[Added 1-25-2000[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also redesignated former Article IX, Compliance, composed of former §§ 168-64 through 168-66, as Article X, Compliance, composed of §§ 168-80 through 168-82.
The City Council has determined that there exists in the City of Glen Cove a significant number of one-family rental units and two-family rental units, the substantial majority of which are owned and operated by absentee landlords. Violations of city housing ordinances with regard to these types of properties comprise the majority of significant housing prosecutions filed in City Court. This tends to overburden municipal services and to promote deterioration of the housing stock in the city. Absentee landlords are less able to maintain daily oversight of their properties to ensure compliance with city laws. The registering of all non-owner-occupied one- and two-family rental units will better ensure the enforcement of the law and yield greater compliance with housing standards and municipal regulations. The City Council finds that new Code provisions will serve to halt the proliferation of such conditions and that the public health, safety, welfare and good order and governance of the city will be enhanced by the enactment of regulations set forth in this article.
A. 
Every owner of a one-family dwelling unit or a two-family dwelling unit in the City of Glen Cove, as defined in this chapter, who is engaged in rental occupancy of such premises shall have a duty to and must register their premises, on an application form available from the Building Department of the City of Glen Cove, within 30 days after the adoption of this section.
[Amended 10-13-2020]
B. 
It shall be unlawful and a violation of this article for any person or entity who owns or operates a dwelling unit within the City of Glen Cove to maintain, use, lease, rent or suffer or permit occupancy as a rental occupancy after the effective date of this chapter without having registered said dwelling with the Building Department, except as provided herein.
C. 
For the purposes of this article "rental occupancy" shall mean the occupancy or use of a dwelling unit by one or more persons as a home or residence under an arrangement whereby the occupant(s) thereof pay rent for such occupancy or use. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that any occupancy of a dwelling unit is a rental occupancy if the owner of such dwelling unit does not reside in said dwelling unit. The term "residential rental premises" shall be interchangeable with the term "rental occupancy."
D. 
For the purposes of this article "rent" shall mean a return to the owner or lessor of money, property or other valuable consideration for use or occupancy of a dwelling unit.
E. 
For the purposes of this article the definitions contained in Part 1 and Part 2 of this chapter shall be applicable.
F. 
This article shall not apply to hotels and motels when operating for their intended purpose within the meaning of state law and local zoning laws; hospitals, congregate care housing for seniors, assisted living for seniors, nursing homes and similar living arrangements; apartment houses, registered multiple dwellings, garden apartments, public housing owned and operated by governmental agencies; registered boarding houses and registered rooming houses.
A. 
This article shall not be construed to require the registration of any residential rental premises in the City of Glen Cove so long as the owner of record or a member of his/her immediate family maintains a bona fide occupancy of a dwelling unit on such premises.
B. 
The occupancy of a room or rooms by an owner of record (or member of his/her immediate family) without self-contained living, cooking, sleeping and sanitary facilities shall not constitute sufficient bona fide occupancy to qualify for the exemption in this section.
C. 
In no case may more than one residential rental premises qualify for the exemption in this section by any one owner of record.
D. 
A corporation shall not be eligible for an exemption under this article.
A. 
It shall be the responsibility of the owner of each residential rental premises which is subject to the provisions of this chapter to timely file a registry application form with the Building Department for each premises, accompanied with a fee, which may be set by resolution of the City Council from time to time, which form shall require the following information:
[Amended 10-13-2020]
(1) 
The name, address and telephone number of the owner of record of the residential rental premises intended for rental occupancy.
(2) 
The street address and Tax Map description of the premise containing the dwelling unit(s).
(3) 
A description and location of the premises, including number of rooms, exits and stories, bathrooms and kitchens, and a sketch of each floor layout with dimensions, as well as lot size drawn to scale, and a description and location of off-street parking spaces available on the premises.
(4) 
Designation of an agent for notification and service of process where required by this chapter.
(5) 
A statement of the owner attesting to the truth of matters asserted in the application and that to the best of the owner's knowledge no violations of city laws or state laws exist on the premises being registered.
(6) 
The application shall state the registration fee(s) as set by City Council resolution from time to time.
(7) 
Such additional information as the BDA deems appropriate to the carrying out of the requirements and intent of this chapter.
B. 
The application shall be reviewed by the BDA or his designee for adequacy. Should the BDA determine that said application is incomplete, defective or untruthful for any reason, said application shall be marked "rejected" and returned to the filer. A rejected application shall not be deemed to comply with the filing provisions of this chapter.
C. 
It shall be the responsibility of each owner to timely notify the Building Department whenever the information provided in the registry application has become outdated or for any reason is no longer accurate.
D. 
Every approved application shall be valid for two years and shall be given a registry number by the BDA which shall be valid for two years from the date of issuance. A copy of the approved application with the approval stamp of the BDA, in original ink, issued to the property owner after satisfactory inspection of residential occupancy, shall be necessary to rent any residential premises in the City of Glen Cove.
A. 
Every owner who rents a residential rental premises which is subject to the provisions of this article and who does not maintain a bona fide residence in the County of Nassau or an adjoining county within the meaning of New York Criminal Procedure Law, § 150.40, shall designate an agent who maintains a bona fide residence in the County of Nassau or an adjoining county. Such designation shall be indicated in the space provided by the owner on the registry application form as provided herein.
B. 
A designated agent of an owner may be served with a notice of violation or order of violation or an appearance ticket or other service of process, whether criminal or civil, pursuant to and subject to the provisions of law, as if actually served upon the owner.
C. 
No owner who designates an agent pursuant to the provisions of this article may assert the defense of lack of notice or lack of in personam jurisdiction based solely upon the service of process upon his designated agent.
A. 
The BDA or his authorized agent shall make provisions for the biannual inspection of each residential rental premises which is subject to the provisions of this chapter and shall notify each owner/landlord of each rental premises as to the time and place of such inspection. The inspection shall be for the purposes of determining compliance with Chapter 168 of the City Code and other applicable laws and shall expressly include in each instance the determination of the presence of functioning smoke detectors pursuant to the provisions of state law and this Code.
B. 
Any inspection report issued pursuant to Subsection A of this section which reveals the presence of a violation of this chapter of the City Code shall be remedied by the owner within 10 days of the issuance of such report. Failure to bring any dwelling into conformance with such report within 30 days of the issuance of such report shall constitute a violation of this chapter.
At the request of the BDA, the City Attorney is authorized to make application to Glen Cove City Court or any other court of competent jurisdiction for the issuance of a search warrant, to be executed by a police officer, in order to conduct an inspection of any premises believed to be subject to the registry jurisdiction of this article. The BDA may seek a search warrant whenever the owner or occupant fails to allow inspection of any rental dwelling unit where there is reasonable cause to believe that a violation of this article or a violation of the New York Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code, or the Nassau County Fire Prevention Ordinance or this City Code has occurred after due notice has been sent by ordinary United States mail. The application for a search warrant shall in all respects comply with applicable laws of the State of New York.
A. 
The rental registry files and any list maintained by the Building Department pursuant to this chapter and any application form filed pursuant to this chapter shall be deemed confidential and shall not be subject to freedom of information laws to the extent provided by law.
B. 
Nothing in this section shall prevent any member of the public, prospective tenant or any resident of the City of Glen Cove from inquiring as to whether a premises has been registered pursuant to this chapter or from filing a request for investigation with the Building Department to determine whether or not compliance with this article has been achieved.
[Amended 7-23-2019; 10-13-2020]
Any person or entity that shall violate any of the provisions of this article or who fails to comply with any of the requirements thereof shall be guilty of a violation, punishable by:
A. 
On the first offense, a fine of not less than $1,000 and not exceeding $2,000 or by imprisonment for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, upon conviction of a first offense.
B. 
On the second offense, a fine of not less than $2,000 nor more than $3,000 or by imprisonment for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, for a conviction of the second of two offenses, both of which were committed within a period of five years.
C. 
On the third offense or any offense thereafter, a fine of not less than $5,000 nor more than $15,000 or by imprisonment for a period not to exceed 15 days, or both, for a conviction of the third of three offenses, all of which were committed within a period of five years.