[Ord. 2011-14, 6-6-2011]
There is hereby created within the Village a crime free rental
residential housing program for the express purpose of deterring crime
and maintaining a high quality of life and preserving peace and tranquility
within and surrounding rental residential housing within the Village.
[Ord. 2011-14, 6-6-2011; Ord. 2013-18, 9-16-2013]
(a)
Except as otherwise provided herein, the provisions of this chapter shall apply to all tenants, occupants, owners and property managers of rental residential housing within the Village regulated by Chapter 41B of this Code.
(b)
The crime free rental residential housing program shall be operated
and administered by the Village of Elmwood Park police department,
with the assistance of the Village of Elmwood Park code administration
department.
(c)
All applicants for a rental residential license shall, within six
months of applying for a rental residential license, attend and complete
the Village of Elmwood Park's crime free rental residential housing
program. Each year thereafter, all rental residential license holders
shall certify to the Village, in writing, that he or she has reviewed,
and is in compliance with, the requirements of this Code with regard
to the renting of residential property. The provisions of this section
shall not apply to owners of rental residential property where all
of the occupants of the rental property are related to the property
owner by blood or marriage.
[Ord. 2011-14, 6-6-2011]
All leases or rental agreements for multiple-family rental residential premises containing six or more dwelling units shall be in writing and shall contain a crime free lease addendum or have a clause or provision in the lease similar to a crime free lease addendum. The crime free lease addendum shall be approved by the Village Manager as to form and content. The crime free rental residential housing program coordinator, who shall be appointed by the Chief of Police, shall provide, at no cost to the lessor, or the lessor's manager or agent, samples of crime free lease addenda. For purposes of this section, a crime free lease addendum is a provision which makes it a material violation of a lease for a lessee, an occupant of the premises, a guest of the lessee or for any other party residing or present on the premises of a rental residential property with the permission or consent of the owner or person in control of the property to engage in, facilitate or conspire to commit or commit any criminal activity or offense detailed in Chapter 41D of this Code while on the leased premises or any common area of the leased premises or to violate the tenant responsibility provision of Section 41B-9 of this Code. All crime free lease addenda shall provide that commission of any offenses set forth in Chapter 41D of this Code shall be a material breach of the terms and covenants of the lease and shall further provide the lessor or lessor's agent with authority to evict the lessee in accordance with the provisions of the Illinois forcible entry and detainer act, 735 Illinois Compiled Statutes 5/9-101 et seq., if it is established by a preponderance of the evidence, either by a court of competent jurisdiction or administrative hearing officer, that a violation of the crime free lease addendum has occurred.
[Ord. 2011-14, 6-6-2011]
Unless otherwise required by Chapter 41D of this Code, owners, managers, and/or leasing agents shall not be required to perform or require lessees to submit to criminal background checks. It is, however, recommended that all prospective lessees of rental residential property be required to submit to criminal background checks, credit checks, and checks for past evictions prior to entering into a lease agreement.
