[Amended 9-12-2016]
(a)
It is
hereby found and declared that there exists within the town of Southbridge
numerous real properties which are in a blighted condition. Many of
these properties are essentially abandoned. Some are in violation
of multiple aspects of state and local building and sanitary codes.
These code violations may include, but are not limited to, unoccupied
buildings susceptible to vandalism and/or open structures rendering
them unsafe and dangerous, yards full of litter and trash, unsecured
houses, unshoveled snow and foliage rendering sidewalks impassable.
(b)
The
existence of such blight contributes to the decline of town neighborhoods.
It is further found that the existence of such blighted properties
encourages temporary occupancy, if abandoned, by transients, drug
users and persons engaged in criminal activity, adversely affecting
the economic wellbeing of the town of Southbridge and the health,
safety and wellbeing of Southbridge’s residents and creates
significant costs to Southbridge by virtue of the need for constant
monitoring and frequent boarding and securing.
(c)
It is
further found that many of the blighted properties can be rehabilitated,
reconstructed, demolished and/or reused so as to provide decent, safe,
sanitary housing or commercial facilities, and that such rehabilitation,
reconstruction, demolition and/or reuse would eliminate, remedy and/or
prevent the adverse conditions described above.
(d)
It is
the intent of this section to protect and preserve public health,
safety, security and wellbeing of occupants, abutters and neighborhoods
by:
[Amended 9-12-2016]
When used in this chapter, unless a contrary intention clearly
appears, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
(a)
BLIGHTED
PREMISES or BLIGHTED PROPERTY(IES) or the condition of BLIGHT —
Involving real property in the town of Southbridge shall mean any
building, structure, parcel of land, or any part of a building or
structure that is a separate unit, whether commercial or residential,
whether occupied or unoccupied, in which at least one (1) of the following
conditions exists:
(1)
The
property is not being adequately maintained and secured as documented
by the enforcement officer (as the term is defined herein) based upon,
without limitation, the following factors or similar factors: missing
or boarded windows or doors; collapsing or missing walls, roofs or
floors; siding that is seriously damaged or missing; fire damage;
a foundation that is structurally faulty; other structural deficiencies
that contribute to blight as determined by the enforcement officer
or his/her agents; the accumulation outside of interior furniture,
garbage, trash, and/or junk; and/or the existence of inoperable/neglected
motor vehicles, boats, motorcycles or other inoperable machinery or
other refuse (unless otherwise licensed to do so);
(2)
The
property or its owner(s) has/have been cited for violations as documented
by an enforcement officer or his/her designated agents, and said violations
have not been corrected;
(3)
The
property is a fire hazard as documented by the fire department;
(4)
Because
of fire, wind or other natural disaster, or because of physical deterioration,
the property is no longer habitable as a dwelling or useful for the
purpose for which the completed structure was originally intended;
(5)
The
property is a vacant building as defined hereunder; or
(6)
It
is determined by an enforcement officer or his/her designated agents
that the building, structure or parcel of land is in a condition which
poses a serious nuisance or serious threat to safety, health, and/or
wellbeing of the town of Southbridge.
(b)
BOARD
OF HEALTH — Shall mean the board as defined and designated by
the town’s governance documents.
(c)
BUILDING
— Shall mean a structure having a roof supported by columns
or walls, resting on its own foundations and designed for shelter,
housing or enclosure of persons, animals or property of any kind.
(d)
COSTS
— Shall mean any and all expenses paid or incurred by the town
for work done or efforts expended in furtherance of carrying out the
intent and directives of this By-law including but not limited to
all technical, administrative, and/or professional fees, and all court
costs and attorney fees for all efforts to carry out this by-law.
(e)
INOPERABLE/NEGLECTED
MOTOR VEHICLE — Shall mean a motor vehicle, whether registered
or not, that remains in condition of disrepair or partially dismantled
with no progress toward restoration; or a vehicle showing neglect
by invasion of foliage, rodent nesting, or progressive deterioration
or other condition attributable to neglect.
(f)
INSPECTOR
OF BUILDINGS — Shall mean the director of the inspections department
as well as the electrical inspector, the plumbing inspector, and/or
the gas inspector, whether they are permanent or temporary in their
service.
(g)
ENFORCEMENT
OFFICER — Shall mean the inspector of buildings, director of
public health, police chief, fire chief and/or their designated agents.
(h)
LOCAL
AGENT — Shall mean an agent located within thirty (30) driving
miles distance of the property in question.
(i)
OWNER
— Shall mean any individual, business entity, voluntary association
or nonprofit organization, which alone or jointly or severally with
others:
(1)
Has
legal title to any building, structure, and property, or
(2)
Has
care, charge, or control of any such building, structure or property
in any capacity, including but not limited to agent, executor, executrix,
administrator, administratrix, trustee or guardian of the estate of
the holder of legal title, or
(3)
Is
a lessee under a written agreement, or
(4)
Is
an agent, trustee, or other person appointed by the courts and vested
with possession or control of such building, structure or property.
(j)
PROPERTY
— Shall mean any real residential, commercial, or industrial
property or portion thereof, located in the town of Southbridge, including
buildings or structures situated on the property. For purposes of
this section, “property” does not include property owned
or subject to the control of the town of Southbridge or any of its
governmental bodies.
(k)
RECEIVER
— Shall mean a court appointed individual who serves as a general
contractor and whose duties and powers shall be specified by the court
in accordance with the provisions of MGL c. 111 sec 127I.
(l)
SECURING
MEASURES — Shall mean any actions that are taken to prevent
unauthorized persons access to the property including but not limited
to erecting fencing around the property, boarding up doors and windows
and the like.
(m)
TOWN
— Shall mean the town of Southbridge.
(n)
VACANT
— Shall mean either:
(1)
Any
unoccupied real property which is empty or remains empty due to abandonment
or is not continuously maintained; or which persistently or repeatedly
becomes unprotected or unsecured; or which has become occupied by
unauthorized persons or which displays conditions of blight.
(2)
Any
unoccupied building, structure or property displaying conditions of
blight.
[Amended 9-12-2016]
(a)
Creating
a Condition of Blight. It shall be a violation of this by-law for
any owner of a property, vacant or otherwise, in the town of Southbridge,
to allow or cause to be created intentionally, or through neglect
to take corrective action, any condition of blight on that property
or condition of blight caused by that property on any abutting properties.
(b)
Correction
of Blighted Conditions. The owner(s) of such blighted property shall
correct any condition of blight on such property or its appurtenance(s).
[Amended 9-12-2016]
(a)
Inspection
Authority. In order to properly protect the health and wellbeing of
the people and the emergency responders of the town of Southbridge,
enforcement officer(s) or their authorized agent(s) or representative(s),
upon reasonable cause, are authorized to enter, examine, and/or survey
at any reasonable time such places as they consider necessary.
(b)
Investigation.
The enforcement officer(s) may undertake an investigation of any alleged
violation of this section upon their own initiative or shall, upon
receipt of a complaint from any individual, civic organization or
other governmental agency, undertake an investigation of the alleged
violation.
(c)
Orders
to Take Corrective Action. Upon a finding of a violation of the provisions
of this section the enforcement officer shall serve notice of the
violation and an order to correct such violation upon the owner(s)
of the property by certified mail or by in hand service by a person
authorized to do such. The order shall require the owner(s) to take
one or more of the following actions to bring the property into compliance
with the requirements of this by-law:
(1)
To
take any action that the enforcement officer deems necessary to correct
the violations of this by-law in order to assist the town of Southbridge
in protecting the public health, safety and the wellbeing;
(2)
To
correct the violation within seven days or within such time as the
enforcement officer deems reasonable and necessary; or
(3)
In
instances where permits or other authorizations are required, to file
a completed application and any required plans for said permit for
repair or rehabilitation along with a schedule indicating a completion
date for such work or its various phases. Such schedule shall be approved
by the enforcement officer.
(d)
Right
of the Town to Effect Repairs. Whenever a property owner fails, neglects,
or refuses to make repairs or take other corrective actions specified
in the order, the town officials may undertake such repairs or actions;
or the town may seek a court appointed receiver to manage the property
and bring said property into compliance with all applicable statutes,
regulations and codes; or take other action the town official or enforcement
officer determines is necessary when, in his or her judgment, a failure
to make the necessary repairs or corrective actions will endanger
the public health, safety and wellbeing.
(e)
Recovery
of Costs. Notice of the intention of the town to make such repairs
or other corrective actions shall be served on the owner(s) by certified
mail or by service in hand by a person duly authorized to do such.
When the repairs are made or other corrective actions are taken
by the town of Southbridge, the cost of such repairs (which “costs”
are understood to include all technical, administrative, and/or professional
fees to accomplish these repairs and/or corrective actions) plus any
and all court costs and attorney fees for administration, processing,
and/or prosecution of the collection of these costs shall constitute
a debt in favor of the town against the owner(s) of the repaired property.
In the event that the owner(s) fails, neglects or refuses to pay the
town the amount of the debt within thirty (30) days of the receipt
of the notice of the debt, the town may place a lien on the property
for such debt and/or may initiate a civil action against the owner
in a court of competent jurisdiction to recover the debt.
(f)
Multiple
Remedies. The enforcement remedies provided in this chapter are not
intended to replace or supersede the following remedies already existing
under current law but are to be available in addition to these existing
remedies to better address and confront the dire community problem
of blighted properties:
(1)
Receivership
(MGL c. 111, sec 127I).
(2)
Municipal
Charges Lien (MGL c. 40, sec 58).
(3)
Noncriminal
Disposition of By-Law Violation (MGL c. 40, sec 21D).
(4)
Removal
and Abatement of Public Nuisances (MGL c. 111, sec 122 – 125).
(5)
Demolition
Liens for Common Nuisances (MGL c. 139, sec 3A).
(6)
Remedies
provided by State Sanitary Code and State Building Code.
[Amended 9-12-2016]
(a)
Right
to Hearing. Any person or persons upon whom any order has been served
pursuant to any section of this by-law, and who is aggrieved by said
order, may appeal to the board of health provided, such petition must
be filed in writing within seven days after the day the order was
served.
(b)
Hearing
Notice. Upon receipt of a petition the board of health shall in writing
inform the petitioner and other affected parties (affected parties
shall include the occupants of all affected premises if the petitioner
is an owner, and the owner if the petitioner is an occupant) of the
date, time and place of the hearing and of their right to inspect
and copy the enforcement officer’s file and other public records
concerning the matter to be heard.
(c)
Appeal
of Final Decisions. Any person aggrieved by the final decision of
the board of health with respect to any order issued under the provisions
of this by-law may seek relief therefrom in any court of competent
jurisdiction, as provided by the laws of this commonwealth.
[Amended 9-12-2016]
(a)
Registration.
(1)
Within
thirty (30) days of a building becoming vacant, and each January 1st
thereafter, each owner of such vacant building shall register said
property with the town of Southbridge’s director of building
inspections. All registrations must state the owner’s name,
mailing address, physical address if different, telephone number and
email address if the individual has an email address.
(2)
If
none of the owner(s) are at an address within the commonwealth of
Massachusetts, or within thirty (30) miles of Southbridge, the registration
shall also include the name, address, phone number and email address
of a responsible local agent for purposes of securing and maintaining
the property, for the purposes of notification in the event of an
emergency affecting the public health, safety and wellbeing, and for
service of any and all notices issued pursuant to this by-law.
(3)
The
failure to timely register a vacant building shall be a violation
of this by-law. Within the context of this chapter, “timely” shall mean registration no later than thirty (30) days after a building
becomes vacant.
(b)
Registration
Fees.
(1)
An
annual registration fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00) must accompany
the registration form. The fee and registration are for the calendar
year, or remaining portion of the calendar year in which the registration
was initially required. Subsequent registration and fees are due on
or prior to January 1st of each year.
(2)
Failure
to timely register any vacant real property shall be a violation of
this by-law and a fee shall be imposed as a municipal charges lien
on the property in accordance with MGL c. 40 sec 58.
(c)
Maintenance
Requirements.
(1)
Properties
subject to this section shall comply with the current edition of 780
CMR: The Massachusetts State Building Code and shall be maintained
in accordance with all applicable State Sanitary Codes, Building Codes
and local regulations;
(2)
The
property must contain a posting with the name and 24-hour contact
phone number of the local owner or local agent responsible for the
maintenance. This sign must be posted at the front of the property
and must be legible and clearly visible from the public way and/or
street.
(d)
Once
the property is no longer vacant or is sold, the owner must provide
proof of sale or written notice of occupancy to the director of building
inspections.
[Amended 9-12-2016]
This section shall be enforced by the enforcement officer, the
director of building inspections, the director of the board of health/health
inspector, the police chief, the fire chief and/or their designated
agents.
Upon failure to comply with any order issued under this section,
the town may, in addition to other penalties and actions:
(a)
Bring
civil or legal action against the owner to require compliance with
the order including but not limited to seeking a court approved receiver
for the property in violation.
(b)
Issue
fines whereby each separate offense of this section may be punishable
by a fine of:
(1)
First
offense: $100.00 daily for each day the violation exists,
(2)
Second
offense: $150.00 daily for each day the violation exists,
(3)
Third
offense and each subsequent offense: $200.00 daily for each day the
violation exists.
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Any fines issued in any action to enforce this by-law shall
be instituted and enforced in accordance with Massachusetts General
Law (MGL) c. 40 sec 21D.
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(c)
Undertake
any other actions legally applicable in enforcing any other laws,
codes, regulations or by-laws. The imposition of any enforcement of
any section of this By-law shall not be construed to prevent the enforcement
of other laws upon the owner(s) and/or the premises nor prevent the
initiation of other enforcement measures or penalties. Failure to
pay any fine arising from the enforcement of this chapter shall constitute
a debt in favor of the town. The town may place a lien on the property
for such debt and/or initiate a civil action against the owner(s)
in a court of competent jurisdiction to recover the debt. In addition
to this debt amount, “costs” as defined in the definition
section of the chapter shall be added to the debt to comprise the
total lien amount.
[Amended 9-12-2016]
If any provision of this section is held to be invalid by a
court of competent jurisdiction, then such provision shall be considered
separately and apart from the remaining provisions, which shall remain
in full force and effect.
The provisions of this section are effective immediately upon
passage and all provisions shall be enforced immediately.
All by-laws or parts of by-laws inconsistent herewith are hereby
repealed.
