[Adopted 10-11-2005 by Ord. No. 05-07]
Borough Council hereby finds that nuisance properties place
a substantial and unacceptable threat and burden on the common health,
safety and welfare of the residents of the Borough of Sharpsburg.
To this end, the Borough Council directs the Director of Code Enforcement,
as provided in the following sections, to charge the cost of abatement
of nuisance properties to the property owner in an effort to deter
repeated violations of state and local laws and to ensure restoration
of the common health, safety and welfare of Borough residents.
As used in this Part 7, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
The Code Enforcement Department of the Borough of Sharpsburg.
The reasonable cost of abatement of an enumerated infraction
as calculated by code enforcement, including but not limited to the
cost of police and/or Code Enforcement Department response associated
with abating an enumerated infraction.
The complete list of costs associated with abating each enumerated
infraction.
Any residentially zoned property within the Borough of Sharpsburg
with five or fewer units that generates at least a combined three
issuances of citation and/or filing of legal complaints from police
and/or code enforcement for any enumerated infraction on three separate
occasions within any one-hundred-twenty-day period or any residentially
zoned property with more than five units that generates at least a
combined three issuances of citation and/or legal complaints from
one unit or five issuances of citation and/or legal complaints from
the entire building from police and code enforcement for any enumerated
infraction on separate occasions within any one-hundred-twenty-day
period.
Any person or business entity, profit or not-for-profit,
owning an interest in any property within the boundaries of the Borough
of Sharpsburg.
An enumerated infraction is any of the following activities,
behavior or conduct whenever engaged in by the owner(s), operator(s),
tenant(s), occupant(s) or their invitee(s) occurring within the boundary
lines of the property or 100 feet or less outside the boundary lines
of the property, including but not limited to:
7.
Under Pennsylvania law, anything designated a summary offense, a
misdemeanor or a felony.
8.
This chapter shall exclude any report to a police officer relating
to an incident of domestic violence and abuse. For purposes of this
section, domestic violence and abuse shall be defined as any report
where the perpetrator is a household member, sexual or intimate partner
or persons who share a biological parenthood to the reporting individual,
including reports where the reporter is in reasonable fear of imminent
serious bodily injury or any alleged violation of Subdivisions (1)
through (5) of the definition of "abuse" in 23 Pa.C.S.A. § 6102(a).
[Added 2-25-2021 by Ord.
No. 21-02]
1.
All enumerated infractions will be reported by the citing police
officer to the Director of Code Enforcement within 72 hours of its
occurrence. The Director of Code Enforcement shall notify the property
owner by first-class mail to the property owner's last known address
or cause to be hand-delivered a notice to the property owner's residence
or usual place of business. The notice shall be deemed to be properly
delivered if sent either by first-class mail to the property owner's
last known address or if delivered in person to the property owner.
If the property owner cannot be located, the notice shall be deemed
to be properly delivered if a copy of it is personally served upon
a competent member of the property owner's family at least 17 years
of age or a competent adult currently residing there. If a current
address cannot be located, notice shall be deemed sufficient if posted
on the potential nuisance property and a copy of the notice is sent
via first-class mail to the last known address of the property owner.
2.
The Director of Code Enforcement is herewith charged with keeping
a log of such enumerated infractions. The log shall be maintained
for the purposes of recording enumerated infractions from diverse
sources who would not otherwise know of other departments' activities
with the subject property.
3.
Whenever the Director of Code Enforcement determines that an owner
of a residentially zoned property with five or fewer units has been
cited or a legal complaint has been filed for an enumerated infraction
at least three times on separate occasions within any one-hundred-twenty-day
period or an owner of a residentially zoned property with more than
five units has been cited or a legal complaint has been filed for
an enumerated infraction at least three times from one unit or at
least five times from the entire building on separate occasions within
any one-hundred-twenty-day period, the Director of Code Enforcement
shall notify the property owner in writing that the property has been
designated as a nuisance property.
4.
The notice shall be deemed to be properly delivered if sent either
by first-class mail to the property owner's last known address or
if delivered in person to the property owner. If the property owner
cannot be located, the notice shall be deemed to be properly delivered
if a copy of it is personally served upon a competent member of the
property owner's family at least 17 years of age or a competent adult
currently residing there. If a current address cannot be located,
notice shall be deemed sufficient if posted on the potential nuisance
property and a copy of the notice is sent via first-class mail to
the last known address of the property owner.
5.
A.
The street address or legal description sufficient for identification
of the property;
B.
A description of the enumerated infraction(s) that have occurred
at the property and a statement indicating that the property is declared
as a nuisance property as a result of said enumerated infraction(s);
D.
A statement that the property owner shall within 10 days respond
to the Director of Code Enforcement, in writing, with either:
(1)
The intent of the property owner to appeal the finding of the
Director of Code Enforcement; or
(2)
A proposal detailing a course of action by which enumerated activities will be abated at the property. The Director of Code Enforcement shall, within 10 days of receipt of said proposal, either approve or disapprove of the proposal. In the event the Director of Code Enforcement disapproves of the proposal, the property owner may appeal pursuant to § 6-706.
6.
Whenever code enforcement determines that an additional enumerated infraction has occurred at a property for which notice has been issued pursuant to Subsection 5C of this section, and either the enumerated infraction has occurred not less than 13 days after notice has been issued or an approved course of action under Subsection 5D(2) has not been completed, the Code Enforcement Officer shall charge the cost of abatement of the enumerated infraction to the property owner pursuant to § 6-705 for this and any additional enumerated infraction, exceptions notwithstanding.
1.
On an annual basis, the Director of Code Enforcement shall recommend
a cost schedule for each enumerated infraction to the Borough Council,
and Borough Council shall adopt such cost schedule as recommended
by the Director of Code Enforcement or adopt a different cost schedule
as the Council deems appropriate by resolution, which will be filed
in the Borough Secretary's office.
3.
Each subsequent incident of any enumerated infraction shall be deemed
a separate violation subject to this Part 7.
Appeal of the determination of the Director of Code Enforcement
pursuant to § 6-704.5C shall be submitted to the Borough
Council within 10 days of service of the notice of enumerated infraction.
1.
In the event any property owner, after implementation of a § 6-704.5D(2)
plan, demonstrates that code enforcement or police have not responded
to an enumerated infraction at a nuisance property for at least a
period of six months, and all other requirements of this part have
been complied with, that property shall no longer be considered a
nuisance property.
2.
Any citation or complaint issued to a tenant who is already in the
process of being evicted shall not count towards the number of citations
or complaints that have been issued or filed necessary to be deemed
a "nuisance property," if the property owner can prove that an eviction
action has been commenced in a court of law and if the property owner
is actively prosecuting said eviction action against the tenant.
