The city has a history and reputation for well-kept properties; and property values and the general welfare of the community are founded, in part, upon the appearance and maintenance of private properties. The purpose of this chapter is to promote the health, safety, economic, aesthetic and general welfare of the citizens of the city, and to protect neighborhoods against nuisances, blight and deterioration by establishing requirements for all building exteriors, whether residential or nonresidential, or structures of whatever kind, and establishing requirements for the maintenance of all land, whether improved or vacant.
Owners and occupants of some properties within the city permit conditions to exist which are below the minimum conditions required by Title 8 and Title 17 of this code and therefore injurious and inimical to the public health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the city and contribute substantially and increasingly to the deterioration of residential neighborhoods and commercial areas.
The abatement of certain uses and abuses of property as described in this chapter reasonably relates to the proper exercise of police power to protect the health, safety, and general welfare of the public.
Abatement of conditions less than those required by Title 8 and Title 17 of this code will promote health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the city because maximum use and enjoyment of property in close proximity to another depends upon maintenance of both properties.
This chapter shall apply to all buildings, structures and lands within the city without regard to use, date of construction or alterations.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
"Board"
means the appeals hearing board of the city of Waterford as set by resolution of the city council.
"Building/structure"
means and includes, but is not limited to, any house, garage, carport, duplex, apartment, condominium, mobile home, storage shed, any commercial establishment, warehouse, fence, wall or other structures affixed to or upon real property, or any assemblage of materials on private property of another for the purpose of human habitation.
"City"
means the area within the territorial city limits of the city of Waterford and all territory outside of the city over which the city has jurisdiction by virtue of any constitutional provisions, or any ordinance or law.
"City manager"
means the manager of the city, or any person or persons designated by the city manager to act in his or her stead in connection with this chapter.
"Director"
means the director of public works or any officer which is now or may in the future be charged with the enforcement of this code.
"Enforcement officer"
means any city employee designated by the city manager to enforce the provisions of this code. Such employees may be employed in any city department.
"Person"
means any natural person, firm, association, business, or organization, corporation, partnership, trust, estate, or any other legal entity recognized by law as the subject of legal rights or duties.
"Property"
means any parcel of land which is identified in the secured roll of the Stanislaus County assessor, all residential, commercial and other real property, including, but not limited to, front yards, side yards, backyards, driveways, walkways, alleys, sidewalks, and shall include any building or structure whether fixed or moveable, located on such property.
"Property owner"
means the record owner of real property as listed in the most current equalized assessment role as maintained by the Stanislaus County assessor.
"Responsible party"
means any occupant, lessor, lessee, administrator, licensee, or other person having control over a structure or parcel of land. A responsible party may be a property owner.
"Violation"
means a violation of Title 8 or Title 17 of this code by any property owner or any responsible party.
"Visual blight"
means any unreasonably or unlawful condition or use of premises or of a building exterior which by reason of its appearance as viewed at ground level from the public right-of-way or from neighboring premises, is detrimental to the surrounding area and the property of others, or is detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of individuals residing within the community.
(Ord. 05-02 §1; Ord. 2014-13 §1)
A. 
In addition to any other remedy provided by this code, any provision of this chapter may be enforced by injunction issued by the Superior Court upon a suit brought by the city.
B. 
As part of a civil action filed to enforce provisions of this chapter, a court may assess a maximum civil penalty of two thousand five hundred dollars per violation of this chapter for each day during which any person commits, continues, allows or maintains a violation of any provision of this chapter.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
A. 
It is unlawful for any person to violate any provision or to fail to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter. A violation of any of the provisions or failing to comply with any of the mandatory requirements of this chapter shall constitute a misdemeanor; except that notwithstanding any other provision of this code, any such violation constituting a misdemeanor under this code may, in the discretion of the city attorney, be charged and prosecuted as an infraction. Any person convicted of a misdemeanor under the provisions of this chapter, unless provision is otherwise herein made, shall be punishable by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than six months or by both fine and imprisonment. Any person convicted of an infraction under the provisions of this code, unless provision is otherwise herein made, shall be punishable by a fine only as follows: Upon a first conviction, by a fine of not exceeding two hundred fifty dollars and for a second conviction or any subsequent conviction within a period of one year, by a fine of not exceeding five hundred dollars.
B. 
Each such person shall be charged with a separate offense for each and every day during any portion of which any violation of any provision of this code is committed, continued or permitted by such person and shall, upon conviction, be punished accordingly.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
Title 1, Chapter 1.14, of this code established the administrative enforcement of remedies for violations of this code and applicable state codes. The general remedies include administrative abatement, summary abatement, civil penalties, administrative citations, recordation of notices of violation and mediation. The city may pursue any of these administrative remedies for violations of this chapter.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this chapter is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by the decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this chapter. The city council declares that it would have adopted such section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion thereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, phrases or portions be declared invalid or unconstitutional.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
A public nuisance consists of doing any act, or permitting or allowing any condition or thing to exist, occur, or accumulate upon any property within the city that is injurious to health, 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 and endangers the health or safety of others.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
The city may: (A) declare that a public nuisance exists whenever any member of the public creates, causes, commits, permits or maintains any condition or performs or causes to be performed any activity that falls within the scope of the definition of "public nuisance" as set forth in Sections 17910 through 17995.5 of the California Health and Safety Code; and (B) commence any action or proceeding set forth therein to abate the public nuisance, to pursue all other remedies against the violator, to seek the imposition of all penalties against the violator and to recover any and all costs from the violator.
(Ord. 2016-04 §3)
It is unlawful and constitutes a public nuisance for any responsible party or owner of any property in the city to fail to install, or to fail to use, reasonable security measures to prevent unauthorized entry into any vacant or uninhabited building upon such property. Except when the owner or responsible party is personally upon the property, all exterior openings, such as doors and windows, affording entry into any building upon such property shall be reasonably secured against unauthorized entry into such building.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
The council finds that neglected, vacant buildings are a major cause of blight in residential and nonresidential neighborhoods. Vacant buildings often attract transients and criminals, including drug users and prostitutes. Use of vacant buildings by transients and criminals, who may employ primitive cooking or heating methods, creates a risk of fire for the vacant building and adjacent properties. Vacant properties are often used as dumping grounds for drug paraphernalia, furniture, tires, garbage, junk and debris and are often overgrown with weeds and grass creating a wide variety of health and safety concerns. In addition, vacant buildings which are simply boarded up for long periods of time with plywood or other materials to prevent entry by transients or vandals very often discourage economic development, disrupting neighborhood stability, retarding appreciation of property values and promote visual blight conditions, all of which interfere with the rights of neighboring property owners and occupants to the full use and enjoyment of their property.
The city currently expends resources monitoring and responding to vacant buildings, because of the numerous health, welfare, safety and economic problems caused by neglected, vacant buildings. There is already a substantial cost to the city for monitoring neglected, vacant buildings (whether or not those buildings are boarded up) as well as substantial toll on the citizens who are affected by the nuisance conditions created, therefore the city council finds there is an urgent need to refine the process by which these buildings are monitored and remediated.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
Boarded buildings are a major cause and source of crime and blight in both residential and nonresidential neighborhoods. In addition, vacant buildings which are boarded and unkept, and which are vacant for long periods of time, discourage economic development and retard appreciation of property values.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
For the purposes of this chapter, the term "vacant building" means an unoccupied or an illegally occupied structure or an occupied structure without adequate facilities/utilities.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
For the purposes of this chapter, the term "boarded building" means an unoccupied building some or all of whose doors and windows and other openings have been covered with plywood or other material for the purpose of preventing entry into the building.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
Every owner or responsible person shall maintain their vacant or boarded building in accordance with all of the requirements set forth herein. Failure to do so constitutes a violation of this code and a public nuisance.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
All windows, doors and openings shall be secured as per the board up specifications maintained by the city's community development department. Secured window or door openings on an unoccupied structure require polycarbonate material securement specifications on all openings. Other like materials may be acceptable subject to staff's discretion. Existing unoccupied structures shall comply with specifications within thirty days' notice, unless additional time is granted by the building official or designee.
(Ord. 05-02 §1; Ord. 2015-05 §1)
No responsible party shall allow a building to stand vacant for more than sixty days, unless one of the following applies:
A. 
The building is the subject of an active building permit and the owner is progressing diligently to repair the premises for occupancy;
B. 
The building meets all applicable codes in existence at either the time of its construction or at the time of its alteration or modification and is actively being offered for sale, lease, or rent;
C. 
The building is being maintained in a safe and orderly manner and does not contribute to blight conditions;
D. 
Maintenance in a safe and orderly manner shall include:
1. 
Maintenance of any landscaping and plant materials in good condition;
2. 
Maintenance of the exterior of the building, including, but not limited to, paint and finishes, in good condition;
3. 
Regular removal of all exterior trash, debris and graffiti; and
4. 
Maintenance of the building in continuing compliance with all applicable codes and regulations.
(Ord. 05-02 §1)
A. 
Fee Imposed. There is hereby imposed upon every owner of a vacant building an annual vacant building monitoring fee in an amount to be set by resolution of the city council. The fee shall not exceed the estimated reasonable cost of monitoring the vacant building. The fee shall be payable as to any building, residential or nonresidential, which:
1. 
Is boarded up by voluntary action of the owner or as the result of enforcement activities by the city; or
2. 
Is vacant for more than sixty days for any reason.
B. 
Fee Waiver. The vacant building monitoring fee may be waived by the building official upon a showing by the owner that:
1. 
The owner has obtained a building permit and is progressing diligently to repair the premises for occupancy; or
2. 
The building meets all applicable codes and is actively being offered for sale, lease or rent; or
3. 
Imposition of the fee would impose a substantial economic hardship on the owner or would hinder the rehabilitation of the building.
C. 
Procedure.
1. 
The vacant building monitoring fee shall be billed to the owner of the property and mailed to the owner's address as set forth on the last equalized assessment roll of the county assessor.
2. 
Any owner billed may apply for a waiver on the grounds set forth in subsection B of this section by submitting a written statement of the grounds for the waiver, and the owner's daytime telephone number, to the building official within thirty days after the billing is mailed to the owner. The building official shall review the written statement and may contact the owner to discuss the application for waiver. The building official shall prepare a written decision which shall be mailed to the owner.
3. 
Any owner who disagrees with the decision of the building official may submit a written notice of appeal to the building official within thirty days of receipt of the decision. Failure to timely appeal the decision of the building official relating to a denial of a waiver constitutes a waiver of all rights to an administrative hearing and determination of the matter subject only to review pursuant to California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.5.
4. 
If the fee is not paid within sixty days after billing, or within sixty days after the decision of the building official or after the decision upon appeal by the owner becomes final, the fee may be specially assessed against the property involved and made a personal obligation of the owner. If the fee is to be specially assessed against the property, the board shall confirm the assessment and thereafter said assessment may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary real property taxes are collected and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as provided for ordinary real property taxes. All laws applicable to the levy, collection, and enforcement of real property taxes are applicable to the special assessment.
5. 
The board may also cause a notice of lien to be recorded. The notice shall, at a minimum, identify the record owner or possessor of the property, set forth the last known address of the record owner or possessor, a description of the real property subject to the lien, and the amount of the fee.
(Ord. 05-02 §1; Ord. 2014-13 §1)