This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Town of
Westernport Nuisance and Abandoned Property Abatement Ordinance."
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall
apply:
ABANDONED PROPERTY
A residential or commercial property that is not occupied
by either the property owner or a legal tenant and is not a viable
property because it is:
A.
Unsuitable for habitation or reasonable use;
B.
In a dilapidated, hazardous, unsafe or dangerous condition;
or
C.
Open to entrance or trespass.
DIRECTOR
The individual holding the position wherein he/she is authorized
by the Town Administrator to oversee the Department of Community Development.
MORTGAGEE
The holder of a security interest in a nuisance property
or an abandoned property which is recorded among the land records
of Allegany County, Maryland.
NUISANCE PROPERTY
A property that is in an unsafe, hazardous or unsanitary
condition that:
A.
Interferes with the use or enjoyment of adjacent land;
B.
Injures or interferes with adjacent land; or
C.
Poses a significant danger to or adversely affects the health,
safety or welfare of the surrounding community.
OWNER
The record title holder of a nuisance property or an abandoned
property and, if the record title holder is deceased, the record title
holder's personal representatives, executors and administrators.
It is hereby declared and ordained by the Mayor and Commissioners
of the Town of Westernport to focus on rehabilitating or eliminating
abandoned properties and nuisance properties within the Town of Westernport.
The Director is empowered to implement this chapter. Without
being required to obtain the approval of the Mayor and Town Commission,
he shall be responsible for:
A. Determining where abandoned properties and nuisance properties exist.
B. Ascertaining the ownership of abandoned properties and nuisance properties.
C. With the assistance of the Town Attorney, instituting court proceedings
against the owners in furtherance of the provisions of this chapter.
D. Subject to the hereinafter set forth parameters, negotiating and
executing settlement agreements with the owners for the purpose of
rehabilitating or demolishing the abandoned properties and nuisance
properties, irrespective of whether such settlement agreements are
entered into while court proceedings are pending or on a pre-litigation
basis.
E. Proceeding upon such lawsuits that are not settled and seeking court
orders that:
(1) Declare the subject properties to be nuisances;
(2) Require the owners to repair and rehabilitate them;
(3) Authorize the Town of Westernport to enter onto the subject properties
and demolish them; and/or
(4) Require the owners of such properties that have been demolished to
pay the costs of the demolition as well as the Town's attorney
fees, court costs and litigation expenses incurred in seeking the
relief described herein through the entry of money judgments against
the owners.
At least 30 days prior to the institution of court proceedings,
the Director shall mail notice to the owner and mortgagee, if applicable,
advising the owner and mortgagee that the property has been identified
as a nuisance property and/or an abandoned property and advising the
owner and mortgagee that court proceedings will be instituted unless
the owner enters into a settlement agreement with the Town of Westernport
or otherwise repairs and rehabilitates the property or otherwise remediates
the conditions resulting in its designation as a nuisance property
and/or an abandoned property. Said notice shall be sent by first-class
U.S. mail, postage prepaid, and it shall be mailed to the owner at
the owner's address reflected in the records of the State Department
of Assessments and Taxation and it shall be mailed to the mortgagee
at the mortgagee's address as stated in the recorded instrument
creating or perfecting the security interest or at such other address
as is reasonably expected to result in the mortgagee's receipt
of the notice described herein. In the event the owner cannot be identified,
the notice may be provided through publication in a newspaper of general
circulation in Allegany County, Maryland.
In the event the court enters an order granting the Town of
Westernport authorization to demolish a nuisance property or an abandoned
property, the costs of demolishing the property and all costs incidental
thereto shall be chargeable against the owner and shall constitute
a lien upon such property, subordinate only to the lien of unpaid
real property and personal property taxes.
Because the purpose of this chapter is to promote and protect
the health, safety and general welfare of the Town of Westernport
and its occupants, it shall be liberally construed in order to effectuate
that purpose.