[Adopted 9-21-2004; amended in its entirety 6-24-2013 (§ 8-28 of the 2010 Code)]
It is the purpose and intent of this article to eliminate nuisances
in the City. Nuisances, such as dilapidated buildings, overgrowth,
debris, trash, stagnant pools of water, property having defective
weather protection and vacant or abandoned buildings, cause and contribute
to blight within neighborhoods and commercial areas of the City and
adversely affect the property values for adjacent and surrounding
property. Such nuisances on property also impair the public health
and safety. This article is intended to further the objectives of
and to act in concert with any existing state or local laws.
The owner or person in control of any private property or business
property shall at all times maintain the premises free of litter;
provided, however, that this section shall not prohibit the storage
of litter in authorized private receptacles for collection or as otherwise
provided for by law.
The owner or person in control of any lot shall at all times
control the growth of any wild plants or cultivated plants, or the
existence of any obstruction, so as not to interfere or obstruct the
view of a reasonable person to oncoming traffic who is exiting from
any private driveway or private way onto a public way or a way to
which the public has right of access.
All property in the City of Taunton shall be maintained in accordance
with the following property standards:
A.
General. All property, whether occupied or vacant, shall be maintained
in good repair and a safe and sanitary condition as provided herein,
so as to not cause or contribute to the creation of a hazardous or
blighted area or to affect adversely the public health and safety
or property value of adjacent or surrounding property.
B.
Overgrowth within 100 feet of a residence. All property within 100
feet of a residence shall be maintained free of vegetation over 12
inches high that is or may reasonably become infested with rodents,
vermin, or other animals or create a fire safety hazard. All property
shall be kept free of overgrown, decayed, dead, or hazardous trees,
shrubs, or any other vegetation that poses a hazard to the health
and safety of any person in the vicinity of the property, including
any persons traveling on any portion of any public way, or any surrounding
property.
[Amended 11-18-2014]
C.
Structures. All structures, including any buildings, fences, storage
sheds, or any element thereof, shall be maintained in a structurally
sound condition and in good repair, including proper weather protection
and waterproofing, and shall be maintained in a condition so as to
not cause or contribute to creation of a fire safety hazard.
D.
Accumulation of trash, rubbish or debris. All property shall be maintained
in a clean and sanitary manner and free from the accumulation of litter,
rubbish, trash or other debris, except in closed receptacles intended
for such use.
[Amended 11-18-2014[1]]
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any property in the City to violate any one or more of the property standards contained in §§ 350-2 to 350-4, and any such property violation shall be deemed to be a public nuisance. The trash enforcement officer, Building Commissioner, the Board of Health, the Building Inspector, the Zoning Enforcement Officer, the Fire Chief or the Police Chief may declare the property a public nuisance and order the property owner to remove the nuisance within 10 days after service of notice of the violation. Such notice shall be presented to the owner in the manner described in MGL c. 111, § 124. The notice shall contain the following information:
A.
The street address and description of the property sufficient for
identification of the property.
B.
A statement that the property has been declared a public nuisance
because of the presence of a nuisance on the property.
C.
A concise description of the conditions on the property that have
led to the determination that the property is a public nuisance.
D.
A statement that the nuisance shall be removed from the property
within 10 days from service of the notice and that if the owner fails
to remove the nuisance within the time frame specified that the owner
will be in violation of this article and subject to the penalties
described therein.
[Amended 11-18-2014]
A.
If the owner fails to remove such nuisance within the time frame provided in § 350-5, any of the officials listed in § 350-5, along with any other persons as may reasonably be required to provide sufficient aid, and after obtaining lawful authorization, may enter the property and remove or cause to be removed the nuisance, and the owner shall reimburse the City for the expense incurred for such removal. The sum so expended may be recovered by the City as provided in MGL c. 111, § 125.
B.
This article may also be enforced, with or without the declaration of nuisance and notice provisions in § 350-5, by any lawful method, criminal process or by noncriminal disposition as provided in MGL c. 40, § 21D. Each occasion on which a violation is identified will be considered a separate offense, and any person in violation of this article shall be subject to fines as follows:
The following words and phrases, when used in this article,
shall have the following meanings:
Any paper, cardboard, cans, bottles, plastic goods, glass
goods, used construction material, roof shingles, boards with nails,
cut lumber less than three feet in length, used motor vehicle parts,
boat parts, engine parts, or other mechanical parts, household appliances
or any other object that a reasonable person would believe has been
discarded or otherwise left outside, uncovered, and exposed to the
weather unused for the purpose for which it was manufactured.
A failure to satisfy any one or more of the property standards set forth in § 350-4 herein.
Any person who owns, possesses, manages, or controls any
property. For any property which is the subject of foreclosure proceedings,
this article may be enforced against the mortgagee or its agents.
[Amended 11-18-2014]
Any individual, voluntary association of individuals, business
entity or organization, whether incorporated or not.
Any land, building, structure or real property, including
any fixtures attached thereto, or any personal property located within
the City.
[Amended 11-18-2014]
