[Prior code § 10.01]
No person shall erect, contrive, cause, continue, maintain or
permit to exist any public nuisance within the Village.
[Prior code § 10.02]
A "public nuisance" is a thing, act, occupation, condition or
use of property which shall continue for such length of time as to:
A.
Substantially annoy, injure or endanger the comfort, health, repose
or safety of the public;
B.
In any way render the public insecure in life or in the use of property;
C.
Greatly offend the public morals or decency;
D.
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.
[Prior code § 10.03]
The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are specifically declared to be public health nuisances, but such enumeration shall not be construed to exclude other health nuisances coming within the definition of Section 8.24.020.
A.
Adulterated Food. All decayed, adulterated or unwholesome food or
drink sold or offered for sale to the public.
B.
Unburied Carcasses. Carcasses of animals, birds or fowl not intended
for human consumption of food which are not buried or otherwise disposed
of in a sanitary manner within 24 hours after death.
C.
Breeding Places for Vermin. Accumulations of decayed animal or vegetable
matter, trash, rubbish, rotting lumber, bedding, packing material,
scrap metal or any material in which flies, mosquitoes, disease-carrying
insects, rats or other vermin may breed.
D.
Stagnant Water. All stagnant water in which mosquitoes, flies or
other insects can multiply.
E.
Privy Vaults and Garbage Cans. Privy vaults and garbage cans which
are not fly-tight.
F.
Noxious Weeds. All noxious weeds and other rank growth of vegetation.
All weeds and grass shall be cut to a height not to exceed one foot.
The Village may cause all weeds and grass to be cut and removed and
brush to be removed and the cost thereof charged to the property under
Section 66.60(16), Wis. Stats.
G.
Water Pollution. 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.
H.
Noxious Odors. Any use of property, substances or things within the
Village 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.
I.
Street Pollution. 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.
J.
Air Pollution. The escape of smoke, soot, cinders, noxious acids,
fumes, gases, fly ash, industrial dust or other atmospheric pollutants
within the Village 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.
K.
Prohibited Discharges.
1.
Prohibited Discharges. No person, firm or corporation shall discharge
or cause to be discharged, leaked, leached or spilled upon any public
or private street, alley, public or private property, or onto the
ground, surface water, subsurface water, or aquifers, or within the
Village, except those areas specifically licensed for waste disposal
or landfill activities and to receive such materials, any explosive,
flammable or combustible solid, liquid or gas, and radioactive material
at or above nuclear regulatory restriction levels, etiologic agents,
or any solid, liquid or gas creating a hazard, potential hazard, or
public nuisance or any solid, liquid or gas having a deleterious effect
on the environment.
2.
Containment, Cleanup and Restoration. Any person, firm or corporation
in violation of the above section shall, upon direction of any emergency
government officer, begin immediate actions to contain, cleanup and
remove to an approve repository the offending material(s) and restore
the site to its original condition, with the offending person, firm
or corporation being responsible for all expenses incurred. Should
any person, firm or corporation fail to engage the necessary persons
and equipment to comply or to complete the requirements of this section,
the office of emergency government may order the required actions
to be taken by public or private resources and allow the recovery
of any and all costs incurred by the Village as action imposed by
Subsection (K)(3) of this section.
3.
"Emergency services response" includes, but is not limited to: fire
service, emergency medical service, law enforcement. A person, firm,
or corporation who possesses or controls a hazardous substance which
is discharged or who causes the discharge of a hazardous substance
shall be responsible for reimbursement to the responding agencies
for actual and necessary expenses incurred in carrying out their duties
under this chapter.
"Actual and necessary expenses" may include but not be limited
to: replacement of equipment damaged by the hazardous material, cleaning,
decontamination and maintenance of the equipment specific to the incident,
costs incurred in the procurement and use of specialized equipment
specific to the incident, specific laboratory expenses incurred in
the recognition and identification of hazardous substances in the
evaluation of response, decontamination, clean up and medical surveillance,
and incurred costs in future medical surveillance of response personnel
as required by the responding agencies medical advisor.
4.
Site Access. Access to any site, public or private, where a prohibited
discharge is indicated or suspected will be provided to emergency
government officers and staff and to Village police and fire department
personnel for the purpose of evaluating the threat to the public and
monitoring containment cleanup and restoration activities.
5.
Public Protection. Should any prohibited discharge occur that threatens
the life, safety or health of the public at, near, or around the site
of a prohibited discharge, and that the situation is so critical that
immediate steps must be taken to protect life and limb the coordinator
of emergency government, his or her assistant, or the senior police
or fire official on the scene of the emergency may order an evacuation
of the area or take other appropriate steps for a period of time until
the Village Board can take appropriate action.
6.
Enforcement. The coordinator of emergency government and his or her
deputies, as well as the police officers, shall have authority to
issue citations or complaints under this section.
7.
Civil Liability. Any person, firm or corporation in violation of
this section shall be liable to the Village for any expenses incurred
by the Village or loss or damage sustained by the Village by reason
of such violations.
[Prior code § 10.04]
The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are 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 within the definition of Section 8.24.020:
A.
Disorderly Houses. 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.
B.
Gambling Devices. All gambling devices and slot machines.
C.
Unlicensed Sale of Liquor and Beer. 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.
D.
Continuous Violation of Village Ordinances. Any place or premises
within the Village where the Village ordinances or state laws relating
to public health, safety, peace, morals or welfare are openly, continuously,
repeatedly and intentionally violated.
E.
Illegal Drinking. Any place or premise resorted to for the purpose
of drinking intoxicating liquor or fermented malt beverages in violation
of the laws of the state of Wisconsin.
[Prior code § 10.05]
The following acts, omissions, places, conditions and things are 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 definition of Section 8.24.020:
A.
Signs. Billboards. 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.
B.
Illegal Buildings. All buildings erected, repaired or altered in
violation of the provisions of the ordinances of the Village relating
to materials and manner of construction of buildings and structures
within the Village.
C.
Unauthorized Traffic Signs. 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.
D.
Obstruction of Intersections. 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
and intersection or pedestrian crosswalk.
E.
Tree Limbs. All limbs of trees which project over and less than 10
feet above any public sidewalk, street or other public place.
F.
Dangerous Trees. All trees which are a menace to public safety or
are the cause of substantial annoyance to the general public.
G.
Fireworks. All use or display of fireworks except as provided by
the laws of the state of Wisconsin and ordinances of the Village.
H.
Dilapidated Buildings. All buildings or structures so old, dilapidated
or out of repairs as to be dangerous, unsafe, unsanitary or otherwise
unfit for human use.
I.
Wires and Cables Over Streets. All wires and cables over streets,
alleys or public grounds which are strung less than 15 feet above
the surface thereof.
J.
Noisy Animals or Fowl. 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.
K.
Obstructions of Streets — Excavations. 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, or do not conform to the
permit.
L.
Unlawful Assemblies. 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 or sidewalks.
[Prior code § 10.06]
For the purpose of combating Dutch elm disease fungus (Ceratostomella
Ulmi), which disease is declared to be a public nuisance because of
its devastating effect upon the scenery, beauty and intrinsic value
of the property within the Village, and the exercise of the police
power granted to the Village by law, for the purpose of preserving,
maintaining and fostering the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants
of the Village, the Village Board ordains as follows:
A.
Entry on Private Property. Authorized employees of the Village may
enter upon private property in the Village for the purpose of examining
trees and to take the necessary samples of wood from trees appearing
to be diseased for diagnosis and examination by the State Department
of Agriculture.
B.
Infected Trees a Public Nuisance. Any elm tree, whether located on
public or private property within the Village which is determined
by the State Department of Agriculture to be infected with Dutch elm
disease fungus (Ceratostomella Ulmi), after examination and diagnosis
of the sample of wood taken from such tree, is a public nuisance.
C.
Abating Nuisance. The Village President, after being informed by
the State Department of Agriculture that a tree within the Village
is so infected, shall order the Village employees or a person employed
for that purpose to cut down the diseased tree and destroy the same
by burning within five days from the date of confirmation of the disease.
D.
Private Property. If a diseased tree is on private property it shall
be cut down so the stump remains in the ground. The stump shall be
stripped of its bark and soaked with a mixture of such chemicals as
the State Department shall recommend for that purpose. If the owner
of the property on which the diseased tree is located requests, in
writing, that the stump be removed, it shall be removed at the expense
of the owner of the land.
E.
Payment of Cost of Abatement. The Village shall pay all of the expense
of the removal of all trees infected by such disease where the trees
are located within the public right-of-way, provided such tree is
located between the traveled portion of a street and the outer sidewalk
line, if there is a sidewalk paralleling the street. The expense of
the removal of any tree located upon private property, shall be paid
by the property owner, and in default of payment thereof within 30
days from the date of billing, such sum shall be entered and collected
the same as other Village taxes and returned in the delinquent tax
list for unpaid taxes, and collection thereof enforced in the same
manner as other unpaid real estate taxes.
F.
Transporting Within Village Prohibited. No person shall keep, store,
sell, offer for sale, give away or transfer any elm tree material
which is infected with the fungus or infested with the vector (the
disease carrying beetle), or transport the same into or within the
Village, except for the purpose of immediately destroying the same
by burning.
[Prior code § 10.07]
A.
Enforcement. The Chief of Police, the Chief of the Fire Department,
the Building Inspector and Health Officer shall enforce those provisions
of this chapter that come within the jurisdiction of their offices,
and they shall make periodic inspections and inspections upon complaint
to insure that such provisions are not violated. No action shall be
taken under this section to abate a public nuisance unless the officer
shall have inspected or caused to be inspected the premises where
the nuisance is alleged to exist and have satisfied himself that a
nuisance does in face exist.
B.
Summary Abatement. 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 President may direct the proper officer to cause the
same to be abated and charge the cost thereof to the owner, occupant
or person causing, permitting or maintaining the nuisance, as the
case may be.
C.
Abatement After Notice. 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 or she shall serve notice on the person causing or maintaining the nuisance to remove the same within five days. If such nuisance is not removed within such five days, the proper officer shall cause the nuisances to be removed as provided in Subsection B of this section.
[Amended 7-21-2014 by Ord. No. 287]
D.
Other Methods Not Excluded. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed
as prohibiting the abatement of public nuisances by the Village or
its officials in accordance with the laws of the state of Wisconsin.
E.
Court Order. Except when necessary under Subsection B of this section, no officer hereunder shall use force to obtain access to private property to abate a public nuisance but shall request permission to enter upon private property if such premises are occupied, and, if such permission is denied, shall apply to any court having jurisdiction for an order assisting in the abatement of the public nuisance.
[Prior code § 10.08]
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.
[Prior code § 10.09]
Any person who shall violate any provision of this chapter or permit or cause a public nuisance shall be subject to a penalty as provided in Chapter 1.08 of this Municipal Code.
