[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of the Village of
Soldiers Grove 5-7-1960 as Ch. 13 of the 1960 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Dogs, cats and domesticated animals — See Ch. 98.
Hazardous materials — See Ch. 115.
Health and sanitation — See Ch. 119.
Intoxicating liquor and fermented malt beverages — See Ch. 126.
Orderly conduct — See Ch. 151.
Solid waste — See Ch. 175.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 180.
Wells — See Ch. 218.
No person shall erect, contrive, cause, continue, maintain or
permit to exist any public nuisance within the Village of Soldiers
Grove.
A.
Public nuisance. A "public nuisance" is a thing, act, occupation,
condition or use of property which shall continue for such length
of time as to:
(1)
Substantially annoy, injure or endanger the comfort, health, repose
or safety of the public;
(2)
In any way render the public insecure in life or in the use of property;
(3)
Greatly offend the public morals or decency;
(4)
Unlawfully and substantially interfere with, obstruct or tend to
obstruct or render dangerous for passage any street, alley, highway,
navigable body of water or other public way or the use of public property.
B.
Public nuisances affecting health. The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby specifically declared to be public health nuisances, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other health nuisances coming within the definition of Subsection A of this section:
(1)
All decayed, harmfully adulterated or unwholesome food or drink sold
or offered for sale to the public.
(2)
Carcasses of animals, birds or fowl not intended for human consumption
or food which are not buried or otherwise disposed of in a sanitary
manner within 24 hours after death.
(3)
Accumulations of decayed animal or vegetable matter, trash, rubbish,
rotting lumber, bedding, packing material, scrap metal or any material
whatsoever in which flies, mosquitoes, disease-carrying insects, rats
or other vermin may breed.
(4)
All stagnant water in which mosquitoes, flies or other insects can
multiply.
(5)
Privy vaults and garbage cans which are not fly-tight.
(6)
All noxious weeds and other rank growth of vegetation.
(7)
All animals running at large.
(8)
The escape of smoke, soot, cinders, noxious acids, fumes, gases,
fly ash, industrial dust or other atmospheric pollutant within the
Village limits or within one mile therefrom in such quantities as
to endanger the health of persons of ordinary sensibilities or to
threaten or cause substantial injury to property in the Village.
(9)
The pollution of any public well or cistern, stream, lake, canal
or other body of water by sewage, creamery or industrial wastes or
other substances.
(10)
Any use of property, substances or things within the Village
of Soldiers Grove emitting or causing any foul, offensive, noisome,
nauseous, noxious or disagreeable odors, gases, effluvia or stenches
extremely repulsive to the physical senses of ordinary persons which
annoy, discomfort, injure or inconvenience the health of any appreciable
number of persons within the Village.
(11)
All abandoned wells not securely covered or secured from public
use.
(12)
Any use of property which shall cause any nauseous or unwholesome
liquid or substance to flow into or upon any street, gutter, alley,
sidewalk or public place within the Village.
C.
Public nuisances offending morals and decency. The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby specifically declared to be public nuisances offending public morals and decency, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other nuisances offending public morals and decency coming within the definition of Subsection A of this section:
(1)
All disorderly houses, bawdy houses, houses of ill fame, gambling
houses and buildings or structures kept or resorted to for the purpose
of prostitution, promiscuous sexual intercourse or gambling.
(2)
All gambling devices and slot machines.
(3)
All places where intoxicating liquor or fermented malt beverages
are sold, possessed, stored, brewed, bottled, manufactured or rectified
without a permit or license as provided for by the ordinances of the
Village or Soldiers Grove.
(4)
Any place or premises within the Village of Soldiers Grove where
Village ordinances or state laws relating to public health, safety,
peace, morals or welfare are openly, continuously, repeatedly and
intentionally violated.
(5)
Any place or premises resorted to for the purpose of drinking intoxicating
liquor or fermented malt beverages in violation of the laws of the
State of Wisconsin or ordinances of the Village.
D.
Public nuisances affecting peace and safety. The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are hereby declared to be public nuisances affecting peace and safety, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other nuisances affecting public peace or safety coming within the provisions of Subsection A of this section:
(1)
All signs and billboards, awnings and other similar structures over
or near streets, sidewalks, public grounds or places frequented by
the public, so situated or constructed as to endanger the public safety.
(2)
All buildings erected, repaired or altered within the fire limits
of the Village of Soldiers Grove in violation of the provisions of
the ordinances of the Village, relating to materials and manner of
construction of buildings and structures within said district.
(3)
All unauthorized signs, signals, markings or devices placed or maintained
upon or in view of any public highway or railway crossing which purport
to be or may be mistaken as an official traffic control device, railroad
sign or signal or which because of its color, location, brilliance
or manner of operation interferes with the effectiveness of any such
device, sign or signal.
(4)
All trees, hedges, billboards or other obstructions which prevent
persons driving vehicles on public streets, alleys or highways from
obtaining a clear view of traffic when approaching an intersection
or pedestrian crosswalk.
(5)
All limbs of trees which project over and less than 14 feet above
the surface of a public sidewalk or street or less than 10 feet above
any other public place.
(6)
All use or display of fireworks except as provided by the laws of
the State of Wisconsin and ordinances of the Village.
(7)
All buildings or structures so old, dilapidated or out of repair
as to be dangerous, unsafe, insanitary or otherwise unfit for human
use.
(8)
All wires over streets, alleys or public grounds which are strung
less than 15 feet above the surface thereof.
(9)
All loud, discordant and unnecessary noises or vibrations of any
kind.
(10)
The keeping or harboring of any animal or fowl which by frequent
or habitual howling, yelping, barking, crowing or making of other
noises shall greatly annoy or disturb a neighborhood or any considerable
number of persons within the Village.
(11)
All obstructions of streets, alleys, sidewalks or crosswalks
and all excavations in or under the same, except as permitted by the
ordinances of the Village or which, although made in accordance with
such ordinances, are kept or maintained for an unreasonable or illegal
length of time after the purpose thereof has been accomplished.
(12)
All open and unguarded pits, wells, excavations or unused basements
freely accessible from any public street, alley or sidewalk.
(13)
All abandoned refrigerators or iceboxes from which the doors
and other covers have not been removed or which are not equipped with
a device for opening from the inside.
(14)
Any unauthorized or unlawful use of property abutting on a public
street, alley or sidewalk or of a public street, alley or sidewalk
which causes large crowds of people to gather, obstructing traffic
and free use of the streets and sidewalks.
(15)
Repeated or continuous violations of the ordinances of the Village
or laws of the State of Wisconsin relating to the storage of flammable
liquids.
A.
Inspection of premises. Whenever complaint is made to the Village
President that a public nuisance exists within the Village of Soldiers
Grove, he shall promptly notify the Chief of Police, Health Officer
or Building Inspector, who shall forthwith inspect or cause to be
inspected the premises complained of and shall make a written report
of his findings to the Village President. Whenever practicable, the
inspecting officer shall cause photographs to be made of the premises
and shall file the same in the office of the Village Clerk-Treasurer.
B.
Summary abatement.
(1)
Notice to owner. If the inspecting officer shall determine that a
public nuisance exists within the Village and that there is great
and immediate danger to the public health, safety, peace, morals or
decency, the Village President may direct the Chief of Police to serve
notice on the person causing, permitting or maintaining such nuisance
or upon the owner or occupant of the premises where such nuisance
is caused, permitted or maintained and to post a copy of said notice
on the premises. Such notice shall direct the person causing, permitting
or maintaining such nuisance or the owner or occupant of the premises
to abate or remove such nuisance within 24 hours and shall state that
unless such nuisance is so abated, the Village will cause the same
to be abated and will charge the cost thereof to the owner, occupant
or person causing, permitting or maintaining the nuisance, as the
case may be.
(2)
Abatement by Village. If the nuisance is not abated within the time
provided or if the owner, occupant or person causing the nuisance
cannot be found, the Health Officer, in case of health nuisances,
and the Chief of Police, in other cases, shall cause the abatement
or removal of such public nuisance.
C.
Abatement by court action. If the inspecting officer shall determine
that a public nuisance exists on private premises but that the nature
of such nuisance is not such as to threaten great and immediate danger
to the public health, safety, peace, morals or decency, he shall file
a written report of his findings with the Village President who shall
cause an action to abate such nuisance to be commenced in the name
of the Village in the circuit court of Crawford County in accordance
with the provisions of Ch. 823 of the Wisconsin statutes.[1]
D.
Other methods not excluded. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed
as prohibiting the abatement of public nuisances by the Village of
Soldiers Grove or its officials in accordance with the laws of the
State of Wisconsin.
In addition to any other penalty imposed by this chapter for
the erection, contrivance, creation, continuance or maintenance of
a public nuisance, the cost of abating a public nuisance by the Village
shall be collected as a debt from the owner, occupant or person causing,
permitting or maintaining the nuisance, and if notice to abate the
nuisance has been given to the owner, such cost shall be assessed
against the real estate as a special charge.
