The city council, by the adoption of this division, hereby provides
an administrative adjudicative process for enforcement of its ordinances
and codes.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
(a) The
building and standards commission is hereby established which shall
consist of five (5) members appointed by the city council as provided
in this division.
(b) The
commission shall have authority to enforce city ordinances:
(1) For 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) Relating to 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) Relating to dangerously damaged or deteriorated buildings or improvements;
(4) Relating to conditions caused by accumulation of refuse, vegetation,
or other matter that creates breeding and living places for insects
and rodents; and
(5) Relating to a building code or to the condition, use, or appearance
of property in the city.
(c) Appointment.
Members of the commission shall be appointed
by the city council. The commission shall be composed of five (5)
members and two (2) alternate members may be appointed. Appointments
shall be for terms of two years, except two of the first regular members
appointed shall be for a one-year term in order to provide future
staggered terms for the regular members.
(d) Meetings.
The commission shall hold its meetings on
the call of the chairman; at the request of the city council; or on
call of the official appointed by the commission to present matters
to the commission. All meetings shall be duly posted public meetings.
(e) Quorum.
At least three commissioners (regular or alternate)
shall be necessary to constitute a quorum.
(f) Chairman and vice-chairman.
A chairman shall be appointed
by the city council and a vice-chairman shall be selected by the members
of the commission. After the initial selection of chairman and vice-chairman,
such selection shall be conducted following the annual appointment
of new members.
(g) Secretary.
The commission shall appoint one of its members
to be secretary to the commission. The secretary shall keep a record
of the cases, activities, and actions of the commission and perform
such other duties as are consistent with or may be necessary for the
enforcement of this division, as required by the commission.
(h) Vote.
The concurring vote of a majority of those members
of the commission present and voting shall be necessary for the adoption
of any motion, the issuance of any order or the determination of the
amount and duration of any civil penalty.
(i) Rules and regulations.
The commission may adopt other
rules in accordance with this division and pursuant to subchapter
C, chapter 54, Local Government Code necessary to establish procedures
for use in hearings, providing ample opportunity for presentation
of testimony and evidence regarding charges brought by the municipality
or its building officials relating to alleged violations of ordinances.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
(a) Jurisdiction.
The building and standards commission
shall have authority to hear cases brought before it for violation
of city ordinances as provided herein.
(b) Authority and function.
The building and standards commission may, after hearing, in the enforcement of city ordinances described in section
1.05.062 to:
(1) Order the repair, within a fixed period, of a building found to be
in violation of the city ordinances.
(2) Declare a building substandard.
(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 a city ordinance, and order action
to be taken as necessary to remedy, alleviate, or remove any substandard
building found to exist.
(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 a civil penalty the city may
recover against the owner or owner’s representative with control
over the premises on proof that such party was actually notified of
the provisions of the ordinance, and after receiving notice of the
ordinance provisions, said party committed acts in violation of the
ordinance or failed to take action necessary for compliance with the
ordinance, such 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 nonpoint
source, into a sewer system, including a sanitary or stormwater sewer
system, owned or controlled by the city, all as provided by state
law.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
The city manager shall designate an official who shall present
all cases before the commission.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
(a) Notice
of all proceedings before the commission, as provided in this division,
must be given:
(1) By personal delivery, or by certified mail with return receipt requested,
to the record owners of the affected property as shown by the records
of the county clerk of the county in which the affected property is
located;
(2) To each holder of a recorded lien against the affected property,
as shown by the records in the office of the county clerk; and
(3) 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 practicable.
(b) The
notice must be must be posted and either personally delivered or mailed
on or before the 10th day before the hearing before the commission,
and must be published in the official newspaper on one occasion on
or before the tenth (10th) day fixed for the hearing.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
The commission shall keep minutes of its proceedings showing
the vote of each member on each question or the fact that a member
was absent or failed to vote. The commission shall keep records of
its examinations and other official actions. The minutes and records
shall be filed immediately in the office of the commission as public
records.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
A determination by the commission that 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.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
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. Thereafter, no other proof shall be required
for a district court to enter final judgment on the penalty and a
judgment lien may be issued.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
Any owner, lienholder, or mortgagee of record 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, and specifying the grounds of the
legality [illegality]. The petition must be presented to the court
within thirty (30) calendar days after the date a copy of the final
decision of the commission is mailed by first class mail, certified,
return receipt requested, to all persons to whom notice is required
to be sent. The commission shall mail such copy promptly after the
decision becomes final. In addition, an abbreviated copy of the order
shall be published one (1) time in the official newspaper of the city
within ten (10) 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. On presentation of the petition, the court may
allow a writ of certiorari pursuant to state law. 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.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)
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.
(Ordinance 08-47 adopted 8/11/08)