[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Amityville 12-14-2009 by L.L. No. 28-2009.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This local law provided that it shall take
effect on January 2, 2010, subject to acceptance and filing by the
Secretary of State.
It shall be unlawful for any building or property within the
Village to be used or occupied in violation of the use set forth in
the certificate of occupancy for such building or property.
A.
In
any criminal or civil proceeding commenced by the Village concerning
an alleged illegal use or occupancy of a building for residential
purposes, the following presumptions shall apply:
(1)
That any dwelling which maintains more than one gas meter or more
than one electric meter or more than one water meter is being used
as the residence of two or more families.
(2)
That any dwelling which maintains more than two gas meters or more
than two electric meters or more than two water meters is being used
as the residence of three or more families.
(3)
That a single-family dwelling which maintains any entrance(s) thereto,
which entrance(s) has not been set forth on any plans approved by
and on file with the Code Enforcement Officer, is being used as the
residence of two or more families.
(4)
That a two-family dwelling which maintains any third or additional
entrance thereto, which entrance(s) has not been set forth on any
plans approved by and on file with the Code Enforcement Officer, is
being used as the residence of three or more families.
(5)
That a dwelling which has been advertised in any newspaper, magazine
or local advertising publication as being available for sale or rent,
which advertisement expressly or implicitly provides that such dwelling
contains rooms for rent, more than one separate dwelling living unit,
or may be occupied by more than one separate family, is being used
as a dwelling containing the number of rooms for rent, dwelling units
or families stated or implied in such advertisement.
(6)
That if there exist two or more doorbells, mailboxes, telephone lines,
cable TV lines or satellite TV antennas, two or more families are
residing in the dwelling.
(7)
That if there are two or more motor vehicles parked on the dwelling
lot registered to persons with two or more different surnames, two
or more families are residing in the dwelling.
(8)
The presumption of nonpermitted occupancy of a single dwelling unit
shall also be established where probative evidence establishes:
(a)
That there exist permanent partitions or locking internal doors which
may serve to bar access between segregated portions of the dwelling,
including but not limited to bedrooms, or the inability of any occupant
or person in possession thereof to have unimpeded and/or lawful access
to all parts of the dwelling unit.
(b)
That there exist two or more kitchens, each containing one or more
of the following: a range, oven, hot plate, microwave, or other similar
device customarily used for cooking or preparation of foods.
B.
The presumption raised by proof of the existence of any such conditions as set forth in Subsection A herein may only be rebutted by conclusive evidence that such conditions do not, in fact, exist or that such conditions, in fact, comply with this Code.
C.
A
person charged with a violation of this chapter may demand an inspection
by the Code Enforcement Officer of the subject premises to rebut such
presumption. Such demand shall be in writing addressed to the Code
Enforcement Officer. The Code Enforcement Officer shall prepare a
report of the finding of the inspection together with photographs,
if appropriate.
A.
The
Code Enforcement Officer shall be responsible for investigating and
documenting violations of any case of alleged illegal occupancy within
the Village.
B.
Prosecutions
for violations hereunder may be instituted in the Village Justice
Court or in the District Court of the County of Suffolk.
C.
The
Village Attorney may, upon direction of the Board of Trustees, institute
an action in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of
Suffolk, for appropriate relief where it appears under the circumstances
that the imposition of a fine alone would not be adequate.
A.
A
violation of a Code provision involving nonpermitted occupancy of
a structure is a "violation," as that term is defined in the New York
State Penal Law.
B.
Notwithstanding
any provision of this Code inconsistent herewith, for each Code violation
involving a nonpermitted occupancy of a one- or two-family dwelling,
or of an approved multifamily dwelling, the owner and any person who
is in charge of the subject property at the time of the violation
shall be liable to a fine of not more than $3,500 for the first violation;
for a second and any subsequent violation, the fine shall be not more
than $2,000.
C.
Each
week that the violation continues to exist shall constitute a separate
and distinct violation.
