(a) 
Whatever is dangerous to human life or health, whatever renders the ground, the water, the air or food a hazard or injury to human life or health or that is offensive to the senses, or that is or threatens to become detrimental to the public health, is declared to be a nuisance, and the specific acts, conditions and things set forth in this article are, among others, each and all of them declared to be nuisances and prohibited and made unlawful.
(b) 
The enumeration of specific nuisances provided in this article shall not be deemed or interpreted to limit the scope of this definition to those items specifically enumerated, but shall be taken as specific examples only.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (1), adopted 10/20/05)
As used in this article:
Administrative fee.
The city’s minimum administrative fee in the amount provided in appendix A to this code that shall be assessed when the city abates or causes to be abated a nuisance. This fee shall not include the actual costs incurred in abating or causing to be abated a nuisance, but the administrative cost to the city of processing the abatement. Without amending this article, the city may impose an administrative fee of more than the amount established in appendix A if the city’s cost of implementing this article is greater than the amount established in appendix A.
Brush.
Scrub vegetation or dense undergrowth.
Costs.
The actual cost the city incurs in abating or causing to be abated a nuisance, including, without limitation, the cost of mowing, weeding, removing objectionable rubbish, junk, or unsightly or unsanitary matter, etc.
Cultivated.
Vegetation that is deliberately grown and currently and continuously maintained by the owner, occupant, or agent of the property.
Developed.
A tract of land upon which a structure is situated.
Expenses.
The total of the administrative fee and costs incurred by the city in abating or causing to be abated a nuisance.
Garbage.
Every accumulation of both animal and vegetable matter, liquid or otherwise, that is received from kitchens, and also all decayable waste.
Hearing officer.
The mayor of the city or the mayor’s designated representative.
Junk.
All worn-out or discarded material, including but not limited to old iron or other metal, glass and cordage, plastic, machinery of any kind, tractors, refrigerators, stoves, any other household appliances, furniture, old boats, etc.
Litter.
Discarded paper, wrapping material, glass or aluminum containers, or other decayable or non-decayable waste.
Mayor.
The mayor or mayor’s designated representative.
Maintained.
Watered, pruned, trimmed, treated, and controlled in such a manner as to enhance the use or enjoyment of one’s property, without interfering with the enjoyment or use of neighboring property or public access.
Nuisance.
Anything which is injurious to the health or morals, or indecent or offensive to the senses, or an obstruction to the free use of property so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property.
Occupant.
Any person, firm or corporation, both public and private, claiming or having possessory control of any property.
Owner.
Any person, firm or corporation, both public and private, claiming title of any property.
Person.
Shall include a firm, association, organization, partnership, trust, company, or corporation, as well as an individual.
Refuse.
An accumulation of worn-out, used, broken, or rejected materials, and includes garbage, litter, rubbish, yard waste and other decayable or nondecayable waste. It includes, but is not limited to, old barrels, old tires, tree and brush and grass trimmings and unused household items and appliances.
Rubbish.
All loose and decayed material and dirt-like substances that attend use or decay, or which accumulate from buildings, storing or cleaning, trash, debris, rubble, stone or fragments of building materials.
Vegetation.
Any grass, weeds, shrubs, brush, bushes, or vines.
Weeds.
Vegetation that because of its height is objectionable, unsightly or unsanitary, but excluding cultivated crops, shrubs, bushes, trees, flowers, and vines.
Yard waste.
Grass and brush trimmings, trees or tree limbs, hedge or shrub cuttings, leaves, weeds, vines or other decayable waste which is generated by maintaining a yard.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (2), adopted 10/20/05; Ordinance adopting Code)
It is unlawful for any person to violate the provisions of this article. Any such violation shall constitute a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a maximum fine of two thousand dollars ($2,000.00). Each day that a violation of this article occurs shall constitute a separate offense.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (17), adopted 10/20/05)
No owner or occupant of any real property, occupied or unoccupied, within the city shall permit or allow any stagnant or unwholesome water, filth, carrion, rubbish, refuse, yard waste, junk or garbage, litter or impure or unwholesome matter of any kind, or objectionable, unsightly matter of whatever nature, to accumulate or remain on such real property or within any easement area on such real property or upon any adjacent right-of-way for streets and alleys between the property line of such real property and where the paved surface of the street or alley begins. Such conditions are hereby defined as nuisances.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (3), adopted 10/20/05)
The accumulation upon the property of refuse, rubbish, or garbage that creates an unsanitary condition likely to attract or harbor mosquitoes, rodents, vermin or disease-carrying pests constitutes a nuisance.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (4), adopted 10/20/05)
Any lot or piece of ground within the corporate limits of the city on which there is a pond, pool or container of unwholesome, impure or offensive water, or is conducive to the breeding of mosquitoes, constitutes a nuisance.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (5), adopted 10/20/05)
(a) 
Definitions.
For the purpose of this section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
Abandon.
The throwing away of an icebox, refrigerator or freezer on vacant property, junk heaps, trash piles, or debris accumulations or any other act which at common law would constitute an abandonment of personal property.
Dangerous exposure.
The placing of an icebox, refrigerator or freezer not in use in a garage, barn, outbuilding, porch, yard, lot, or other portion of premises where persons may come upon it and be attracted to it.
(b) 
Deemed public nuisance.
The abandonment or dangerous exposure of an icebox, refrigerator, or freezer with its door(s) in normal latching or locking condition is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and a serious menace to life because of the danger of persons, especially children, entering such an icebox, refrigerator, or freezer and becoming locked inside and suffocating.
(c) 
Removal of door, latches and locks.
(1) 
The owner of an abandoned or dangerously exposed icebox, refrigerator or freezer and the owner or occupant of the premises where an abandonment or dangerous exposure occurs shall remove the door or dismantle or remove the latch or lock holding the door shut on the icebox, refrigerator or freezer.
(2) 
A person commits an offense if he abandons or dangerously exposes, or causes or permits to be abandoned or dangerously exposed, an icebox, refrigerator or freezer unless the latch or lock holding each door shut is dismantled or removed so that the door may be opened from within by pushing on it.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (6), adopted 10/20/05)
(a) 
Except as provided in subsection (d), it is an offense for any person owning, leasing, claiming, occupying, or having supervision or control of any real property within the city to suffer, permit, or allow uncultivated grass, weeds, or brush to grow to a height greater than 10 inches on average upon such premises, including along the sidewalk or street adjacent to the premises between the property line and the curb or, if there is no curb, between the property line and the driving surface.
(b) 
It shall be the duty of any person owning, leasing, claiming, occupying, or having supervision or control of any real property within the city to cut, or cause to be cut, grass, weeds and brush, as often as necessary to comply with the requirements of this article.
(c) 
Except as provided in subsection (d), all grass, weeds, vegetation, or brush not regularly cultivated and which exceed 10 inches in height shall be presumed to be objectionable, unsightly, and unsanitary, and are hereby declared a public nuisance.
(d) 
For tracts of land in excess of five acres, or that are used for the active production of livestock, it shall be required only that grass, weeds and vegetation, not regularly cultivated, be mowed to a height of no greater than 10 inches within a minimum of 200 feet of all adjacent property lines and public or private streets. This minimum may be revised on a case-by-case basis when deemed necessary by the public works director to insure adequate fire safety of adjacent property containing structures or equipment.
(e) 
Property maintained in violation of this section shall be deemed a nuisance.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (7), adopted 10/20/05)
Every person owning or possessing any place in or on which there exists a nuisance as described in this article shall, as soon as its existence comes to his knowledge, proceed at once to abate the nuisance. In the event that any person fails to comply with the provisions of this article, the public works director or his designee may at his discretion:
(1) 
Issue a warning notice;
(2) 
Issue one or more court citations for violation of this article without prior notice;
(3) 
Commence abatement action and proceed with abatement of the nuisance;
(4) 
Request the city attorney to institute suit for civil remedies as provided by this code and state law.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (8), adopted 10/20/05)
(a) 
Notice required.
If the owner of land fails to comply with the requirements of this article, a city official may cause the property owner to be notified and ordered to cut the grass, weeds, or brush, remove rubbish, garbage, refuse or brush or otherwise clean up the property as required within 7 days of the date of the notice. Prior notice shall not be required to issue a citation for violation of this article, or in accordance with section 8.04.013 of this article.
(b) 
Method of notice.
The notice shall be given:
(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;
(3) 
If personal service cannot be obtained:
(A) 
By publication in the city’s official newspaper 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) 
Unclaimed notices.
If notice is mailed to a property owner in accordance with subsection (b) above, 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 delivered.
(d) 
Additional violations.
Although it is not required, the city may:
(1) 
Inform the owner by regular or certified mail and a posting on the property that, if the owner commits another violation of the same kind (failure to mow weeds or high grass or remove rubbish, refuse or garbage) 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 expenses against the property; and
(2) 
If a violation occurs within the one-year period, and the city has not been informed in writing by the owner of an ownership change, then the city, without notice, may take corrective action and assess the expenses against the owner and the property.
(e) 
Contents of notice.
The notice may contain a statement in accordance with subsection (d) of this section and shall contain:
(1) 
The name and address of the record owner;
(2) 
An identification, which is not required to be a legal description, of the property upon which the violation is located;
(3) 
A statement describing the violation and the work necessary to correct the violation;
(4) 
A statement advising the owner that, if the work is not completed within 7 days, the city will complete the work and charge the expenses to the owner; and
(5) 
A statement that, if the city performs the work and the owner fails to pay the expenses, a priority lien may be placed on the property.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (9), adopted 10/20/05)
If the owner does not cut the weeds, grass, or plants, or remove rubbish, garbage, refuse or brush, or otherwise clean up the property, within 7 days of the notice required by section 8.04.010, the city may go on such property or authorize another to go on such property, and do or cause the work to be done and charge the expenses incurred to the owner of the property and assess the expenses against the real estate on which the work is done. The remedy provided in this section is in addition to any criminal penalties or other remedies authorized by this article or other law.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (10), adopted 10/20/05)
Whenever an order has been given to abate or remove any nuisance that may exist upon any lot or premises under the provisions of section 8.04.010 of this article, the owner thereof shall have the right, within the period of time given in the order for abatement, to appear before the mayor to show cause why such order should not or cannot be complied with. The mayor may, at his discretion, give such reasonable extension of time for the abatement or removal of such nuisance as may be necessary, provided there is no immediate danger to the public health.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (11), adopted 10/20/05)
In case of any public epidemic or immediate danger or health hazard, the mayor shall have authority and is directed to employ any sanitary measure deemed necessary for the control of such epidemic and to prevent its spread or to take any other action necessary by law to abate the nuisance.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (12), adopted 10/20/05)
(a) 
Assessment of expenses.
The city does hereby assess the expenses incurred pursuant to section 8.04.011 against the real estate on which the work is done or improvements made, and charge the owner of the property.
(b) 
Contents of notice.
In assessing the expenses incurred against the property on which the work is done or improvements made, the city shall send the owner of the property upon which the work was done a notice which shall include:
(1) 
Identification of the property;
(2) 
A description of the violation;
(3) 
A statement that the city abated the condition;
(4) 
A statement of the city’s expenses in abating the condition;
(5) 
An explanation of the property owner’s right to request a hearing about the abatement of the nuisance within 10 days of the date of the letter; and
(6) 
A statement that, if the owner fails or refuses to pay the expenses within 30 days of the date of the notice, the mayor or his designee shall place a lien against the property by filing with the county clerk of the county in which the property is located a notice of lien and statement of expenses incurred.
(c) 
Method of notice.
The notice shall be sent in the same manner as provided in section 8.04.010.
(d) 
Hearing.
The mayor or his designated representative will conduct a hearing if the property owner submits a written request within 10 days of the date of the notice. At the hearing:
(1) 
The owner and the city may testify or present witnesses or written information related to the city’s abatement of the nuisance.
(2) 
The city has the burden to show that a violation of this article existed, notice was given in substantial compliance with this article, and expenses were incurred to abate the violation.
(3) 
At the close of the hearing, the mayor or his representative may find, based upon a preponderance of the evidence, that the expenses are valid, or that they are erroneous, or he may adjust them.
(e) 
Placement of lien.
If no hearing is requested, or a hearing is held and the expenses are determined to be valid or are otherwise appropriately adjusted, and the owner fails or refuses to pay the expenses within 30 days after the written notification to pay, the mayor or his designated representative shall place a lien against the property by filing with the county clerk of the county in which the property is located a notice of lien and statement of expenses incurred. The lien shall state the name of the property owner if known, and contain the legal description of the property.
(f) 
Lien is security for expenses and interest.
The lien is security for the expenses and interest accruing at the rate of 10% per annum from the date the work was performed or the expenses were incurred by the city.
(g) 
Priority of lien.
When the statement is filed, the city shall have a privileged lien on that property, second only to tax liens and liens for street improvements.
(h) 
Suit to recover expenses; foreclosure of lien.
The city may institute suit to recover the expenses, with interest, and may foreclose on the property. The original or a certified copy of the statement of expenses is prima facie proof of the expenses incurred by the city in doing the work or making the improvements.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (13), adopted 10/20/05)
(a) 
Authority.
The city may abate, without prior notice, weeds that have grown higher than 48 inches and are an immediate danger to the health, life, or safety of any person.
(b) 
Notice.
Not later than the 10th day after the date the city abates weeds under this section, the city shall give notice to the property owner in the same manner provided in section 8.04.014 of this article.
(c) 
Hearing.
The mayor or his designated representative shall conduct an administrative hearing under this section if, not later than the 30th day after the date of the abatement of the weeds, the property owner files with the city a written request for a hearing. The hearing shall be conducted by the mayor or his designated representative not later than the 20th day after the date a request for hearing is filed. At the hearing:
(1) 
The owner and the city may testify or present witnesses or written information related to the city’s abatement of the nuisance.
(2) 
The city has the burden to show that a violation of this article existed, notice was given in substantial compliance with this article, and expenses incurred to abate the violation were reasonable.
(3) 
The mayor or his designated representative may approve the expenses, deny the expenses, or adjust the amount of the expenses and approve them as adjusted.
(d) 
Placement of lien.
If no hearing is required, or a hearing is held and the expenses are determined to be valid or otherwise appropriately adjusted and the owner refuses to pay the expenses within 30 days after written notification to pay, the mayor or his designated representative shall place a lien against the property by filing with the county clerk of the county in which the property is located a notice of lien and statement of expenses incurred. The lien shall state the name of the property owner if known, and contain the legal description of the property.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (14), adopted 10/20/05)
Whenever necessary to make an inspection to enforce any of the provisions of this article or whenever the public works director has reasonable cause to believe that there exists in any building or upon any premises any condition or violation which makes such building or premises unsafe, dangerous or hazardous, the public works director may enter such building or premises at all reasonable times to inspect the same or to perform any duty imposed upon the public works director by this article. If such building or premises is occupied, he shall first present proper credentials and request entry, and if such building or premises is unoccupied, he shall first make a reasonable effort to locate the owner or other persons having charge or control of the building or premises and request entry. If such entry is refused, the mayor shall have recourse to every remedy provided by law to secure entry.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (15), adopted 10/20/05)
A person who owns any lot, tract or parcel of land or portion thereof within the city shall not permit grass, weeds, brush, or any plant that is not cultivated to grow to a height greater than ten (10) inches on an average, in, along, upon, or across the sidewalk or street adjacent to the same in the area between the property line and the curbline or within the area 10 feet beyond the property line. In areas where the property is separated from the right-of-way by a screening device, the property owner shall maintain both sides of the right-of-way up to the screening device.
(Ordinance A-290, sec. 1 (16), adopted 10/20/05; Ordinance adopting Code)