[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Randolph 12-2-2008 STM by Art. 8, approved. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Building construction in the Town of Randolph is governed by
the current edition of the Massachusetts State Building Code.]
A.
Purpose.
(1)
Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Buildings encourage blighted and unsecured
properties; cause the surrounding neighborhood to suffer from stagnant
or declining real estate values; and create significant maintenance
and monitoring costs to the Town of Randolph.
(2)
Accordingly, it is the intent of this section to protect public health,
public safety, security, general welfare and quiet enjoyment of occupants,
abutters, and neighborhoods by requiring the registration of all Abandoned
and/or Dilapidated Buildings, as defined herein, and, by doing so,
expedite the prompt rehabilitation and permanent occupancy of such
buildings.
B.
ABANDONED AND/OR DILAPIDATED BUILDING
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
(5)
ABANDONMENT
CODE MANAGEMENT TASK FORCE
DILAPIDATED
EVIDENCE OF ABANDONMENT
FORECLOSURE
NEIGHBORHOOD STANDARD
OWNER
PROPERTY
THIS SECTION or ORDINANCE
TOWN COUNCIL or COUNCIL
Definitions.
Any residential, commercial or industrial building and/or
premises, where the Owner, by his or her action or inaction, has failed
to correct a material health and/or safety condition at the building
or premises or on the surrounding Property. A material health and/or
safety condition may be found where the health, safety and welfare
of the neighborhood is or may be at risk, such as:
Where a building is vacant for a length of time that is inconsistent
with its use as a residential, commercial or industrial building and/or
premises (the state of being vacant is not necessarily to be considered
a prerequisite to a finding of Abandonment and/or Dilapidation); or
Where there exists a lack of maintenance and/or a deterioration
of a building or grounds which actually or potentially poses a risk
to the public health, public safety, security, general welfare and
quiet enjoyment of occupants, abutters, and neighborhoods; or
Where a building is not safe and/or structurally sound or where
the building or its interior is otherwise unfit for healthy or safe
habitation or access; or
Where the structural vandalism of a building or grounds has
gone unrepaired; or
Where a lack of maintenance or use and/or a deterioration of
the building and/or premises promotes a degradation of the surrounding
neighborhood affecting the public health, public safety, security,
general welfare and quiet enjoyment of occupants, and abutters.
A building in the state of Abandonment is one (1) which shows
Evidence of Abandonment as defined below and is vacant or occupied
by a person without a legal right of occupancy, and may be subject
to a current Notice of Default and/or Notice of Trustee's Sale,
pending Tax Assessors Lien Sale, and/or part of any real Property
conveyed via a Foreclosure sale resulting in the acquisition of title
by an interested beneficiary of a deed of trust, and/or part of any
real Property conveyed via a deed in lieu of Foreclosure/sale. Indicia
of Abandonment shall include without limitation no or inadequate response
to requests from officials of the Town of Randolph for verification
of ownership and/or to orders to repair to such Property for more
than thirty (30) days after issuance of such requests and/or orders.
Pursuant to Chapter 61, Section 61-9 of the General Ordinances,[1] the Code Management Task Force ("CMTF") coordinates the
activities of various agencies involved in the enforcement of laws,
ordinances, and regulations adopted to protect and promote the public
health, public safety, security, general welfare and quiet enjoyment
of the residents of the Town of Randolph.
A Dilapidated building is one which shows signs of decay,
strewn trash, deterioration, or full or partial ruination through
neglect or misuse.
Any building and/or premise condition(s) that independently,
or in the context of the totality of circumstances would lead a reasonable
person to believe that a building is vacant or occupied by a person
without a legal right of occupancy. Such conditions include but are
not limited to: (1) overgrown grass [one (1) ft or higher] or noticeable
amounts of dead vegetation; (2) accumulation of unclaimed newspapers,
circulars, flyers or mail; (3) past due utility notices or disconnected
utilities; (4) accumulation of trash, junk or debris; (5) the absence
of window coverings such as curtains, blinds or shutters; (6) the
absence of furnishings or personal items consistent with residential
habitation; (7) a swimming pool in such disrepair that a dangerous
condition may exist; and/or (8) reports by neighbors, passersby, delivery
agents, government employees that the building is vacant.
The process by which Property, used as security for a real
estate loan, is prepared for sale to satisfy the debt if the borrower
defaults.
The condition of buildings and premises that prevails in
and throughout the neighborhood where an Abandoned and/or Dilapidated
Building is located. No Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building shall
be considered in determining this standard.
Every person, entity, service company, Property manager or
realtor, who alone or severally with others: (1) has legal or equitable
title to any building, dwelling, dwelling unit, mobile dwelling unit,
or parcel of land, vacant or otherwise, including a mobile home park;
or (2) has care, charge or control of any building, dwelling, dwelling
unit, mobile dwelling unit, or parcel of land, vacant or otherwise,
including a mobile home park, in any capacity including but not limited
to agent, executor, executrix, administrator, administratrix, trustee
or guardian of the estate; or (3) is a mortgagee in possession of
a building and/or premises; or (4) is an agent, trustee, or other
person appointed by the court and vested with possession or control
of a building and/or premises; or (5) is an officer or trustee of
the association of unit Owners of a condominium (each such person
is bound to comply with the provisions of this ordinance as if he
were the Owner); or (6) operates a rooming house; or (7) is a trustee
who holds, owns, or controls mortgage loans or mortgage-backed securities
transactions and has initiated Foreclosure. The Owner, as defined
herein, may also be referred to as the "Responsible Person" in this
chapter.
Any unimproved or improved real Property, or portion thereof,
including but not limited to buildings or structures located on said
Property, regardless of condition.
The Town Council for the Town of Randolph.
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original. Section 61-9 no longer exists
in the Town Code.
C.
Registration, Failure to Register, Change of Ownership.
(1)
Within forty-five (45) days of a building becoming Abandoned and/or
Dilapidated, as determined by the CMTF pursuant to this section, the
Owner of such building shall register said building with the Police
Department, Building Department and Health Department by providing
each department, on a form to be provided by such department, the
name, address, telephone number of the Owner of the building, the
street address of the building and the map, block and parcel number
of such building. If the Owner does not reside in the Commonwealth
of Massachusetts, then the registration form shall also include the
name, address and telephone number of a person who resides within
the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is authorized to accept service
of process on behalf of the Owner and who shall be designated as the
Owner's agent for purpose of receiving all notices issued pursuant
to this section.
(2)
Failure to register an Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building shall
be a violation of this section. Each department, as referred to above,
shall be immediately notified by the Owner of an Abandoned and/or
Dilapidated Building if the ownership of said building changes subsequent
to registration.
D.
Annual registration fee, failure to pay.
(1)
On or before November 15th of each calendar year the Owner of any
Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building shall pay to the Town of Randolph
an annual registration fee to cover the administrative cost of monitoring
and ensuring the security and proper maintenance of such building.
The annual registration fee shall be set by the Town Council pursuant
to MGL c. 40, § 22F and listed in the fee schedule.[2]
(2)
Failure to pay the annual registration fee shall be a violation of
this section, and the full fee shall be deemed an assessment resulting
from a violation of this ordinance. Such fee, and any fines issued
for violations of this section, shall constitute a "municipal charges
lien" on the Property to be collected in accordance with MGL c. 40,
§ 58.
E.
Security and maintenance requirements. The Owner, as that term is
defined herein, shall secure buildings subject to registration pursuant
to this section in a such a manner as to prevent access by unauthorized
persons, including but not limited to the following: (1) closing and
locking of windows, doors (walk-through, sliding and garage), gates,
swimming pools and any other opening of such size that it may allow
a child to access the interior of the building; (2) re-glazing or
boarding of any broken window; and (3) if directed to do so by the
Town of Randolph, implement additional maintenance and/or security
measures, including installing additional security lighting, increasing
the frequency of on-site inspections, employing an on-site security
guard(s), disconnecting utilities and removing meter boxes, or implementing
other measures as may be required to stop the structural decline of
the Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building and prevent unauthorized
entry.
F.
Inspections and posting.
(1)
If the Responsible Person is a corporation and/or out-of-area beneficiary/trustee/Owner,
a local Property manager shall be hired to perform weekly inspections
of the Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building to verify that the requirements
of this ordinance and any other applicable laws are being complied
with.
(2)
The Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building shall be posted with the
name and twenty-four (24) hour contact phone number of the local Property
manager.
(a)
The posting shall be no less than eighteen (18) inches by twenty-four
(24) inches and shall be legible from a distance of forty-five (45)
feet. The posting shall contain the words:
|
"THIS PROPERTY MANAGED BY [add name of Property manager]" and "TO REPORT PROBLEMS OR CONCERNS PLEASE CALL [add twenty-four
(24) hour contact phone number]"
|
(b)
The posting shall be visible from the street and placed on the
interior of a window of the Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building
that faces the main street or secured to the front exterior of the
building facing the main street or, if no such area exists, on a stake
of sufficient size to support the posting in a location that is visible
from the main street but not readily accessible to vandals. Exterior
posting must be constructed of, and printed with weather resistant
materials.
G.
Billing statement. On or before October 15th of each calendar year, the Town of Randolph shall send a billing statement, setting forth the required registration fee, to the Owner of the Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building. The registration fee, as set by the Council pursuant to Subsection D, shall be due and payable on November 15th of each year regardless of the delivery or receipt of such billing statement.
H.
Appeal. Any Owner aggrieved by the requirements of this section may
appeal such requirements and/or such fee in writing to the Town Manager
no later than fifteen (15) calendar days after the receipt of the
billing statement. The appeal request must be accompanied by a non-refundable
appeal cost to be set by the Council pursuant to MGL c. 40, § 22F.
Upon the proper filing of an appeal, payment of the registration fee
shall be stayed pending the outcome of the appeal. If, upon appeal,
the decision of the Manager is adverse to the Owner, the payment of
the registration fee shall be due within ten (10) calendar days of
such decision.
I.
Other violations. The provisions of this section are in addition
to, and not in lieu of, any and all other applicable provisions of
the General Ordinances of the Town of Randolph or any provisions of
the Zoning Ordinances or any applicable regulations and laws of the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts and/or the Town of Randolph.
J.
Enforcement, fine. A violation of this section, either by failing
to register an Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Building, failing to pay
the registration fee or otherwise, shall be subject to a fine in accordance
to the fine schedule per offense and each day that the violation is
outstanding shall constitute a separate offense.[3] The Health Agent and/or any Police Officer of the Town of Randolph or any official designee of the CMTF shall have the right to enforce this section pursuant to the non-criminal disposition procedures set forth in Chapter 1, Section 1-9 of the Town of Randolph's ordinances. This section shall not supersede, preempt or negate any individual department's statutory authority to act independently on such matters.
K.
Severability. If any provision of this section is held to be invalid
by a court of competent jurisdiction, then such provision shall be
considered separately and apart from the remaining provisions, which
shall remain in full force and effect.
L.
Notice. A copy of this ordinance shall be mailed by CMTF to all Owners
of Abandoned and/or Dilapidated Buildings located in the Town of Randolph.
The CMTF shall also mail a copy of this ordinance to all loan institutions,
banks, real estate offices, and management companies located in and/or
having legal or equitable interest in residential, commercial or industrial
Property located in the Town of Randolph, to the extent that such
information is readily ascertainable and accessible from records on
file with Town of Randolph or elsewhere.
[Added 6-9-2009 ATM by
Art. 33]
A.
Purpose. The purpose of this section is to establish reasonable standards
to protect the safety of the citizens of the Town of Randolph from
the hazards inherent in trenches and to provide for penalties for
individuals who violate any provision of this ordinance.
B.
Authority, Fee. Pursuant to the provisions of MGL c. 82A, the regulations
of the Department of Public Safety in conjunction with the Division
of Occupational Safety as promulgated under 520 CMR 14.00 regarding
excavation and trench safety are expressly incorporated into this
ordinance by reference. A reasonable fee to defray the cost of administration
incurred in the review and processing of permits under this ordinance
shall be established pursuant to MGL c. 40, § 22F and c.
82A, § 2.
C.
Permitting Authority. The Director of the Department of Public Works
or his designee shall serve as the "Permitting Authority" for excavations
to take place on both property that is owned or controlled by a public
agency or that a public agency otherwise has a property interest in,
including but not limited to an easement, and for excavations to take
place on privately owned land. Designees of the Director of the Department
of Public Works may include the Building Inspector and the Fire Chief
or their respective designees.
D.
Fire Department Detail. In the event that the Permitting Authority
becomes aware or is notified of an unattended trench during a time
when the permit holder is unavailable, it may require a fire department
detail to attend such unattended trench to protect the general public,
the cost of which shall be assessed to the permit holder.
E.
Application. The provisions of this ordinance shall apply to any
excavator in the Town of Randolph.
F.
Violations. Any person violating this section shall be fined in accordance
with the Fine Schedule for each offense, each day constituting a separate
offense.[1] The enforcing persons for this ordinance shall be the Permitting Authority or his designees and any one (1) fire shift commander of the Town of Randolph. Non-criminal disposition of violations shall be available to apply to violations pursuant to Chapter 1, Section 1-9 of the Town of Randolph's General Ordinances.
