As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them:
Brush.
Trees or shrubbery under seven (7) feet in height and less than three (3) inches in diameter which are not routinely maintained, cared for, or cultivated.
Debris.
Lumber, concrete, rocks, brick or other building materials not being used for on-site improvements pursuant to a duly issued building permit.
Junk.
Worn-out, worthless, and discarded material, including metals, glass, paper and cordage.
Lot.
Land within defined property lines, and all areas of public rights-of-way adjacent to and extending beyond the property line of said lot:
(1) 
To the curb line of adjacent streets, where the curb line has been established;
(2) 
For a distance of ten (10) feet, where no curb line has been established; or
(3) 
To the center of adjacent alleys.
Objectionable, unsightly or unsanitary matter.
Animal, vegetable or mineral matter or a composition or residue thereof.
Officer.
The code enforcement officer, or an authorized representative of such officer.
Owner.
Any person owning any vested interest in a lot, or any person leasing, occupying, or controlling a lot.
Rubbish.
Garbage, trash and other discarded articles and materials.
Stagnant water.
Water which stands upon premises in any above-ground container in such a manner and over such a period of time that it will become a breeding place for mosquitoes.
Trash.
All refuse (other than household garbage), debris and brush, including any household trash and yard trash (grass clippings, leaves, etc.).
Weeds.
All rank and uncultivated vegetable growth or matter that:
(1) 
Has grown to more than 12 inches in height; or
(2) 
Creates an unsanitary condition or is infested with rodents, vermin, or other disease-carrying pest, regardless of the height of the weeds.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:A(1))
As used in this article, the following shall apply. Supervision and control shall be determined as follows:
(1) 
The occupant of the premises shall be presumed to have supervision and control;
(2) 
Should the property be unoccupied, supervision and control shall be presumed to be in the owner as reflected by the current tax roll; or
(3) 
If the property is unoccupied and is listed with a real estate agency, such agency shall, in the absence of any other designated agent, be presumed to have supervision and control.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:A(2))
(a) 
The existence of brush, debris, junk, objectionable, unsightly or unsanitary matter, rubbish, stagnant water, trash, or weeds upon a lot in violation of this article is hereby declared to constitute a public nuisance and be subject to the abatement procedures prescribed in this article or otherwise provided in this chapter.
(b) 
(1) 
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any lot or parcel of land, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city, to permit weeds or grass to grow to a height greater than twelve inches (12") upon such premises.
(2) 
With respect to lots or parcels of land containing more than five (5) acres under single ownership, the provisions of this section shall not be applicable to the area thereof in excess of one hundred feet (100') from any public street or alley or to the area in excess of one hundred feet (100') from any adjacent property under different ownership on which habitable dwellings are located. Lots and parcels of land containing less than five (5) acres must be maintained in accordance with this section.
(c) 
It shall be unlawful for the owner of any lot or parcel of land, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city to permit any junk, brush, trash, debris, rubbish or any other objectionable, unsightly, or unsanitary matter of whatever nature to accumulate or be present upon any such lot or parcel of land.
(d) 
It shall be unlawful for any owner of any lot or parcel of land, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city to permit the open storage of any icebox, refrigerator, stove, or similar household items upon any such lot or parcel of land.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:B)
It shall be the duty of any owner of any lot or parcel of land, occupied or unoccupied, improved or unimproved, within the corporate limits of the city, to cut or cause to be cut, and remove or cause to be removed, such brush and weeds, and to remove debris, rubbish, trash, junk, stagnant water, iceboxes, refrigerators, stoves, and similar household items, and any and all other objectionable, unsightly or unsanitary matter of whatever nature, as often as may be necessary to comply with the provisions of section 6.03.003 hereof.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:C)
(a) 
The code enforcement officer shall notify the owner of a lot and/or land, in writing, of the existence of a violation of section 6.03.003 upon such lot and/or land. Such notice shall require the abatement of such violation within seven (7) days of the date of such notice. The code enforcement officer, at his discretion, and for good cause, may extend this period an additional seven (7) days.
(b) 
The written notice is to be delivered:
(1) 
Personally to the owner in writing;
(2) 
By letter addressed to the owner at the owner’s address as recorded in the appraisal district records of the appraisal district in which the property is located; or
(3) 
If personal service cannot be obtained:
(A) 
By publication at least once;
(B) 
By posting the notice on or near the front door of each building on the property to which the violation relates; or
(C) 
By posting the notice on a placard attached to a stake driven into the ground on the property to which the violation relates.
(c) 
If the city mails a notice to the property owner in accordance with subsection (b) and the United States Postal Service returns the notice as “refused” or “unclaimed,” the validity of the notice is not affected, and the notice is considered as delivered.
(d) 
In a notice provided under this section, the city may inform the owner, by regular mail and a posting on the property or by personally delivering the notice, that if the owner commits another violation of the same kind or nature that poses a danger to the public health and safety on or before the first anniversary of the date of the notice, the city without further notice may correct the violation at the owner’s expense and assess the expense against the property. If a violation covered by a notice under this subsection occurs within the one-year period and the city has not been informed in writing by the owner of an ownership change, the city may, without notice, take any action permitted in this article and assess its expenses as provided in this article.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:D; Ordinance adopting Code)
(a) 
After expiration of such seven (7) days’ notification, the city may:
(1) 
Do the work or make the improvements required to abate the nuisance, or cause the same to be done; and
(2) 
Pay for the work done or improvements made and charge the cost to the owner of the property.
(b) 
When the work is completed and paid for by the city, an itemized written statement of actual expenses incurred by the city to abate such conditions, together with administrative costs as prescribed by separate ordinance, shall be mailed to the owner of said premises. Such statement shall be payable within thirty (30) days of the date of the mailing thereof.
(c) 
Should said statement not be paid within such period, the city secretary, or assigned representative, shall prepare a statement of expenses and costs, containing a legal description of the offending property, in a proper format for filing to be approved by the city attorney, and sign such statement. The city secretary shall cause such statement to be filed with the county clerk. Such statement and its filing shall create and perfect a lien on the lot or parcel of land therein described. The amount of such perfected lien shall bear interest from its date at the rate of twelve percent (12%) per annum until paid. The city may institute suit in the district court of the county for recovery of the debt and foreclosure of its lien. A certified copy of the recorded statement aforesaid shall be prima facie proof of the amount expended in any such work performed by the city.
(d) 
Should the owner of an offending property request in writing that the city do such work as necessary to abate or prevent a violation of this article, such written request shall negate requirement for notification of violation as provided above, but the city shall have the same remedies as above stated.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:E; Ordinance adopting Code)
All money collected from lot and/or land owners in payment of charges arising from violations of this article shall be received by and receipted for by the city secretary, and deposited in the city’s general fund.
(1986 Code, ch. 6, sec. 1:F)
(a) 
Notwithstanding any of the foregoing sections, the city may abate, without notification, weeds that:
(1) 
Have grown higher than forty-eight (48) inches; and
(2) 
Are an immediate danger to the health, life, or safety of any person.
(b) 
The city must give notice, in the manner provided in section 6.03.005, to the property owner no later than the tenth (10th) day after the date the city abates weeds under this section. The notification shall contain:
(1) 
An identification, which is not required to be a legal description, of the property;
(2) 
A description of the violation of this article that occurred on the property;
(3) 
A statement that the city abated the weeds; and
(4) 
An explanation of the property owner’s rights to request an administrative hearing regarding the city’s abatement of the weeds.
(c) 
The city, by and through its city manager or designee, shall conduct an administrative hearing on the abatement of weeds under this section if, not later than the thirtieth (30th) day after the date of the abatement of the weeds, the owner files a written request for a hearing with the city.
(d) 
The city shall conduct the administrative hearing not later than the twentieth (20th) day after the date a request for hearing is filed. At the administrative hearing, the owner may testify or present any witnesses or written information relating to the city’s abatement of the weeds.
(e) 
The city may assess expenses and create liens under this section in the same manner and subject to the same conditions as set forth in section 6.03.006 above.
(f) 
The authority granted the city by this section is in addition to the authority granted by section 6.03.005.
(Ordinance adopting Code)