(a) 
Findings. The City Council finds and declares as follows:
(1) 
Section 7 of Article XI of the California Constitution provides that a City may make and enforce within its limits all local police, sanitary, and other ordinances and regulations not in conflict with general laws.
(2) 
California Government Code Section 38771 provides that legislative bodies of Cities may declare what constitutes a nuisance.
(3) 
California Government Code Section 38772 et seq., further provides that legislative bodies of Cities may also provide for the summary abatement of any nuisance at the expense of the persons creating, causing, committing, or maintaining it and by ordinance may make the expense of abatement of nuisances a lien against the property on which the nuisance is maintained and a personal obligation against the property owner.
(4) 
Nuisance conditions are offensive or annoying to the senses, detrimental to property values and community appearance, an obstruction or interference with the comfortable enjoyment of adjacent properties or premises (both public and private) and/or are hazardous or injurious to the health, safety, or welfare of the general public.
(5) 
Pursuant to the authority provided by California Vehicle Code Section 22660, the City Council further finds that the accumulation and storage of abandoned, wrecked, dismantled, or inoperative vehicles, or parts thereof, on private or public property, not including highways, is hereby found to create a condition tending to reduce the value of private property, to promote blight and deterioration, to invite plundering, to create fire hazards, to constitute an attractive nuisance creating a hazard to the health and safety of minors, to create a harborage for rodents and insects, and to be injurious to the health, safety, and general welfare.
(b) 
Purpose and Intent. The purpose and intent of this chapter are as follows:
(1) 
To define as public nuisances and violations those conditions and uses of land that are offensive or annoying to the senses, detrimental to property values and community appearance, an obstruction or interference with the comfortable enjoyment of adjacent properties or premises (both public and private), and/or are hazardous or injurious to the health, safety, or welfare of the general public.
(2) 
To develop regulations that will promote the sound maintenance of property and enhance conditions of appearance, habitability, occupancy, use and safety of all structures and premises in the City.
(3) 
To establish administrative procedures for the City's use, upon its election, to, correct or abate violations of this chapter on real property throughout the City.
This chapter is not intended to be applied, construed or given effect in a manner that imposes upon the City, or upon any officer or employee thereof, any duty towards persons or property within the City or outside of the City that creates a basis for civil liability for damages, except as otherwise imposed by law.
(Ord. 10-754, § 1)
As used in this chapter, the following definitions shall apply. For purposes of this chapter, these definitions shall supersede any other definitions of the same terms elsewhere in this Code.
"Abandoned personal property"
means and refers to any item, object, thing, material or substance that, by its condition of damage, deterioration, disrepair, nonuse, obsolescence or location on public real property or on private real property, causes a reasonable person to conclude that the owner has permanently relinquished all right, title, claim and possession thereto, or that the object, thing, material or substance cannot be used for its intended or designed purpose. Abandoned personal property may include junk and vehicles.
"Abatement costs"
means all costs, fees, and expenses, incidental or otherwise, incurred by the City in investigating and abating a public nuisance.
"Attractive nuisance"
means any condition, device, equipment, instrument, item or machine that is unsafe, unprotected and may prove detrimental to minors whether in a structure or in outdoor areas of developed or undeveloped real property. This includes, without limitation: any abandoned or open and accessible wells, shafts, basements or excavations; any abandoned refrigerators and abandoned or inoperable motor vehicles; any structurally unsound fences or structures; or, any lumber, trash, fences, debris or vegetation which may prove hazardous or dangerous to inquisitive minors. An attractive nuisance shall also include pools, standing water or excavations containing water, that are unfenced or otherwise lack an adequate barrier thereby creating a risk of drowning, or which are hazardous or unsafe due to the existence of any condition rendering such water to be clouded, unclear or injurious to health due to, without limitation, any of the following: bacterial growth, infectious or toxic agents, algae, insect remains, animal remains, rubbish, refuse, debris, or waste of any kind.
"Building"
means any structure designed, used, or maintained for the shelter or enclosure of persons, animals, chattels, equipment, or property of any kind, and shall also include structures wherein things may be grown, made, produced, kept, handled, stored, or disposed of, and all appendages, accessories, apparatus, appliances, and equipment installed as a part thereof.
"City"
means the City of Artesia.
"City manager"
means the City Manager or duly authorized representative(s).
"City personnel"
means any City employee, representative, agent or contractor designated by the City Manager to abate a public nuisance.
"Code, codes, and municipal code"
mean the Artesia Municipal Code and any code, law, or regulation incorporated therein by reference and any adopted and uncodified ordinances.
"Code enforcement fees"
means fees imposed by the City to defray its costs of code enforcement actions including, but not limited to, the time and other resources of public officials expended by them in identifying, inspecting, investigating, seeking or causing the abatement of a violation at a residential structure or property. These include, but are not limited to, site inspections, drafting reports, taking photographs, procuring other evidence, engaging in meetings, conferences and communications with responsible persons, their agents or representatives, concerning a violation, as well as with attorneys for the City at any time, and appearances before judicial officers or reviewing authorities during the pendency of a judicial proceeding and other appearances at such judicial or administrative hearings. The time and resources that public officials further expend to confirm that a residential structure remains free of public nuisances while a responsible person is on probation to a court or when a matter concerning a residential structure remains pending before a reviewing authority in an administrative action, shall also constitute code enforcement actions. For purposes of this definition:
(1) 
Residential structure and property
means and includes all structures and premises that are regulated by the California State Housing Law (California Health and Safety Code, Division 13, Part 1.5, Section 17910 et seq.) and any future amendments thereto, as well as any property within a residential zone as designated by the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia. These include, but are not limited to, apartment houses, hotels, motels, and dwellings, and residential building and structures thereto.
(2) 
Violation
means and includes a public nuisance as described in this chapter, or any condition, activity, or use that is caused, allowed to exist, or maintained (whether due to an affirmative act, inaction, or omission) by a responsible person in violation of any other provision, regulation, or requirement of this Code, or any applicable County, State, or Federal laws or regulations.
"Code enforcement officer"
means any individual employed by the City with primary enforcement authority for City Codes, or duly authorized representative(s).
"Compliance period"
means the period of time and/or required schedule set forth in a notice of abatement and/or an order of abatement within which all nuisance abatement actions referenced in such notice of abatement and/or order of abatement must be completed.
"Controlled substances"
means any substance that is declared by State or Federal law to be a controlled substance.
"Fire hazard"
shall include, but shall not be limited to, any device equipment, waste, vegetation condition, thing or act which is in such a condition that it increases or could cause an increase of the hazard or menace of fire to a greater degree than that customarily recognized as normal by persons in the public service regularly engaged in preventing, suppressing or extinguishing fire or that otherwise provides a ready fuel to augment the spread and intensity of fire or explosion arising from any cause or any device equipment waste vegetation condition, thing or act which could obstruct delay hinder, or interfere with or may become the cause of obstruction delay, or hindrance of the operations of the Fire Department or other emergency service personnel or the egress of the occupants in the event of fire.
"Hazardous materials"
means any material or substance of any kind that is declared by any Federal, State, or local law, ordinance, or regulation to be composed of hazardous material.
"Hearing officer"
means the City employee or representative appointed by the City Manager, or a designee thereof, to hear all timely appeals from a notice of abatement.
"Highway"
means a way or place of whatever nature, publicly maintained and open to the use of the public for the purposes of vehicular traffic, including a street and including publicly maintained areas that are designed, reserved or use for pedestrian traffic.
"Incidental expenses"
shall include, but shall not be limited to, the actual expenses and costs of the City, such as preparation of notices, specifications, contracts, inspection of work, costs of printing and mailings required hereunder, costs of any filing and/or recordation with the County Recorder's Office or other governmental agency, and the costs of administration and legal services.
"Inoperable vehicle"
means and includes, without limitation, any vehicle that is incapable of being lawfully driven on a highway. Factors that may be used to determine this condition include, without limitation, vehicles that have a "planned non-operational" status with the California Department of Motor Vehicles, vehicles lacking a current registration, a working engine, transmission, wheels, inflated tires, doors, windshield or any other part or equipment necessary for its legal and safe operation on a highway or any other public right-of-way.
"Junk"
means and includes, but is not limited to, any cast-off, damaged, discarded, junked, obsolete, salvaged, scrapped, unusable, worn-out or wrecked appliance, device, equipment, furniture, fixture, furnishing, object, material, substance, tire, or thing of any kind or composition. Junk may include abandoned personal property, as well as any form of debris, refuse, rubbish, trash or waste. Factors that may be considered in a determination that personal property is junk include, without limitation, its:
(1) 
Condition of damage, deterioration, disrepair or nonuse.
(2) 
Approximate age and degree of obsolescence.
(3) 
Location.
(4) 
Present operability, functional utility and status of registration or licensing, where applicable.
(5) 
Cost of rehabilitation or repair versus its market value.
"Junkyard"
means real property of any zoning classification on which junk is kept, maintained, placed or stored to such a degree that it constitutes a principal use or condition on said premises. The existence of a junkyard is not a nuisance when it is an expressly permitted use in the applicable zone and it is in full compliance with all provisions of the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia and all other applicable provisions of the Artesia Municipal Code, as well as all future amendments and additions thereto.
"Notice of abatement"
means a "notice of public nuisance and intention to abate with City personnel," as described in Section 5-1.07 of this chapter.
"Order of abatement"
means an order issued by a hearing officer following an appeal of a notice of abatement.
"Owner"
means and includes any person having legal title to, or who leases, rents, occupies or has charge, control or possession of, any real property in the City, including all persons shown as owners on the last equalized assessment roll of the Los Angeles County Assessor's Office. Owners include persons with powers of attorney, executors of estates, trustees, or who are court appointed administrators, conservators, guardians or receivers. An owner of personal property shall be any person who has legal title, charge, control, or possession of such property.
"Owner of vehicle"
means the last registered owner and legal owner of record of a vehicle.
"Person"
means and includes any individual, partnership of any kind, corporation, limited liability company, association, joint venture or other organization, however formed, as well as trustees, heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns, or any combination of such persons. "Person" also includes any public entity or agency that acts as an owner in the City.
"Personal property"
means property that is not real property, and includes, without limitation, any appliance, article, device, equipment, item, material, product, substance or vehicle.
"Public nuisance"
means anything which is, or likely to become, injurious or detrimental to health, safety or welfare, or is 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, or unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any sidewalk, public park, square, street or highway. All conditions hereafter enumerated in this chapter, or that otherwise violate or are contrary to any provision of the Artesia Municipal Code, are public nuisances by definition and declaration, and said enumerated conditions shall not, in any manner, be construed to be exclusive or exhaustive. A public nuisance shall also exist when a person fails to comply with any condition of a City approval, entitlement, license or permit or when an activity on, or use of, real property violates, or is contrary to, any provision or requirement of the Artesia Municipal Code.
"Public property"
shall not include "highway."
"Real property or premises"
means any real property owned by any person and any building, structure, or other improvement thereon, or portions thereof. "Real property" or "premises" includes any parkway or unimproved public easement abutting or adjacent to such real property, whether or not owned by the City of Artesia.
"Responsible person"
means any person, whether as an owner as defined in this chapter, or otherwise, that allows, causes, creates, maintains, suffers, or permits a public nuisance, or any violation of the Artesia Municipal Code or County or State law, or regulation thereof, to exist or continue, by any act or the omission of any act or duty. A responsible person shall also include employees, principals, joint venturers, officers, agents, and/or other persons acting in concert with, or at the direction of, and/or with the knowledge and/or consent of the owner and/or occupant of the lot, building or structure on, or in which, a public nuisance or violation exists or existed. The actions or inactions of a responsible person's agent, employee, representative or contractor may be attributed to that responsible person.
"Structure"
means that which is built or constructed, an edifice, wall, fence, or building of any kind, or any piece of work artificially built up or composed of parts joined together in some definite manner. For purposes of this chapter, this definition shall supersede any other definition of this term in the Artesia Municipal Code.
"Vehicle"
means any device, by which any person or property may be propelled, moved, or drawn upon a highway or other public right-of-way, and includes all vehicles as defined by the California Vehicle Code, and all future amendments thereto. "Vehicle" does not include devices (1) that are propelled exclusively by human power such as bicycles and wheelchairs, or (2) those that are used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks.
(Ord. 10-754, § 1; Ord. 21-911, § 3)
The City Council finds and declares that it is a public nuisance and unlawful for any person to allow, cause, create, maintain, or suffer, or permit others to maintain, real property or premises in the City in such a manner that:
(a) 
Any one or more of the following conditions are found to exist thereon:
(1) 
Land, the topography, geology or configuration of which, whether in natural state or as a result of the grading operations, excavation or fill, causes erosion, subsidence, or surface water drainage problems of such magnitude as to be injurious or potentially injurious to the public health, safety and welfare, or to adjacent properties.
(2) 
Buildings or other structures, or portions thereof, that are partially constructed or destroyed or allowed to remain in a state of partial construction or destruction for an unreasonable period of time. As used herein, an "unreasonable" period shall mean any portion of time exceeding the period given to a responsible person by the City for the complete abatement of this nuisance condition with all required City approvals, permits and inspections. Factors that may be used by the City to establish a reasonable period for the complete abatement of this nuisance include, but are not limited to, the following:
(i) 
The degree of partial construction or destruction and the cause therefor.
(ii) 
Whether or not this condition constitutes an attractive nuisance or if it otherwise poses or promotes a health or safety hazard to occupants of the premises, or to others.
(iii) 
The degree of visibility, if any, of this condition from public or adjoining private real property.
(iv) 
The scope and type of work that is needed to abate this nuisance.
(v) 
The promptness with which a responsible person has applied for and obtained all required City approvals and permits in order to lawfully commence the nuisance abatement actions.
(vi) 
Whether or not a responsible person has complied with other required technical code requirements, including requesting and passing required inspections in a timely manner, while completing nuisance abatement actions.
(vii) 
Whether or not a responsible person has applied for extensions to a technical code permit or renewed an expired permit, as well as the number of extensions and renewals that a responsible person has previously sought or obtained from the City.
(viii) 
Whether or not a responsible person has made substantial progress, as determined by the City, in performing nuisance abatement actions under a technical code permit that has expired, or is about to expire.
(ix) 
Whether delays in completing nuisance abatement actions under a technical code permit have occurred, and the reason(s) for such delays.
(3) 
(Reserved)
(4) 
Unimproved land contains one or more prohibited public nuisance conditions as enumerated in this section.
(5) 
Abandoned personal property that is visible from public or private property.
(6) 
Interior portions of buildings or structures (including, but not limited to attics, ceilings, walls floors, basements, mezzanines, and common areas) that have become defective, unsightly, or are maintained in a condition of dilapidation, deterioration or disrepair to such an extent as to result in, or tend to result in, a diminution in property values, or where such condition interferes with the peaceful use, possession and/or enjoyment of properties in the vicinity, or where such condition otherwise violates, or is contrary to, the Artesia Municipal Code, or State law.
(7) 
Exterior portions of buildings or structures (including, but not limited to, roofs, balconies, decks, fences, stairs, stairways, walls, signs and fixtures), as well as sidewalks, driveways and parking areas, that have become defective, unsightly, or are maintained in a condition of dilapidation, deterioration or disrepair to such an extent as to result in, or tend to result in, a diminution in property values, or where such condition interferes with the peaceful use, possession and/or enjoyment of adjacent properties, or where such condition otherwise violates, or is contrary to, the Artesia Municipal Code, or State law.
(8) 
Clotheslines in front yard areas.
(9) 
Obstructions of any kind, cause or form that interfere with required light or ventilation for a building or structure, or that interfere with, hinder, delay, or impede ingress therein and/or egress therefrom.
(10) 
Broken, defective, damaged, dilapidated, or missing windows, doors, or vents in a building or structure, and/or broken, defective, damaged, dilapidated, or missing screens for windows, doors, or crawl spaces in a building or structure.
(11) 
Windows or doors that remain boarded up or sealed after 10 calendar days written City notice to a responsible person requesting the removal of these coverings and the installation of fully functional or operable windows or doors. City actions to board up or seal windows or doors in order to deter unauthorized entry into structures shall not relieve responsible persons from installing fully functional or operational windows or doors.
(12) 
Overgrown vegetation including, but not limited to, any one of the following:
(i) 
Vegetation likely to harbor, or promote the presence of, rats, vermin and/or insects.
(ii) 
Vegetation causing detriment to neighboring properties, or that is out of conformity with neighboring community standards to such an extent as to result in, or contribute to, a diminution of property values, including, but not limited to:
(1) 
Lawns with grass in excess of six inches in height.
(2) 
Hedges, trees, lawns, plants, or other vegetation that are not maintained in a neat, orderly, and healthy manner as a result of lack of adequate mowing, grooming, trimming, pruning, fertilizing, watering, and/or replacement.
(iii) 
Vegetation that creates, or promotes, the existence of a fire hazard.
(iv) 
Vegetation that overhangs or grows onto or into any public property, including, but not limited to, any public alley, highway, land, sidewalk, street or other right-of-way, so as to cause an obstruction to any person or vehicle using such public property.
(v) 
Tree branches or other vegetation within five feet of the rooftop of a structure so as to facilitate rodent or animal access thereto.
(13) 
Dead, decayed, diseased or hazardous trees, weeds, ground cover, and other vegetation, or the absence of healthful vegetation, that causes, contributes to, or promotes, any one of the following conditions or consequences:
(i) 
An attractive nuisance.
(ii) 
A fire hazard.
(iii) 
The creation or promotion of dust or soil erosion.
(iv) 
A diminution in property values.
(v) 
A detriment to public health, safety or welfare.
(14) 
Any form of an attractive nuisance.
(15) 
Items of junk, trash, debris, or other personal property that are kept, placed, or stored inside of a structure or on exterior portions of real property that constitute a fire or safety hazard or a violation of any provision of the Artesia Municipal Code, or items of junk, trash, debris, or other personal property that are visible from public or private real property, or that are otherwise out of conformity with neighboring community standards to such an extent as to result in, or tend to result in, a diminution in property values. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the existence of a junkyard is not a nuisance when such use and the premises on which such use occurs are in full compliance with all provisions of the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia (including all approvals and permits required thereby), and all other applicable provisions of the Artesia Municipal Code and any future amendments and additions thereto, as well as applicable County, State, and/or Federal laws and regulations.
(16) 
Garbage cans, yard waste containers, and recycling containers that are kept, placed or stored in front or side yards and visible from public streets, except when placed in places of collection at times permitted and in full compliance with this Code.
(17) 
The keeping or disposing of, or the scattering or accumulating of flammable, combustible or other materials including, but not limited to, composting, firewood, lumber, junk, trash, debris, packing boxes, pallets, plant cuttings, tree trimmings or wood chips, discarded items, or other personal property in interior or exterior areas of buildings or structures, when such items or accumulations:
(i) 
Render premises unsanitary or substandard as defined by the State Housing Law, the Building Code of the City of Artesia, or other applicable local, State, or Federal law, rule, or regulation.
(ii) 
Violate any provision of Division 1 of Title 11 of the Los Angeles County Code as adopted by the City pursuant to Section 6-3.01 of this Code.
(iii) 
Cause, create, or tend to contribute to, a fire or safety hazard.
(iv) 
Harbor, promote, or tend to contribute to, the presence of rats, vermin and/or insects.
(v) 
Cause, create, or tend to contribute to, an offensive odor.
(vi) 
Cause the premises to be out of conformity with neighboring community standards to such an extent as to result in, or tend to result in, a diminution of property values. Provided, however, that this use of land or condition shall not constitute a nuisance when expressly permitted under the applicable zone classification and the premises are in full compliance with all provisions of the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia, and all other applicable provisions of the Artesia Municipal Code and any future amendments and additions thereto, as well as applicable County, State, and/or Federal laws and regulations.
(18) 
Vehicles, construction equipment, or other machinery exceeding the permissible gross vehicle weight for the streets or public property upon which they are located. A nuisance also exists under this provision when a vehicle, construction equipment or other machinery is stopped kept placed, parked or stored on private real property and when such vehicle equipment or machinery exceeds the permissible gross vehicle weight for the streets or public property that were utilized in its placement on said private real property unless pursuant to a valid permit issued by the City.
(19) 
Abandoned, dismantled, inoperable or wrecked boats, campers, motorcycles, trailers, vehicles, or parts thereof, unless:
(i) 
Kept, placed, parked, or stored inside of a completely enclosed, lawfully constructed building or structure such that the boat, camper, motorcycle, trailer, vehicle, or parts thereof is or are not visible from the street or other public or private property; or
(ii) 
Stored or parked in a lawful manner on private property in connection with the business of a licensed dismantler, licensed vehicle dealer, or junk dealer or when such storage or parking is necessary to the operation of a lawfully conducted business or commercial enterprise.
(20) 
Vehicles, trailers, campers, boats, recreational vehicles, and/or other mobile equipment parked or stored for in violation of any provision of the Artesia Municipal Code or the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia.
(21) 
Any equipment, machinery, or vehicle of any type or description that is designed, used, or maintained for construction-type activities that is kept parked placed or stored on public or private real property except when such item is being used during excavation, construction or demolition operations at the site where said equipment machinery or vehicle is located pursuant to an active permit issued by the City.
(22) 
Maintenance of signs or sign structures, on real property relating to uses no longer lawfully conducted or products no longer lawfully sold thereon, or signs and their structures that are in disrepair or which are otherwise in violation of, or contrary to, the Zoning Law of the City of Artesia.
(23) 
Specialty structures that have been constructed for a specific single use only, and which are unfeasible to convert to other uses, and which are abandoned, partially destroyed or are permitted to remain in a state of partial destruction or disrepair. Such specialty structures include, but are not limited to, the follow-ing: tanks for gas or liquid(s), lateral support structures and bulk-heads, utility high-voltage towers and poles, utility high-rise support structures, electronic transmitting antennas and towers, structures which support or house mechanical and utility equipment and are located above the roof lines of existing buildings, high rise freestanding chimneys and smoke stacks, and recreational structures such as tennis courts and cabanas.
(24) 
Any personal property or structure that obstructs or encroaches on any public property, including, but not limited to, any public alley, highway, land, sidewalk, street or other right-of-way, unless a valid encroachment permit has been issued authorizing said encroachment or obstruction.
(25) 
Causing, maintaining or permitting graffiti or other defacement of real or personal property, as defined in the Artesia Municipal Code or other applicable State law, to be present or remain on a building, structure or vehicle, or portion thereof, that is visible from a public right-of-way or from private real property.
(26) 
Storage of hazardous or toxic materials or substances on real property, as so classified by any local, State or Federal laws or regulations, in such a manner as to be injurious, or potentially injurious or hazardous, to the public health, safety or welfare, or to adjacent properties, or that otherwise violates local, State or Federal laws or regulations.
(27) 
Failure to provide and maintain adequate weather protection to structures or buildings, so as to cause, or promote the existence of cracked, peeling, warped, rotted, or severely damaged paint, stucco or other exterior covering.
(28) 
Any discharge of any substance or material other than storm water which enters, or could possibly enter, the City's storm sewer system in violation of the Artesia Municipal Code.
(29) 
Maintenance of any tarp, canopy as defined in this Code, or similar covering on or over any graded surface or hillside, except in the following circumstances:
(i) 
A state of emergency has been declared by local, County, State, or Federal officials directly impacting the area to be covered; and/or
(ii) 
Covering with a tarp, canopy, or similar covering performed pursuant to an active building or grading permit.
(30) 
Maintenance of any tarp, canopy as defined in this Code, or similar covering on or over any roof of any structure, except during periods of active rainfall, or when specifically permitted under an active roofing, building permit, or temporary use permit, maintenance of any tarp, canopy, or similar covering on or over or used for cars, car ports, and covering junk, trash, debris, or other personal property.
(31) 
Unsanitary, polluted or unhealthful pools, ponds, standing water or excavations containing water, whether or not they are attractive nuisances but which are nevertheless likely to harbor mosquitoes, insects or other vectors. The likelihood of insect harborage is evidenced by any of the following conditions: water which is unclear, murky, clouded or green; water containing bacterial growth, algae, insect larvae, insect remains, or animal remains; or, bodies of water which are abandoned, neglected, unfiltered or otherwise improperly maintained.
(32) 
Maintenance of premises so out of harmony or conformity with the maintenance standards of properties in the vicinity as to cause, or that tends to cause, substantial diminution of the enjoyment, use, or property values of such properties in the vicinity.
(33) 
Any condition recognized in local or State law or in equity as constituting a public nuisance, or any condition existing on real property that constitutes, or tends to constitute, blight, or that is a health or safety hazard to the community or neighboring properties.
(34) 
Failure, refusal or neglect by a person owning or occupying or having possession or control of any property bordering on any public alley, public street, parkway or public right-of-way in the City to keep the portion of the alley, public street, parkway or public right-of-way between the center line of the alley, street or public right-of-way and the property line of such property or the portion of the parkway along the frontage of the owner's property free from garbage, trash, refuse, junk, rubbish, debris, waste, discarded items, obstructions or other personal property of any kind whatsoever.
(35) 
Any dumping, throwing, dropping, leaving, burying, burning, placing, keeping, accumulating, or otherwise disposing of any personal property or waste matter, including, but not limited to, garbage, hazardous waste, refuse, recyclable materials, rubbish, or solid waste as defined below upon any lot, land, street, alley(s), sidewalks, water or waterway and rights-of-way, either with or without intent to later remove same.
(i) 
"Solid waste" means all putrescible and non-putrescible solid, semisolid, and liquid wastes, including, but not limited to, garbage, trash, refuse, paper, rubbish, ashes, industrial wastes, demolition and construction wastes, discarded home and industrial appliances, dewatered, treated or chemically fixed sewage sludge which is not hazardous waste, manure, vegetable or animal solid and semi-solid wastes, and other discarded solid and semi-solid wastes. "Solid waste" does not include recyclable materials or organic recyclable materials set out for separate collection for the purposes of recycling and that are not landfilled.
(b) 
Any building or structure, or portion thereof, or the premises on which the same is located, in which there exists any of the conditions listed in Section 17920.3 of the California Health and Safety Code, and any future amendments thereto.
(c) 
Any building, structure or land, or portion thereof, that is determined by a building inspector or fire inspector to be unsafe under any provision of Title 8 (Building Regulations) of the Artesia Municipal Code.
(d) 
Any building or structure used by any person to engage in acts which are prohibited pursuant to the laws of the United States or the State of California, the provisions of the Artesia Municipal Code, or any other ordinance of this City, including, but not limited to, the following acts:
(1) 
Unlawful possession, use, and/or sale of controlled substances;
(2) 
Commercial marijuana activity and commercial marijuana uses, except as otherwise permitted under Sections 5-21.04 and 9-2.4404 of this Code;
(3) 
Prostitution; and/or
(4) 
Unlawful gambling.
(e) 
Any condition, use, or activity that constitutes a public nuisance as defined by Section 3479 or 3480 of the California Civil Code, and any future amendments thereto.
(f) 
Any building, structure, or use of real property that violates or fails to comply with: (1) any applicable approval, permit, license, or entitlement or condition relating thereto; (2) any ordinance of the City, including, but not limited to, any provision of this Code; or (3) any applicable County, State, or Federal law or regulation.
(Ord. 10-754, § 1; Ord. 14-815, § 2; Ord. 17-844, § 4; Ord. 21-911, § 4; Ord. 25-976, 1/12/2026)
(a) 
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Artesia Municipal Code to the contrary, any person who causes, permits, suffers, or maintains a public nuisance, or any person who violates any provision of this chapter, or who fails to comply with any obligation or requirement of this chapter, is guilty of a misdemeanor violation punishable in accordance with Chapter 2 of Title 1 of this Code.
(b) 
Each person shall be guilty of a separate offense for each and every day, or part thereof, during which a violation of this chapter, or of any law or regulation referenced herein, is allowed, committed, continued, maintained or permitted by such person, and shall be punishable accordingly.
(Ord. 10-754, § 1)