The city council, by this adoptive ordinance, hereby implements
Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, sections 54.031 through 54.044.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.20)
(a)
Creation; general authority.
The building and standards
commission is hereby established in accordance with the provisions
of Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, sections 54.031 through 54.044. The
commission is established to hear and determine cases concerning alleged
violations of the ordinances of the city relating to:
(1)
The preservation of public safety, relating to the materials or methods
used to construct a building or improvement, including the foundation,
structural elements, electrical wiring or apparatus, plumbing and
fixtures, entrances or exits;
(2)
The fire safety of a building or improvement, including provisions
relating to materials, types of construction or design, warning devices,
sprinklers or other fire suppression devices, availability of water
supply for extinguishing fires, or location, design or width of entrances
or exits;
(3)
Dangerously damaged or deteriorated buildings or improvements;
(4)
Conditions caused by accumulation of refuse, vegetation or other
matter that creates breeding and living places for insects and rodents;
and/or
(5)
A building code, or to the condition, use or appearance of property
in the city.
(b)
Composition, appointment and terms of members.
(1)
Members of the commission shall be comprised of the members of the
city's board of adjustment, and shall be appointed by the city council.
(2)
The commission shall be composed of five members, with two alternate
members, consistent with composition on the board of adjustment.
(3)
Appointments shall be for terms of two years, except any first appointment
may be for a one-year term in order to continue the staggered two-year
terms of the commission. Each member's term shall run concurrently
with such member's term on the board of adjustment, which shall begin
and end at the same time. A member may not serve more than two (2)
consecutive, full terms.
(d)
Quorum.
A majority of members of the commission shall
constitute a quorum, and a majority of the members of the commission
must hear a case.
(f)
Secretary.
The members of the commission may appoint
one of its members to be secretary to the commission, or the city
council may appoint a non-member to be secretary. The secretary shall
keep a record of the cases, activities and actions of the commission
and its determinations, give notice of the date and time of hearings
and perform such other duties as are consistent with or may be necessary
for the enforcement of this division, as required by the commission.
(g)
Required vote.
A majority vote of the members voting
on a matter shall be necessary to take any action on a matter before
the commission.
(h)
Adoption of other rules.
The commission may adopt other
rules, in accordance with this section and pursuant to Tex. Loc. Gov’t
Code, sections 54.031 through 54.044, necessary to establish procedures
for use in hearings, providing ample opportunity for presentation
of evidence and testimony by respondents or person opposing charges
brought by the municipality or its building officials relating to
alleged violations of ordinances.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.21; Ordinance 2019-25 adopted 8/13/19; Ordinance 2023-27 adopted 4/11/2023)
(b)
The
building and standards commission may:
(1)
Order the repair, within a fixed period, of a building found to be
in violation of a city ordinance;
(2)
Have the quasi-judicial authority authorized by state rule to enforce
the health and safety ordinances of the city;
(3)
Order, in an appropriate case, the immediate removal of persons or
property found on private property, enter on private property to secure
the removal if it is determined that conditions exist on the property
that constitute a violation of an ordinance, and order action to be
taken as necessary to remedy, alleviate or remove any existing substandard
building;
(4)
Issue orders or directives to any peace officer of the state, including
a sheriff or constable or the chief of police of the city, to enforce
and carry out the lawful orders or directives of the commission;
(5)
Determine the amount and duration of the civil penalty the city may
recover against the owner or owner’s representative with control
over the premises on proof that the party was actually notified of
the provisions of the ordinance and, after receiving notice of the
ordinance provisions, the party committed acts in violation of the
ordinance or failed to take action necessary for compliance with the
ordinance, the civil penalty not to exceed $1,000.00 a day for the
violation of an ordinance, except not to exceed $5,000.00 per day
for a violation of an ordinance relating to point source effluent
limitations or the discharge of a pollutant, other than from a non-point
source, into a sewer system, including a sanitary or stormwater sewer
system, owned or controlled by the city, all as provided by Tex. Loc.
Gov’t Code, section 54.017.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.22; Ordinance 2023-27 adopted 4/11/2023)
The city code enforcement officer or other person as may be
appointed by the city administrator shall present the cases coming
before the commission.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.23)
(a)
Notice
of all proceedings before the commission must be given by certified
mail, return receipt requested, to the record owner of the affected
property and each holder of a recorded lien against the affected property,
as shown by the records of the office of the county clerk in which
the affected property is located if the address of the lienholder
can be ascertained from the deed of trust establishing the lien or
other applicable instruments on file in the office of the county clerk;
and to all unknown owners, by posting a copy of the notice on the
front door of each improvement situated on the affected property or
as close to the front door as practical.
(b)
The
notice shall be mailed and posted before the tenth day before the
date of the hearing before the commission and must state the date,
time and place of the hearing.
(c)
In
addition, the notice must be published in the official newspaper of
the city on one occasion before the tenth day before the date fixed
for the hearing.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.24)
(a)
The
commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings showing the vote
of each member on each question or the fact that a member is absent
or fails to vote. The commission shall keep records of its examinations
and other official actions.
(b)
The
minutes and records shall be filed immediately in the office of the
commission as public records.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.25)
A determination by the commission which involves the establishment
of an amount and duration of a civil penalty shall be final and binding
and constitute prima facie evidence of the penalty in any court of
competent jurisdiction in a civil suit brought by the city for final
judgment in accordance with the established penalty.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.26)
(a)
The
city secretary shall file with the district clerk of the county in
which the municipality and property is located a certified copy of
the order of the commission establishing the amount and duration of
any civil penalty.
(b)
Thereafter,
pursuant to Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, sections 54.031 through 54.044,
no other proof shall be required for a district court to enter a final
judgment on the penalty. Also, pursuant to Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code,
section 54.040, an abstract of judgment lien may be issued.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.27)
(a)
(1)
Any persons jointly or severally aggrieved by any decision of the
commission may present a petition to a district court, duly verified,
setting forth that the decision is illegal, in whole or in part, specifying
the grounds of the legality [illegality]. The petition must be presented
to the court within 30 calendar days after the date a copy of the
final decision of the commission is mailed by first class mail, return
receipt requested, to all persons to whom notice is required to be
sent.
(2)
The commission shall mail the copy promptly after the decision becomes
final. In addition, a copy shall be published one time in the official
newspaper of the city within ten calendar days after the date of the
mailing of the copy, as herein provided, and a copy shall be filed
in the office of the city secretary.
(b)
On
presentation of the petition, the court may allow a writ of certiorari
pursuant to Tex. Loc. Gov’t Code, sections 54.031 through 54.044.
If no appeals are taken from the decision of the commission within
the required period, the decision of the commission shall, in all
things, be final and binding.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.28)
Action taken by the city under this division shall not affect
the ability of the city to proceed under the jurisdiction of the city’s
municipal court.
(2004 Code, sec. 31.29)
