[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of
Washington 4-8-2010 by Ord. No. 1830. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
It is the purpose and intent of the City of Washington through the
adoption of this chapter to establish an abandoned residential/commercial
property registration program as a mechanism to protect neighborhoods
from becoming blighted through the lack of adequate maintenance and
security of abandoned properties.
B.
Nothing in this chapter shall be interpreted to allow or encourage
circumvention of the foreclosure statutes of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
For the purpose of this chapter, certain words and phrases used
in this chapter are defined as follows:
A property that is vacant.
A property or structure that unauthorized persons may gain
entry to through a compromised/breached/unsecured gate, door, fence,
wall, window or other point of entry.
Any agreement or written instrument that provides title to
residential properties and shall be transferred or conveyed from one
owner to another owner after sale, trade, transfer or exchange.
A lender or other entity under a note secured by a deed of
trust.
Any person, copartnership, association, corporation or fiduciary
that agrees to transfer anything of value in consideration for property
described in an agreement of sale.
Consecutive calendar days.
A recorded document that transfers property from the trustor
to the holder of a deed of trust upon consent of the beneficiary of
the deed of trust.
An instrument by which title to real estate is transferred
to a third party trustee as security for a real estate loan. May be
used in place of a mortgage in some places.
A failure to fulfill a contractual obligation, monetary or
conditional.
A property that in introduced to a foreclosure procedure.
Any condition visible from the exterior that on its own,
or combined with other conditions present, would lead a responsible
person to believe that the property is vacant. Such conditions would
include, but are not limited to, overgrown and/or dead vegetation;
accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers, mail; past-due utility
notices or disconnected utilities; accumulation of trash, junk, debris;
the absence of furnishings, window coverings such as blinds or drapes;
absence of personal items consistent with residential habitation;
statements from neighbors, passersby, delivery agents, government
employees that the property is vacant.
An individual, entity or department that is responsible of
inspecting, securing and maintaining an abandoned property.
The process by which a property, placed as security for a
real estate loan, is sold at auction to satisfy the debt if the borrower
defaults.
A physical investigation at a property to obtain evidence
of occupancy or vacancy and/or to verify compliance with this chapter
and any other applicable code or law. Although interior inspections
may be allowed under a deed of trust, they are not required by this
chapter.
Those conditions that are present on a simple majority of
properties within a three-hundred-foot radius of the subject property.
A property that is subject of a neighborhood standard comparison,
or any other abandoned property within the three-hundred-foot radius,
shall not be counted toward the simple majority.
A recorded notice that a default has occurred under a deed
of trust and that the beneficiary intends to proceed with a trustees
sale.
Any person, copartnership, association, corporation or fiduciary
having a legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property.
Any unimproved or improved property or portion thereof situate
in the City and includes the buildings or structures located on the
property regardless of condition.
Any property or portion thereof situated in the City, designated
or permitted to be used for dwelling purposes, and shall include all
buildings and structures located on such property. This shall include
any property being offered for sale, trade, transfer or exchange as
residential whether or not it is legally permitted and/or zoned for
such use.
The beneficiary that is pursuing foreclosure of a property
subject to this chapter secured by a mortgage, deed of trust, or similar
instrument or a property that has been acquired by the beneficial
interest at a trustees sale.
Such measures as may be directed by the Code Official so
that the property is not accessible to unauthorized persons, including,
but not limited to, the repairing of fences and walls, chaining/padlocking
gates, the repair or boarding of a door, window or other openings.
Boarding shall be completed to a minimum of the current HUD standards
at the time the boarding is completed or required. Locking includes
measures that require a key, keycard, tool or special knowledge to
open or gain access.
The person, firm, entity or corporation holding a deed of
transfer secured by the property.
A borrower under a deed of trust who deeds property to a
trustee as security for the payment of a debt.
A building/structure that is not legally occupied.
Any uninhabited property that is not in compliance with the
City of Washington ICC Property Maintenance and/or Fire Code.
[Added 9-9-2010 by Ord. No. 1835]
Within 10 days of the purchase and/or transfer of a loan/deed
of trust secured by a residential property, the new beneficiary shall
record with the Washington County Recorder of Deeds Office said transaction
that shall list the name of the corporation, entity or individual,
the mailing address and contact phone number or the new beneficiary
responsible for receiving payments associated with the loan/deed of
trust.
A.
Any owner, responsible party/beneficiary or his or her designee shall
perform an inspection of the property that is subject to this chapter
and shall verify if the property in question is vacant and/or abandoned
as described within this chapter. If the property is found to be vacant
and/or abandoned, the responsible party/beneficiary or owner shall,
within six months, register said property with the Department of Code
Enforcement of the City of Washington.
[Amended 9-9-2010 by Ord. No. 1835]
B.
Registration may be accomplished by either of the following methods:
by completing and returning to the Office of Code Enforcement a City-provided
registration form with the required fees by mail; or by delivering
same in person to said offices within the City of Washington.
C.
Said registration shall contain the name of the owner, beneficiary/responsible
party, the direct street/office mailing address of said owner, beneficiary/responsible
party (no P.O. boxes), a direct contact name and phone number of the
owner, beneficiary/responsible party, and the name, address, phone
number of a management company being used by said owner for the specified
property who is responsible to see that the property is secured and
maintained regularly.
D.
This registration shall be valid as long as the registered property
remains subject to this chapter. Any changes to the information required
on this registration shall be reported to the Code Official within
10 days of the change. The City is not responsible to verify the accuracy
of the information provided.
E.
This shall also apply to any property subjected to foreclosure issues
with said property. Property subjected to this chapter shall remain
under the registration requirements, security and maintenance standards
of this chapter as long as the property in question remains abandoned.
F.
It is the obligation of the owner, beneficiary/responsible party
to inform the City of any pending action, such as bankruptcy, other
court or administrative action, that would prohibit the owner, beneficiary/responsible
party from taking any of the actions required in this chapter.
A.
The exterior areas of the property shall be, in comparison to the
neighborhood standard, kept free from weeds, dry brush, dead vegetation,
trash, junk, debris, building materials, any accumulation of newspapers,
circulars, flyers, notices, except those required by federal, state
or local law, discarded personal items, including, but not limited
to, furniture, clothing, large and small appliances, printer material
or any other items that give the appearance of abandonment.
B.
The property shall be free from graffiti, tagging or similar markings
by removal or painting over with an exterior grade paint that closely
matches the color of the exterior of the structure.
C.
Insofar as there is existing or previously existing landscaping,
all visible front and side yards shall be maintained to the neighborhood
standard at the time registration was required. If no landscaping
previously existed at the property in front and visible side yards,
installation is not required under this chapter. Landscaping includes
grass, turf stain, ground covers, bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar
plantings, decorative rock or bark or artificial turf/sod designed
specifically for residential installation.
D.
Landscaping does not include weeds, gravel, broken concrete, asphalt,
decomposed granite, plastic sheeting, mulch (unless applied in conjunction
with reseeding of turn areas), indoor-outdoor carpeting or any similar
materials.
E.
Maintenance includes, but is not limited to, regular watering, irrigation,
staining or re-staining, cutting, pruning and mowing of required landscaped
and removal of trimmings.
F.
Pools and spas shall be kept in working order so the water remains
clear and free of pollutants and debris, or drained and kept dry.
In either case, properties with pools and/or spas must comply with
the minimum security fencing requirements of this municipality or
the commonwealth.
G.
Adherence to this chapter does not relieve the owner, beneficiary/responsible
party of any obligations set forth in any covenants, conditions and
restrictions and/or homeowners' association rules and regulations
that may apply to the property.
A.
Property subject to this chapter shall be maintained in a secure
manner so as not to be accessible to unauthorized persons.
B.
"Secure manner" includes, but is not limited to, the closure and
locking of windows, all doors, gates and any other openings of such
size that leave it accessible. In the case of broken windows, securing
means the reglazing or boarding of said window. Locking includes measures
that require a key, keycard, tool or special knowledge to open or
gain access.
C.
The owner, beneficiary/responsible party shall perform monthly inspections
to verify that the requirements of this chapter are being met.
D.
The property in question shall be posted with the name and twenty-four-hour
toll-free contact phone number of the owner, beneficiary/responsible
person or his designee. The posting shall be no less than 8 1/2
inches by 11 inches and shall contain, along with the name and twenty-four-hour
toll-free contact number, the words, THIS PROPERTY BEING MANAGED BY
and TO REPORT PROBLEMS OR CONCERNS CALL, or similar. The posting shall
be placed in a window adjacent to the entry door attached to the exterior
of the entry door. Exterior posting must be constructed of and printed
with or contained in weather-resistant materials.
In addition to the enforcement remedies established within this
chapter, the Code Officials shall have the authority to require the
owner or beneficiary/responsible party to implement additional maintenance
and/or security measures, including, but not limited to, securing
any and all doors, windows or other openings, installing additional
security lighting, increasing on-site inspection frequency, employment
of on-site security guard, or other measures as may be reasonably
required to arrest the decline of the property.
The fee for registering an abandoned/vacant residential property
shall be set at $200, a one-time fee as set by resolution of the Mayor
and Council of the City of Washington.
Violations of this chapter shall be enforced in any combination
as allowed within this Code and the regulations mandated by this commonwealth.
Any person aggrieved by any part of this chapter may appeal
insofar as such appeal is allowed under this Code. Said appeals shall
be heard by the Building Board of Appeals and appellant must file
an application for said appeal and pay a nonrefundable filing fee
of $375 to the Code Official, who will present said application to
the Board for review.
Violations within this chapter shall be treated as a strict
liability offense regardless of intent. Any person, firm and/or corporation
that violates any portion of this chapter shall be subject to prosecution
and shall be ordered to pay a mandatory fine of $500 for each violation
and/or property in violation of same.
