[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village of Warwick 8-22-1966.
Section 53-1 amended during codification; see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Article
II. Other amendments noted where applicable.]
The purpose of this chapter is to promote, protect and preserve the
health, welfare and property of residents of and owners of property within
the Village of Warwick, by providing regulations governing the removal or
repair of buildings, residences and structures therein that from any course
may now be, or shall hereafter become, dangerous, unsafe, a public nuisance
or a fire hazard to the public.
A.
The Building Inspector of the Village of Warwick is hereby
authorized to enter onto any of the premises in the Village of Warwick, whether
public or private, for the purpose of inspection whenever said Building Inspector
is reasonably sure that any building on the premises is dangerous, unsafe,
a public nuisance or a fire hazard to the public.
B.
An inspection of and a report on any dangerous, unsafe
or collapsed building shall be made by the Building Inspector of this Village.
This report shall be in writing and shall be made to either the Mayor or Board
of Trustees of this Village.
A.
Should the report of the Building Inspector indicate
a building to be unsafe, dangerous, collapsed or in danger of collapse, a
notice on behalf of the Village shall be served on the owner or one of the
owner's legal representatives, agents or lessees or any other person
having a vested or contingent interest in such property. The notice shall
be in writing, contain a description of the property and the particulars in
which the building is dangerous or unsafe and an order requiring the same
to be made safe, and may be served either within or without the State of New
York, personally or by registered mail addressed to the last known address,
if any, of the owner or one of the owner's executors, legal representatives,
agents or lessees or other persons having a vested or contingent interest
in same as shown by the records of the Treasurer of the Village of Warwick,
New York. Should such notice be made by registered mail or without the State
of New York, a copy of the same should be posted on the premises.
B.
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Warwick shall
determine the respective dates to be inserted in each such notice, as provided
for herein, and in each instance the notice to be served shall be subscribed
on behalf of the Board of Trustees of the Village of Warwick by the Mayor
of said Village and attested to by its Clerk.
Should the person or persons served with said notice or other persons
having an interest in said property fail to comply with such notice, a survey
shall be made by an official of the Village, a practical builder, engineer
or architect to be named by the Board of Trustees and a practical builder,
engineer or architect appointed by the person notified as above. In the event
of a neglect or refusal of the person notified to appoint such surveyor, the
two surveyors named by the Village shall make the survey and report.
The notice given shall state that in case the survey shall show the
building to be unsafe or dangerous, an application will be made at a Special
Term of the Supreme Court of the State of New York not less than five nor
more than 10 days after submission of the surveyors' report to the Mayor
or the Board of Trustees for an order determining the building or other structure
to be a public nuisance and directing that it shall be repaired and secured
or taken down and removed.
A signed copy of the survey shall be posted on the condemned building.
All costs and expenses incurred by the Village in connection with the
proceeding to remove or secure, including the cost of actually removing such
building or structure, shall be assessed against the land on which said building
or structure is located and shall be and become a lien on said land as of
the date of such assessment. The lien of the Village for such costs and expenses
shall have priority over all other liens and encumbrances, except the liens
of taxes and assessments which constitute prior liens.
The remedies of the Village of Warwick, as herein set forth, shall not
be exclusive, but the Village shall have any other and further remedy of law
or otherwise by injunction or otherwise now existing under the laws of the
State of New York; and any and all such remedies shall be deemed cumulative
and the pursuit of any remedy shall not be construed as an election or the
waiver of the right to pursue any and all others.
