law enforcement officials if they suspect illegal drug activity on their properties.