[HISTORY: Adopted by the Council of the City of Easton 9-28-2016 by Ord. No. 5566. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter is intended to serve the following purposes:
A.
To assist the City of Easton (the "City") in protecting and promoting
the public health, safety and welfare of its citizens;
B.
To ensure that owners, managers and occupants share responsibilities
to comply with codes; and
C.
To provide for a system of inspections and for issuance of certificates
of compliance and to establish penalties for violations.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
following meanings. If a term is not defined in this chapter, but
is defined in the City's Code of Ordinances, Property Maintenance
Code[1] or Construction Code,[2] then that definition shall apply to this chapter. If a term is not defined in any of those codes, but is defined in Chapter 595, Zoning, of the City's Code, then the definition in such chapter shall apply to this chapter.
Days in which the offices of the City of Easton are open
for public business.
A document issued by the City Department of Code Enforcement
certifying that a building, structure, unit or portion thereof is
in compliance with the applicable regulations as indicated in this
chapter.
The City of Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania.
Any code or ordinance adopted, enacted and/or in effect in
and for the City of Easton concerning fitness for habitation or the
construction, maintenance, operation, occupancy, use, vermin or rodent
control, or public health matters of any premises or dwelling unit.
This shall include, but not be limited to, the City's Property
Maintenance Code,[3] the Electrical Code, the construction codes, solid waste
and water ordinances, public health ordinances, noise control ordinances,
and other applicable codes and standards.
The duly appointed Code Enforcement Officer(s), Code Compliance
Officer(s), or Code Inspector(s) having the duty to enforce this chapter,
the City's Property Maintenance Code[4] and similar codes of the City of Easton, and any assistants
or deputies thereof.
In multiunit buildings, space which is not part of an individual
regulated rental unit and which is shared among occupants of the dwellings.
Common areas shall be considered as part of the premises for purposes
of this chapter.
One or more persons, jointly or severally, in whom is vested
all or part of the legal title to the premises, or all or part of
the beneficial ownership and a right to present use and enjoyment
of the premises, including but not limited to a mortgage holder who
is in possession of a regulated rental unit.
A natural person, partnership, corporation, unincorporated
association, limited partnership, trust, or any other entity.
Any parcel of real property in the City, including the land
and all buildings and structures, on which one or more regulated rental
units is located.
A commercial, educational, or institutional unit.
An occupant of a regulated commercial unit with whom a legal
relationship with the owner is established by a lease or other enforceable
agreement under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
A.
General.
(1)
It shall be the duty of every owner to keep and maintain all regulated
commercial units in compliance with the City of Easton Unit Maintenance
Code, and to keep such unit in good and safe condition.
(2)
As provided for in this chapter, every owner shall be responsible
for regulating the proper and lawful use and maintenance of every
unit which he, she or it owns.
(3)
A business license, certificate of occupancy and certificate of compliance, required by § 295-5, are required for each regulated commercial unit. If the business license, certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance has not been issued, or has been revoked, then the regulated commercial unit shall not be used. If a regulated commercial unit is used without a valid business license, certificate of occupancy or certificate of compliance, such action shall be a violation of this chapter.
(4)
This chapter shall not be construed as diminishing or relieving in
any way the responsibility of occupants or their guests for their
conduct or activity; nor shall it be construed as an assignment, transfer
or projection over or onto any owner of any responsibility or liability
which occupants or their guests may have as a result of their conduct
or activity under any private cause of action, civil or criminal enforcement
proceeding, or criminal law; nor shall this chapter be construed so
as to require an owner to indemnify or defend occupants or their guests
when any such action or proceeding is brought against the occupant
based upon the occupant's conduct or activity. Nothing herein
is intended to impose any additional civil/criminal liability upon
owners other than that which is imposed by existing law.
(5)
This chapter is not intended, nor shall its effect be, to limit any
other enforcement remedies which may be available to the City against
an owner, occupant or guest thereof.
(6)
The owner and/or owner's agent shall accompany the Code Enforcement
Officer in all scheduled inspections at the unit conducted under this
chapter.
B.
Maintenance of premises.
(1)
The owner shall maintain the premises in compliance with the City
of Easton Unit Maintenance Code and shall regularly perform all routine
maintenance, including lawn mowing and ice and snow removal, and shall
promptly make any and all repairs necessary to fulfill this obligation.
(2)
However, the owner and occupant may agree that the occupant is to
perform specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations or remodeling
if such responsibilities are established in writing. Such an agreement
may be entered into between the owner and occupant only if entered
into in good faith and not for the purpose of evading the obligations
of the owner or occupant.
(3)
The existence of an agreement between owner and occupant shall not
relieve an owner of any responsibility under this chapter or other
City codes for proper repair and maintenance of a building or premises.
[Amended 12-28-2016 by Ord. No. 5581]
The owner or operator of all commercial, educational and institutional
units operating within the City of Easton shall register such use
on a form provided by the Code Enforcement Department by December
1, 2016, and by December 1 of each subsequent year.
A.
Pursuant to the Fire and Safety Inspection Program, each regulated
commercial unit shall be subject to inspection of the following:
(1)
Proper use in accordance with occupancy use classification.
(2)
Cooking hood fire protection system.
(3)
Portable extinguishers.
(4)
Fire protection systems, including stand pipes and sprinkler systems.
(5)
Fire, smoke and safety alarms.
(6)
Emergency power systems.
(7)
Exit and emergency area lighting.
(8)
Storage of hazardous and nonhazardous materials.
(9)
Stacking and storage of combustible materials.
(10)
Exit/emergency egress doors.
(11)
Records of evacuation plans, fire drills.
(12)
Records of fire protection and alarm system tests.
(13)
Antibackflow device test records.
(14)
Other items required by the Pennsylvania Uniform Construction
Code, 35 P.S. § 7210.101 et seq., or NFPA to be periodically
tested and/or inspected shall be included.
(15)
Items added by subsequent revisions to the codes are hereby
automatically incorporated into this program without amendment to
this section.
B.
Each regulated commercial unit shall be subject to inspection by
a Code Officer or another duly authorized agent of the City under
the schedule outlined in this chapter.
C.
City Code Officers or those authorized by the Chief Code Administrator
are the officials authorized to enforce this chapter and to take appropriate
measures to abate violations hereof for and on behalf of the City
of Easton.
D.
This chapter shall not be construed as to limit the Code Officer's
authority to conduct inspections or enforcement actions under other
City codes or to require that a unit be made available for inspection
whenever there is reasonable cause that a violation of City codes
may be present.
E.
Each regulated commercial unit shall be subject to a minimum of at
least one inspection every three years, based upon a schedule established
by the Chief Codes Enforcement Administrator. The City is not obligated
to complete all inspections within this schedule. If the City, through
no fault of the owner, manager or tenant, was not able to complete
an inspection in a regulated commercial unit in the designated year,
the City shall inspect the unit in the following year.
F.
Warrant. Within the limitations of federal and state law, a Code
Enforcement Officer may apply to a Magisterial District Judge having
jurisdiction for an administrative search warrant to enter and inspect
a regulated commercial unit and the premises. Such warrant is only
required where access to a regulated commercial unit or common areas
is denied to the Code Enforcement Officer after a request.
Certificates of compliance shall be issued by the Code Enforcement
Department only after inspection and acceptance of the unit by the
City Code Officials. All regulated commercial units shall be required
to obtain a certificate of compliance by December 1, 2018, and within
four years each year thereafter.
Annual fees for inspections and certificates of compliance shall be in amounts as established in § 285-9.
A.
Basis for violation. It shall be unlawful for any person, as either
owner or manager of a regulated commercial unit, to operate or permit
to operate without a valid, current business license, certificate
of occupancy or certificate of compliance issued by the City authorizing
such operation. It shall also be unlawful for any person, either owner
or manager, to violate any other provision of this chapter.
B.
Any violation discovered during inspection shall require the inspecting
official to give written notice to the unit owner, or designated responsible
party, stating all violations, and to give the unit owner 30 days'
notice to correct, abate, repair or otherwise remove the violations.
If the violations are not corrected, abated, repaired or removed within
the thirty-day period, the unit owner shall be subject to penalties
in accordance with § 295-7C.
C.
Penalties.
(1)
The penalties and remedies for a violation of the City's Unit
Maintenance Code shall be as established in such code.
(2)
Any person who violates a provision of this chapter shall be subject
to revocation of license or certificate of occupancy or certificate
of compliance, and, upon conviction thereof before a Magisterial District
Judge, be liable to pay the following penalties:
(a)
A fine of not less than $300 and not more than $1,000, in addition
to other remedies or courses of action taken by the City.
(b)
For each day that a violation continues to exist after the time
limit established for correction of the violation by a Code Officer,
a separate violation shall have been deemed to occur, requiring an
additional fine.
D.
Nonexclusive remedies. The penalty provisions of this chapter shall
not limit the ability of the City to enforce other City ordinances
and to utilize the penalties, remedies and procedures provided under
such other City ordinances and state law.
Any person affected by a decision, notice or order of a Code Enforcement Officer under this chapter shall have the right to appeal to the City of Easton Unit Maintenance Board of Appeals in accordance with the City of Easton Unit Maintenance Code, § 435-1.
