The Cheyenne Motel, a 56-yearold brick building tucked off the west side of South Nevada Avenue, has seen better days.    Neighbors complain it’s a magnet for crime, which discourages people from staying, eating and shopping in the area. Its seamy clientele – drug dealers and prostitutes, they say – scare off locals and out-of-towners.    Police agree. They were called to the Cheyenne 79 times from Jan. 1 to June 29.    That doesn’t include the raid Thursday night in which nine people were arrested on suspicion of drug-dealing and prostitution, including the manager, Billy Holland.    The Cheyenne isn’t the worst drain on police resources in the city by far: The Citadel mall topped the list at 338 calls in the first six months this year, while Wal-Mart at 3201 E. Platte Ave. was second, at 237.    Still, police say 79 is a lot of calls for a small motel, and it’s more than enough to justify using the city’s public nuisance ordinance to try to either shut it down or clean it up, according to City Councilman Jerry Heimlicher.    The city has rarely used that power, and Heimlicher has no reservations about saying this move is tied to the city’s effort to help developers revitalize the long-standing strip of pawn shops, fast-food restaurants and decaying motels.    The businessman running the motel sees it differently, though. He said he believes the city is abusing its power to harass him and his tenants as a way of motivating the owner to sell the property to a developer.    Scott Patlin with the City Attorney’s Office said that if police file a nuisance complaint and a business is found by a judge to be violating codes, the city could seize control for 90 days to a year to force compliance.    “We could not sell it,” Patlin noted. “We could not specifically order that it be sold, although if we had possession of the property for a year, it could be desirable for the owner to sell it.”    That’s because the city could force improvements costing more than an owner wants to spend. Patlin said the city has used the ordinance before, but it’s rare.    Developer Mark Morley was waiting in the wings to buy the motel, anticipating redevelopment, but he gave up after he “went back and forth” with the owner on offers. “Their asking price is too much,” he said.    The Cheyenne, which is owned by Kuo Shu Hua, who reportedly lives in Asia, is valued at $237,596, according to the El Paso County Assessor.    The motel’s lessor, Kenneth Brown of Denver, hung up when contacted by The Gazette. He accuses the police of harassing him and his tenants, Heimlicher said, and has said he can’t control what his tenants do.    Holland said last month that things had quieted down since he began as caretaker at the motel in early June, but that police still show up regularly, “messing with people, trying to find something to put on them.”    He said police swarmed the place in mid-June when a person wanted in a stabbing took refuge with some Cheyenne residents who weren’t involved in the crime. Police arrested all of them, he said.    “It’s not as bad as what I’ve heard people say,” Holland said of the atmosphere. He noted that the most common reason for eviction isn’t violence, drugs or disturbances, but nonpayment of rent – at $25 a night and up and $145 a week.    On Friday, the day after Holland and the others were arrested, the Cheyenne was nearly deserted. Five units were marked with green signs saying “unlawful to occupy” by order of the Police Department.    The door to one tiny, dingy unit, flanked by pots of flowers, stood open, with Mark Chadwell, who’s lived there “off and on” for six years, and another man watching TV inside.    Chadwell said Thursday’s raid, which happened just before dark, swept up most everyone there.    Asked if he felt it was a safe place to live, he said, “Not really,” but he added, “It’s where my friends live.”    A new manager couldn’t be located Friday, and the office door was locked. Signs stated, “no visitors,” “check out 11 a.m.,” and “no trespassing.”    Lynn Karnes, who’s owned Continental Cleaners next door for 12 years, said in late June the lulls in the action don’t last long.    “Police were down here three or four times last week and arrested four people. Is that slowing down?” he said, adding that he’s been solicited by prostitutes and that he knows his customers get hit up by panhandlers and drug dealers.    “People are afraid to come here sometimes,” he said.    Karnes said he’s tired of waiting for action.    “The city should have shut them down five years ago,” he said. “There’s no reason I should put up with this kind of crap.”    Heimlicher said he wants to beef up the city’s nuisance ordinance to give the city greater power to force property owners to police themselves so police aren’t constantly tied up at problem properties such as the Cheyenne Motel.    “I’m after all public nuisances, not just the Cheyenne Motel,” said Heimlicher, who said he was surprised to find out the top 10 locations for police calls included three Wal-Mart stores and Wasson High School. “I think we have to look at what’s deterring police from their appointed rounds and put something in place to stop it.”    Heimlicher said the Cheyenne Motel is a priority because it’s an obstacle to transforming South Nevada into a shopper-friendly district with upscale housing, condos and specialty shops.    “You’ll find people who have been here since 1942-43, and these are businesses that are passed from family to family,” he said. “These businesses trying to make a go of it deserve protection.”    Heimlicher represents the district containing South Nevada and has been active with a business owners group trying to turn the area around. Part of the focus is the Cheyenne, whose immediate neighbors are the Taste of Philly restaurant, Continental Cleaners and the Rodeway Inn.    Bill Kenline, Rodeway’s owner, said vagrants urinate in front of guest rooms and mill around on the streets.    “Some people wouldn’t even check in because of the activities going on on the street,” he said.    But Kenline notes the perception is worse than reality: “The worst we’ve had is panhandling or parties.”    Police say the Cheyenne had 526 calls from January 2006 through April 20 this year, including complaints about drugs, sex crimes, noise and assaults. A year or two ago, businesses banded together to report crime, and police heightened their presence.    Until Thursday, there hadn’t been a single prostitution arrest on South Nevada this year, compared with 70 last year, Heimlicher said.    Still, Heimlicher urged police to open an investigation of the Cheyenne under the city’s nuisance ordinance, passed about eight years ago.    Part of that probe includes two fire code inspections conducted May 27 and June 11, the first since 1998 when one violation was noted – failure to maintain fire extinguishers, records show.    The recent inspections found more than a dozen violations, all of which were to be fixed by Wednesday. But only four had been corrected, Fire Capt. Mike Dalton said.    The motel was given seven days to fix the other violations, mostly electrical problems. If they’re not fixed, the Fire Department will issue an order to correct them within a few days. If they’re still not fixed, Dalton said, the department will issue a summons. Most fire code violations are misdemeanors that carry mild punishment.     CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0238 or pam.zubeck@gazette.comNOT THE WORST The Cheyenne isn’t the worst drain on police resources: The Citadel mall topped the list at 338 calls in the first half of the year, while Wal-Mart at 3201 E. Platte Ave. was second, at 237. Still, police say 79 is a lot of calls for a small motel, and Councilman Jerry Heimlicher says it’s enough to use the city’s nuisance ordinance.

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