[Amended 5-9-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-07]
A. The owner and occupant of any improved
or unimproved lot or parcel of land jointly shall be responsible for
the removal of any nuisance arising from the accumulation of garbage,
junk, trash or refuse or the presence of stagnant water, waste or
any combustible material.
B. The occupant and owner of any property
jointly shall at all times be responsible for the sanitary condition
of such property occupied or owned by him. It shall be unlawful for
any person to place, deposit or allow refuse to be placed or deposited
on his property unless it is placed in containers in preparation for
final disposal. It shall also be unlawful for any person to create
a junkyard or salvage operation in any residentially zoned district.
C. Notice of abatement shall require that
the owner and/or occupant remove or otherwise abate a nuisance or
unsanitary condition that is in violation of this section within seven
calendar days from the date of notice, or within two calendar days
in the case of habitual violators.
[Added 5-23-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-08; amended 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
D. Notice of violation.
[Added 5-23-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-08; amended 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
(1) For
all violations of this section in a calendar year, service of the
notice shall be by personal service or by posting a copy of the notice
on the front door or in some other conspicuous location on the property.
(2) The
written notification shall cite the violation along with the process
and time to abate the violation. The time to abate shall be seven
calendar days from the date of the notice or posting for first or
second time violations, or within two calendar days in the case of
habitual violators. The Code Enforcement Officer, in the officer's
discretion and on a case-by-case basis, may extend the time to abate
if noticable efforts have been made to rectify the cited violation.
The Code Enforcement Officer shall also communicate directly with
the property owner on-site, or by mail, by telephone, or by email
if that information is available following delivery of a notice of
violation.
E. If the property owner, tenant and/or occupant
fails within seven calendar days of date of notice, or within two
calendar days in the case of habitual violators, to remove or otherwise
abate the nuisance or unsanitary condition specified in the notice,
the City shall abate the violation by use of City employees and equipment
or by contract with private contractors.
[Added 5-23-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-08; amended 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
F. No property shall be transferred unless
all outstanding fines have been paid to the City.
[Added 5-23-2016 by Ord. No. 16-O-08; amended 3-25-2019 by Ord. No. 19-O-03; 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
G. As used in this section, a "habitual violator" is a property for which the City has issued in the same calendar year more than two notices of abatement under Subsections
C and
D of this section.
[Added 10-9-2023 by Ord. No. 23-O-13]
[Added 3-8-1993 by Ord. No. 409-93]
No person shall dispose of, dump or place for collection any trash, garbage or refuse, whether or not otherwise placed in acceptable bags or containers pursuant to this chapter, on the property of another without the permission of such property owner, and any such disposing, dumping or placing for collection without the permission of such property owner shall constitute a violation of this chapter and shall be subject to the penalties set forth in §
250-31, Violations and penalties.
All excess land-clearing debris generated
during the preparation of lots or parcels of land for the erection
of structures or road building shall be removed from such property
by the prime builder, contractor, developer or owner within the time
specified by the Director of Public Works. In those areas where this
material cannot be disposed of by open burning, all residual waste
generated shall be transported to and disposed of in designated rubble
fills. On-site disposal of tree stumps only shall be permitted on
lots or parcels of land prepared for the erection of structures by
the prime builder, contractor or developer in areas located on the
lot or parcel designated as open space and where permanent stockpiles
are to be used when the following minimum criteria for stockpiles
are met:
A. Sediment controls have been installed as
required by an approved erosion and sediment control plan during placement
or excavation of the stockpile.
B. The stockpile has been placed in a location
approved by the Department of Public Works.
C. Stumps shall be buried beneath the stockpile
a minimum of three feet below the soil surface.
D. Slopes shall be no steeper than four feet
horizontal to one foot vertical.
E. Stumps shall not exceed 15 feet in height.
F. Stockpiles shall be permanently stabilized
with a low-maintenance ground cover.
G. Stockpiles shall be landscaped to blend
into existing natural surroundings. On stockpiles higher than six
feet tall, plantings of pine and deciduous trees, each not less than
three feet high when planted, will be provided per a landscaping plan
approved by the Director of Public Works. In no instance shall any
excess land-clearing debris, including tree stumps, be disposed of
in an area where it would constitute a menace to any water source
or supply or septic reserve or drainage area.
[Amended 9-12-2005 by Ord. No. 677-05; 8-27-2012 by Ord. No.
12-O-06]
A. The purpose of this section is to:
(1) Set forth laws for governing the abatement
of unsafe buildings in the City.
(2) Preserve the safety, health, and general
welfare of the City.
(3) Provide for procedures for repairing and
removing unsafe buildings when the building endangers the health and
safety of others.
B. Definitions. As used in this section, the
following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
UNSAFE BUILDING
A condition which poses such immediate harm or threat of
harm to an occupant or to the public that other legal remedies cannot
be expected to bring about the alleviation or removal of the condition
to prevent the serious harm or injury to the occupants or to the public
health, safety, and welfare.
C. The City requires the securing, repair,
removal, or demolition of a building that is:
(1) Damaged by fire, wind or flood, dilapidated,
unsafe or abandoned, or unfit for human habitation and is thereby
a hazard to the public health, safety, and welfare;
(2) Regardless of its structural condition,
it is unsecured from unauthorized entry to the extent that it could
be entered or used by vagrants or other uninvited persons as a place
of shelter or could be entered or used by children; or
(3) Boarded up, fenced, or otherwise secured
in any manner if:
(a)
The building constitutes a danger
to the public even though secured from entry; or
(b)
The means used to secure the building are inadequate to prevent unauthorized entry or use of the building in the manner described in Subsection
C(2).
D. The Director of Public Works shall establish
regulations that:
(1) Establish minimum standards for the continued
use and occupancy of buildings in a condition described herein;
(2) Provide for notice to an owner, lien holder,
or mortgagee that schedules a public hearing to determine whether
a building is unsafe and whether it can be repaired and that the owner,
lien holder, or mortgagee will be required to submit at the hearing
proof of the scope of any work that is required to comply with this
section and the time it will take to reasonably perform the work;
and
(3) Establish procedures for notifying occupants
of the property, if any, and giving them the appropriate information
about the contents of the notice that the property is an unsafe building
and thus not safe for occupancy.
E. If a building is found by the Director
of Public Works to be in violation of standards set out herein, the
City may issue a notice that the building be vacated, secured, repaired,
removed, or demolished by the owner within a reasonable time as provided
in the notice. The notice issued by the City may specify a reasonable
time as provided by this section for the building to be secured, repaired,
removed, or demolished by the owner. Within 10 days after the date
that the notice is issued, the City shall:
(1) File a copy of the notice in the office
of the City Clerk and post it in the lobby of the first floor of the
City office building in a conspicuous place; and
(2) Publish for one week in a newspaper of
general circulation in the City the notice containing:
(a)
The street address or legal description
of the property;
(b)
A brief statement indicating the
contents of the notice; and
(c)
Instructions stating where a complete
copy of the notice may be obtained.
(3) The City shall make a diligent effort to
discover each mortgagee and lien holder having an interest in the
building or in the property on which the building is located. The
City shall use its best efforts to determine the identity and address
of any owner, lien holder, or mortgagee of the building and provide
the same information as that due an owner. The City, if it is able
to obtain the information, shall deliver in person or send by certified
mail with return receipt requested, to each identified mortgagee and
lien holder a notice containing:
(a)
A copy of the City's notice;
(b)
A reasonable identification, which
is not required to be a legal description, of the location of the
building and the property on which it is located;
(c)
A description of the violation of
the City's standards present at the building;
(d)
A statement that the City may secure,
remove, or demolish the building if the action set forth in the notice
is not taken within a reasonable time; and
(e)
A copy of this section of the Code.
F. In the event the owner fails to vacate,
secure, repair, remove, or demolish the building within the time as
provided in the notice, the Director of Public Works shall schedule
a public hearing before a committee consisting of the City Manager,
the Chief of Police and the Director of Planning and Community Development,
hereinafter the Unsafe Building Committee (the "Committee"). The Committee
shall give notice of the place, date and time of the public hearing
and statement of the violation of the City Code to the owner and each
identified mortgagee and lien holder. It shall publish the same notice
for two weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the City. The
publishing of the notice is binding on subsequent grantees, lien holders,
or other transferees of an interest in the property who acquire such
interest after the publishing of the notice, and constitutes notice
of the hearing on any subsequent recipient of any interest in the
property who acquires such interest after the filing of the notice.
G. In conducting a hearing authorized under this section, the Committee, after a presentation by the Director of Public Works as to the condition of the building, shall determine whether the building is one that meets the standards described in Subsection
C. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Committee may determine if the building is an unsafe building and if it is necessary issue a written order to require the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee of the building to:
(1) Secure the building from unauthorized entry;
or
(2) Repair, remove, or demolish the building,
unless the owner or lien holder establishes at the hearing that the
work cannot reasonably be performed within 30 days.
(3) The owner, lien holder, or mortgagee has
the burden of proof to demonstrate to the Committee the scope of any
work that may be required to make the building safe and/or habitable
and the time it will take to reasonably perform the work to do so.
H. Notwithstanding the above, the Committee
may not allow the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee more than 90 days
from the date of the hearing to repair, remove, or demolish the building
or fully perform all work required to comply with the order unless
the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee:
(1) Submits a detailed plan and time schedule
for the work at the hearing; and
(2) Establishes at the hearing that the work
cannot reasonably be completed within 90 days because of the scope
and complexity of the work.
I. If the Committee allows the owner, lien
holder, or mortgagee more than 90 days to complete any part of the
work required to repair, remove, or demolish the building, the Committee
shall require the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee to regularly submit
to the Director of Public Works progress reports to the City to demonstrate
compliance with the time schedules established for commencement and
performance of the work. The Committee may require the owner, lien
holder, or mortgagee to appear before the hearing official or the
hearing official's designee to demonstrate compliance with the time
schedules. If the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee owns property,
including structures or improvements on property, within the municipal
boundaries that exceeds $50,000 in total value, in its then current
condition, the City may require the owner, lien holder, or mortgagee
to post a cash or surety bond in an amount adequate to cover the cost
of repairing, removing, or demolishing a building under this subsection.
In lieu of a bond, the City may require the owner, lien holder, or
mortgagee to provide a letter of credit from a financial institution
or a guaranty from a third party approved by the City. The bond must
be posted, or the letter of credit or third-party guaranty provided,
not later than the 30th day after the date the Committee issues the
order.
J. If the building is not secured, repaired, removed, or demolished within the allotted time and as ordered, the City may, by the application of its police power to curb or abate nuisances, secure, remove, or demolish the building at its own expense. This subsection does not limit the ability of a city to collect on a bond or other financial guaranty that may be required by Subsection
I.
K. If a city incurs expenses under Subsection
I, the City may assess its expenses by the creation of a lien against the property on which the building was located as provided by the Annotated Code of Maryland, as amended. The possibility of a lien is extinguished if the property owner or another person having an interest in the legal title to the property reimburses the City for the expenses. If the expenses remain unpaid for more than 60 days from the date of the notice of the assessment of the expenses, the owner will be billed by the City for the amount of the unpaid expenses along with a administrative fee of 10%. If the expenses remain unpaid for more than the above sixty-day period, the City Treasurer's office shall forward the amount due to the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Harford County to be recorded as a lien against the property. The lien arises and attaches to the property at the time the notice of the lien is recorded and indexed in the Circuit Court for Harford County, Maryland. The notice must contain the name and address of the owner if that information can be determined with a reasonable effort, a legal description of the real property on which the building was located, the amount of expenses incurred by the City, and the balance due.
L. The City satisfies the requirements of
this section to use its best efforts, or to make a reasonable effort
to determine the identity and address of an owner, a lien holder,
or a mortgagee if the City searches the following records:
(1) Land records of Harford County, Maryland;
(2) Real property appraisal records of the
Maryland and Harford County Departments of Assessment and Taxation;
(3) Real property tax records of the City;
and
(4) Utility records of the City.
M. After the City mails a notice to a property
owner, lien holder, mortgagee, or registered agent and the United
States Postal Service returns the notice as "refused" or "unclaimed,"
the validity of the notice is not affected, and the notice is considered
delivered.
N. Any owner, lien holder, or mortgagee of record of property jointly or severally aggrieved by an order of a City issued under §
250-11 may file in Circuit Court for Harford County a petition of appeal as provided for in Title 7 of the Maryland Rules, Annotated Code of Maryland. The petition must be filed by an owner, lien holder, or mortgagee within 30 calendar days after the date that a copy of the notice of a final decision of the City is personally delivered to them, mailed to them by first class mail with certified return receipt requested, or delivered to them by the United States Postal Service express mail.
O. If the decision of the City is affirmed
or not substantially reversed but only modified, the Circuit Court
of Harford County shall allow to the City reasonable attorneys' fees
and other costs and expenses incurred by it and shall enter a judgment
for those items, which may be entered against the parties that took
the appeal.
[Amended 8-23-2010 by Ord. No. 10-O-12]
Notwithstanding the provisions of
this article, the Director of Public Works may take actions as permitted
under the International Building Code.