[Adopted 4-23-2013 by Ord. No. 1215]
This article shall be known as "the Borough of Brentwood Disruptive
Conduct Ordinance."
A.
It is the purpose of this article and the policy of the Borough of
Brentwood, in order to protect and promote the public health, safety,
and welfare of its citizens, to establish the rights and obligations
of owners and occupants relating the rental of certain residential
rental units in the Borough of Brentwood and to encourage owners and
occupants to maintain and improve the quality of rental housing within
the community. It is also the policy of the Borough that owners, managers,
and occupants share responsibilities to obey the various codes adopted
to protect and promote public health, safety, and welfare. As a means
to those ends, this article provides for an enforcement mechanism
to deal with a problem of disruptive conduct of occupants or visitors
of residential rental units, and it sets penalties for violations.
This article shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its
purposes and policies. In considering the adoption of this article,
the Borough of Brentwood makes the following findings:
B.
In recent years, many formerly private homes, or portions thereof,
have been converted into residential rental units. Those units have
often been rented to individuals who, because they have no ownership
interest in the property, have allowed the property to deteriorate.
In many cases, the owners of the properties live long distances from
the Borough of Brentwood. Problems have occurred because many tenants/occupants,
because they have no ownership interest in the real estate, have engaged
in and/or have allowed visitors to the residential rental units they
occupy to engage in disruptive conduct. This, in turn, has caused
problems for home owners near the rental units, as well as the occupants
or visitors of other residential rental units.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
See § 163-3.
See the definition of "Code Enforcement Officer" in § 163-3.
See § 163-3.
See § 163-20.
A written report of disruptive conduct on a standardized
form to be completed by a police officer or by the Building Code Official
upon the receipt of a guilty disposition, which shall be maintained
by the Building Code Official.
A letter issued by the Building Code Official advising that
a disruptive conduct report has been filed and referencing the date
and time of the incident, a description of the conduct, and all rights
under this article to appeal of the disruptive conduct determination.
Any natural person on the premises of a rental unit with
the expressed or implied consent of a tenant or occupant.
Any one or more persons, jointly or severally, in whom is
vested all or part of the legal title to the premises or all of part
of the beneficial ownership and a right to the present use and enjoyment
of the premises, including a mortgage holder in possession of a residential
unit. Same as "owner."
The Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951, codified at 68 P.S.
§ 250.101 et seq.
Any natural person who resides in a residential rental unit,
with whom a legal relationship with the owner or landlord is established
by a lease or by the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and
whether or not such natural person has possession of the rental unit.
See § 163-3.
Any sworn law enforcement officers of the Brentwood Borough
Police Department, the Allegheny County Police Department, or the
Pennsylvania State Police.
Any parcel of real property in the Borough, including the
land and all buildings or appurtenant structures or elements on which
one or more rental units is located.
A written lease or other legally enforceable agreement between
owner and tenant embodying the terms and conditions concerning the
use and occupancy of a specified rental unit.
See § 163-3.
Any residential rooming unit or dwelling let or leased for rent, and any other-than-owner-occupied residential unit, except as outlined in § 163-12 of the Borough Code.
See § 163-3.
An occupant of a rental unit with whom a legal relationship
with the owner or landlord is established through a lease or other
enforcement agreement under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Any natural person on the premises of a rental unit solely
for his or her convenience and without the expressed or implied consent
of a tenant or occupant, or who refuses to leave the premises after
being verbally directed as such by a tenant or occupant.
A.
It shall be the responsibility of every owner or landlord, or responsible
agent, to regulate lawful and proper use of all rental units and to
discourage and prevent as may be possible the occurrence of disruptive
conduct through the rental agreement and the enforcement thereof.
B.
The tenants, occupants, and invited guests of rental units shall
not engage in, nor tolerate, nor permit others on the premises to
engage in disruptive conduct or other violations of the Borough Code
or the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
C.
For the purposes of this article, "disruptive conduct" shall be defined
as any form of conduct, action, omission, or behavior perpetrated,
caused, or permitted at a rental unit by any tenant, occupant, or
invited guest, which constitutes a violation of any of the following
statutes or ordinances, or consists of any of the following behaviors:
(1)
Any public order offense under § 63 (Adult Entertainment),
§ 70 (Alcoholic Beverages), or § 194 (Transient
Retail Business) of the Borough Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5501
(Riot), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5502 (Failure to Disperse), 18 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 5503 (Disorderly Conduct), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5505
(Public Drunkenness), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5512 (Lotteries), 18
Pa.C.S.A. § 5513 (Gambling Devices, Gambling), or Pa.C.S.A.
§ 5514 (Pool Selling and Bookmaking) of the Pennsylvania
Crimes Code.
(2)
Any offense involving a minor under 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 4304
(Endangering the Welfare of Children), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6110.1
(Possession of Firearm by Minor), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6301 (Corruption
of Minors), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6308 (Purchase, Consumption or
Possession of Alcoholic Beverages), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6310
(Inducement to Buy Alcoholic Beverages), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6310.1
(Selling or Furnishing Alcoholic Beverages to Minors), or 18 Pa.C.S.A.
§ 6319 (Solicitation of Minors to Traffic Drugs) of the
Pennsylvania Crimes Code.
(3)
Any firearms or weapons offense under the Pennsylvania Uniform Firearms
Act, 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6101 et seq.
(4)
Any public decency offenses under 18 Pa. C.S.A. § 5901
(Open Lewdness), 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5902 (Prostitution); or
18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5903 (Obscene and Other Sexual Materials
and Performances) of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code.
(5)
Any sanitation offense under § 174-26 (Storage of Solid Waste) of the Borough Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 6501 (Scattering Rubbish) of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code.
(6)
Any animal offense under § 76 (Animals) of the Borough
Code; or 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 5511 (Cruelty to Animals) of the
Pennsylvania Crimes Code.
(7)
Any drug offense under Pennsylvania Controlled Substance, Drug, Device
and Cosmetic Act, 35 P.S. § 780-101 et seq.
(8)
Any loud or raucous yelling or shouting emanating from the rental
unit that is plainly audible at a distance of 30 feet from the rental
unit, or any yelling or shouting in common areas or exterior areas
of the premises between the hours of 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. or at
any time in a manner where the yelling or shouting is inherently likely
to provoke an immediate violent reaction.
(9)
Any operation of any radio, musical instrument, television set, loudspeaker,
sound amplifier, or similar device in a manner as to be plainly audible
at a distance of 50 feet from the rental unit in which such device
is located.
D.
In order for such disruptive conduct to constitute an offense under
this article, a citation must be issued or criminal charges must be
filed by a police officer and successfully prosecuted or a guilty
plea entered before a Magisterial District Judge or Court of Common
Pleas Judge. If an appeal is filed from a decision of a Magisterial
District Judge, the matter shall not be deemed to constitute disruptive
conduct, unless a finding of guilty is affirmed by a final decision
of appeal.
A.
Police officers or the Building Code Official, as the case may be,
may investigate alleged incidences of disruptive conduct, and shall
complete a disruptive conduct report upon finding that the reported
incident constitutes disruptive conduct as defined herein.
B.
The information filed in the disruptive conduct report shall include
the identity of the alleged perpetrator of the disruptive conduct
and the factual basis for the issuance of the disruptive conduct report.
C.
The Building Code Official shall issue a disruptive conduct letter
within 10 business days of the filing of the disruptive conduct report
and shall mail a copy of the disruptive conduct letter to the tenant
or occupant, owner or landlord, and, if applicable, responsible agent.
D.
The tenant or occupant, owner or landlord, or responsible agent shall
have 10 business days from the postmarked date of the disruptive conduct
letter to appeal the disruptive conduct report. Said appeal shall
be made in writing on a standardized form made available by the Borough
and shall be submitted to the Rental Property Board of Appeals.
E.
The disruptive conduct report shall be counted only against those
tenants or occupants who perpetrated, caused, or permitted disruptive
conduct to occur. All alleged incidences of disruptive conduct that
occur at a rental unit during a twenty-four-hour period shall, upon
conviction as described herein, constitute a single count of disruptive
conduct and shall be included on a single disruptive conduct report
for the purposes thereof.
F.
Nothing herein shall be construed as to preempt the right of a tenant
or occupant to seek emergency assistance in response to the witnessing
of a crime or a threat of imminent bodily harm, and any disruptive
conduct report resulting from the exercise of such right shall not
count against the tenant or occupant who sought emergency assistance
unless a police officer concludes that said tenant or occupant perpetrated
disruptive conduct and successfully prosecutes a citation or criminal
charges as described herein. No disruptive conduct report shall be
filed if the perpetrator of the disruptive conduct was an uninvited
person.
G.
No disruptive conduct report shall be filed if disruptive conduct
is perpetrated by a person subject to a protection from abuse order
or similar restraining order that prohibits said person from living
in or visiting the rental unit of a tenant or occupant.
A.
In the event that three disruptive conduct reports are filed against
a tenant or occupant within an eighteen-month period, the owner or
landlord or responsible agent shall have 30 days from the postmarked
date of the third disruptive conduct letter to begin eviction proceedings
against such tenant or occupant, and shall continue such proceedings
to completion, without interruption, until such tenants or occupants
vacate the premises. The owner or landlord, or responsible agent,
shall limit the eviction order to only those tenants or occupants
who have accumulated three disruptive conduct reports within an eighteen-month
period. The owner or landlord, or responsible agent, must submit to
the Building Code Official a copy of the landlord-tenant complaint
as filed with the Magisterial District Judge.
B.
Upon the execution of an eviction order, all persons subject to said
order shall not, for a minimum period of two years, be permitted to
occupy any rental unit within the Borough that is owned by the same
owner or landlord as the affected rental unit.
C.
No owner or landlord shall be deemed to be in violation of this section
in the event that the Magisterial District Judge rules in favor of
the tenant during an eviction process initiated under the terms of
this article, or if legal action has resulted in a stay or reversal
of an eviction order.
D.
The Building Code Official shall maintain a list of all persons who
were ordered to be evicted under this article along with the street
address and apartment number of each affected rental unit. Such list
shall be maintained for a minimum of three years and shall be available
for public inspection.
A.
Following the effective date of this article, the owner or landlord
shall insert into the rental agreement the rental agreement addendum
attached hereto as Appendix A.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Said appendix is included as an attachment to this chapter.
B.
When a rental agreement has been entered into prior to the effective
date of this article, the owner or landlord shall provide the tenants
with a copy of the disruptive conduct addendum within 60 days after
enactment of this article, and shall secure written acknowledgement
that said tenants subject to the rental agreement have acknowledged
the terms outlined herein.
C.
Nothing herein shall be construed as to limit the ability of the
owner or landlord to insert more stringent provisions in establishing
a contract with the tenant, or to initiate the eviction process on
any other grounds as permitted by the Landlord-Tenant Act.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any owner or landlord, or responsible agent,
to fail to commence eviction proceedings against a tenant or occupant
who has accumulated three disruptive conduct reports within an eighteen-month
period.
C.
No rental license shall be reinstated until such tenants or occupants have vacated the presence and a reinstatement fee of $150 has been paid for each affected rental unit. Said reinstatement is contingent upon the abatement of all property maintenance violations and the satisfaction of all outstanding fees as outlined in § 163-11 of the Borough Code.
