[Adopted 1-19-2001 by Ord. No. 349 (Ch. 179, Art. I, of the 1992 Code)]
[Amended 8-18-2006 by Ord. No. 414; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II; 4-19-2024 by Ord. No. 566]
From and after passage of this Part 1, it shall be required that all property owners maintain their lot or lots in accordance with the following provisions:
A. 
Drainage and standing water. All lots shall be graded and/or filled, and thereafter maintained, so as to prevent the erosion of soil and to prevent the accumulation of standing water.
B. 
Elevation.
(1) 
From the effective date of this Part 1, the elevation or grade of any lot or plot of ground, or any portion thereof, in the Town of Bethany Beach shall not be changed, nor shall the same be cleared, until a building permit is issued. Prior to the issuance of said permit(s), an engineering report evaluating the impact of the elevation change or lot clearing on adjoining properties and the Town’s stormwater system and/or infrastructure may be required by the Town by an engineer designated by the Town. Said report(s) shall be completed at the property owner’s expense. No building permit and/or certificate of occupancy shall be issued if any grading, elevation changes, or lot clearing is shown, by the engineering report, to have a material negative impact on adjoining properties and/or the Town’s stormwater system or infrastructure.
(2) 
Exception; minor cosmetic landscaping. Minor cosmetic landscaping may be exempt from the requirements set forth in Subsection B(1) above, provided that the minor cosmetic landscaping areas:
(a) 
Comprise no more than 5%, cumulatively, of the total area of the lot, with no one landscaping area to exceed 100 square feet;
(b) 
Not be filled or raised in excess of 12 inches from surrounding grade;
(c) 
Be located at least 15 feet from any property line;
(d) 
Be located or constructed so as to not unreasonably alter the natural flow or effect of surface water onto adjacent properties.
C. 
Surface water runoff to adjacent property. The flow of surface water, if any, as the result of the required grading and filling shall not unreasonably drain onto adjacent private property and/or create an excessive burden on adjacent property.
D. 
Surface water runoff from improvements. Surface water from improvements shall not be allowed to unreasonably drain onto an adjacent private property and/or create an excessive burden on adjacent property.
E. 
Downspouts. When downspouts are utilized, downspouts from structures shall not extend beyond a point midway from the structure to the property line unless emptying to a ditch, swale or street. Any downspout installed after the effective date of this Part 1, shall require a permit and must be connected to buried corrugated or perforated plastic pipe terminating in a dry well on-site or emerging at a point away from the structure. In no case shall the dry well or the termination of the buried pipe be located or extend beyond a point midway from the structure to the property line unless emptying to a ditch, swale or street.
F. 
French drains. All new and remodeling construction requiring a building permit shall be constructed with a French drain around the foundation or footprint of the structure. (A French drain is a trench two or three feet wide and three to four feet deep which is filled with gravel or crushed stone.)
G. 
Underbrush, rubbish and tall grass. All lots shall be kept free from dense underbrush, rubbish, tall grass, fallen timber, fences or any other conditions as defined in Chapter 440, Brush and Grass, which may change the natural flow of surface water or constitute a fire hazard or are unsanitary or are prejudicial or detrimental to the health and welfare of the population or adjacent property owner or owners.
H. 
Swales and ditches. In accordance with Chapter 516, Article V, Drainage, all swales and ditches located on both public land and private lots shall be kept free of all debris, rubbish, tall grass, fallen timber and fences or any other condition defined in Chapter 440, Brush and Grass, so that the flow of water is free and not impeded. Where swales and ditches are located along a property line, owners of lots on either side of the ditch or swale shall be responsible for compliance with this requirement. Where swales or ditches are filled to accommodate a driveway, a pipe (culvert) will be constructed of the proper size and at the appropriate grade as required under the existing code so as not to impede the flow of water.
I. 
New ditches and swales, private and public. No new ditches or swales shall be constructed without a permit being first issued by the Town Building Inspector, and without the written notification to all lot owners adjacent to or affected by the new construction. Notification is to be by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address carried on the tax rolls, and shall include the address of the proposed construction, the nature of the proposed construction and the individual or entity proposing said construction. Notification shall not be sent less than 30 days prior to the issuing of a permit.
Some major subdivisions were developed with all lots graded and drained as shown on the final site plans and approved by the Planning and Zoning Commission.[1] Final grading on single lots in these subdivisions may not be altered. Only minor cosmetic landscaping, in compliance with § 475-1B(2), will be allowed. The Building Inspector should be consulted for the details.
[1]
Editor's Note: Ordinance No. 527, adopted 11-18-2016, established the Planning and Zoning Commission. Pursuant to this ordinance, references throughout the Code to the “Planning Commission” have been revised to the “Planning and Zoning Commission.”
The Town shall have the authority to enter upon private property located within the boundaries of the Town of Bethany Beach to inspect for compliance with this Part 1.
Should a property exist in violation of any requirement set forth above in § 475-1A through H or 475-2, the Town shall, prior to taking any other action to enforce compliance with this Part 1, send written notice, by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owner of the offending property, at his or her address as carried on the tax rolls. The notice shall:
A. 
Specify the nature and location of the condition in violation;
B. 
Provide notice of the need to correct such condition within 30 days;
C. 
State that upon failure to bring said condition in compliance with this Part 1, within 30 days, the Town may proceed to remedy the condition and charge all costs to the property owner pursuant to § 475-6, and/or institute proceedings against such person to collect a civil penalty for violations.
D. 
Set forth the civil penalties for the violations.
After proper notice, sent pursuant to § 475-5, and upon the failure of the property owner to correct or remedy the condition in violation, within the 30 days provided, the Town may engage an independent contractor or request Town maintenance to correct or remedy said condition, and charge the cost thereof, together with an administration charge of 25%, plus interest at the rate of 25% per annum from the date of completion of the work, to the property owner on the next regular tax bill by the Town. Such charge shall be due and payable with the next regular tax bill.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. II).
A. 
Before the Town may proceed under § 475-6 to enter upon the property and take corrective measures to remedy the violation, the property owner(s) shall be notified, in writing, of the Town's intent to do so and the right of appeal to the Town Council.
B. 
Such notice shall be sent by registered mail, return receipt requested, to the property owner's last known address as shown on the Town's tax records. Notice to one joint property owner shall be notice to all. In the event that such notice is returned undelivered (for reasons other than refused delivery), alternate notice shall be given by publishing such notice once in a newspaper of general circulation in the Town, posting such notice on the property and by sending written notice, first class, regular mail, to any other addresses reasonably known to the Town for such property owner(s).
C. 
Such notice shall include a copy of the notice and order previously given under § 475-5 of this Part 1, shall indicate the Town's intent to enforce compliance under § 475-6 hereof and shall inform the property owner(s) of the right to appeal such alleged violation to the Town Council by filing a written request for appeal with the Town Manager within 15 days of the notice date. For purposes hereof the notice date shall be the date that written notice under this section was actually received (or refused) by the property owner(s) as shown on the return receipt or, in the event that alternate notice is given, as provided above, the notice date shall be the date that the last of the three alternate notice requirements are performed (i.e., the date of publication, the date of posting or the date of mailing). A form of this notice of appeal rights to be issued pursuant to this section is attached to this Part 1 as Exhibit A and made a part hereof.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit A is on file in the Town offices and may be examined there during regular office hours.
D. 
In the event that no written request for appeal is received by the Town within 15 days of the notice date, the Town may proceed to enforce compliance under § 475-6.
E. 
In the event that a written request for appeal is received by the Town within 15 days of the notice date, a hearing shall be scheduled before the Town Council on not less than 10 days' notice to the property owner(s), at which hearing the Town Council shall hear evidence regarding the alleged violation. Any affected property owner(s) shall have the right to be represented by an attorney, to present evidence, to cross-examine witnesses and to present sworn testimony. In hearing such appeal, the Town Council shall not be bound by strict rules of evidence but shall be entitled to accept and consider any probative evidence which reasonable persons of average intelligence and understanding would consider as reasonably trustworthy in making important decisions within their own lives, and the standard of proof shall be by a preponderance of the evidence.
F. 
At or before the commencement of any such hearing, the Town Council shall be entitled to establish reasonable rules of conduct, including the length of time permitted to each side for their case-in-chief, for cross-examination, limiting the number of witnesses and the like.
G. 
If a majority of the Town Council shall be persuaded that a violation of the article has occurred, it shall set forth its decision and the reasons therefor in writing, signed by those Council members so finding, and a copy thereof shall be filed in the Town Hall and sent to the property owner(s). No decision of the Town Council hereunder shall be final until such written decision is so filed and sent to the property owner(s).
H. 
At any time following the expiration of 10 days from the date such written decision was filed in the Town Hall and sent to the property owner(s), the Town may proceed under § 475-6 to enforce this Part 1.
[Amended 2-17-2006 by Ord. No. 407]
Property owners who have been found, by a court of competent jurisdiction, to violate any of the provisions of Chapter 475, Property Maintenance, shall pay, upon conviction, such fines as set out in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article I, Penalties.