The Enforcement Officer, as defined in Section 1.18.010(D), may, upon presentation of proper credentials, enter upon any property at any reasonable time to inspect the same or to perform any act or acts as may be related to the performance of his or her enforcement duties, subject to the procedures below. Inspections may include or involve the taking of photographs, samples, measurements, surveys, or obtaining other physical evidence, and/or conferring with any person(s) present at the property. If the Enforcement Officer has reasonable cause to believe that a condition exists that poses an imminent or immediate threat of harm to persons or property, or to public health, welfare or safety, the Enforcement Officer may enter the property without prior notification to the owner or occupant. In all other cases, the Enforcement Officer shall give the owner and/or occupant, if the same can be located after reasonable effort, at least twenty-four hours prior written notification of his or her request for consent to enter the property for purposes of conducting an inspection. Any notice transmitted to the owner and/or occupant of the property shall state that the owner and/or occupant has a right to refuse entry and that in the event that such entry is refused, inspection may be made only upon issuance of an inspection warrant by a duly authorized magistrate. If an owner or occupant refuses entry after a request for entry has been properly made or the owner or occupant cannot be located after reasonable effort, the Enforcement Officer may seek an inspection warrant from a court of competent jurisdiction.
(Ord. 618-03 § 2, 2003)
Upon determining that a violation of this Code exists, the Enforcement Officer or Enforcement Committee may issue a notice of violation requiring the responsible party to abate the violation or nuisance condition, or alternatively, may request that the City Attorney petition a court of competent jurisdiction for an abatement warrant authorizing the Enforcement Officer or any employee, authorized agent, representative or contractor of the City to enter onto any affected property to abate the nuisance condition. An abatement warrant shall be requested in the same manner, and be in substantially the same form, as an inspection warrant.
(Ord. 618-03 § 2, 2003)
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code, whenever, in the reasonable judgment of the Enforcement Officer, there is the existence or continuance of any violation of this Code, or any public nuisance, or any other condition which poses an imminent or immediate danger of significant harm to persons or property, or so endangers the public health, welfare or safety, the Enforcement Officer may act immediately and without prior notice or hearing to abate such condition. The expense or cost resulting from such summary abatement shall be enforceable as a personal obligation of the responsible party. The expense or cost of summary abatement may be imposed as a lien or a special assessment on real property, as described in Section 1.12.050.
(Ord. 618-03 § 2, 2003)
A. 
If a judicial order or administrative order authorizes the City to abate a public nuisance, the City official responsible for such abatement shall keep an accounting of the cost of abatement along with any other recoverable costs, and shall render a written report to the City Council showing the cost of removing and/or abating the nuisance. At least ten days prior to the submission of the report to the City Council, a copy of the report and notice shall be mailed to the responsible party and/or to the owner of the property where the nuisance existed, if the nuisance concerns real property, at the address shown for such owner on the last tax roll.
B. 
At the time and place fixed for receiving and considering the report required by subsection A, the City Council shall hear a summary of the report and any objections by the responsible party or property owner against whom such cost are being charged or against whose property an abatement lien or special assessment may be imposed for such costs. After considering the report and any objections thereto, the City Council may make such modifications to the report as it deems appropriate, after which the report shall be confirmed by resolution or order.
C. 
Any penalty imposed for violations of this Code, including any other codes or statutes that have been incorporated into this Code, any administrative costs or other expenses of enforcement, and the cost or expenses associated with the abatement of a public nuisance that are levied in accordance with this chapter, whether imposed or levied judicially or administratively, may be enforced by the recordation of a lien against the property of the owner of the real property where the nuisance condition existed. Any such lien shall be recorded in the Office of the County Recorder for Alameda County, and from the date of recording shall have the force, effect, and priority of a judgment lien. A lien authorized by this section shall specify the amount of the lien, that the lien is being imposed on behalf of the City of Union City, the date of the abatement order, the street address, legal description and assessor's parcel number of the parcel on which the lien is imposed, and the name and address of the recorded owner of the parcel.
D. 
Before recordation of a lien authorized by this section, a notice of lien shall be served on the responsible party and/or owner of record of the parcel of land on which the nuisance existed, based on the last equalized assessment roll or the supplemental roll, whichever is more current. The notice of lien shall be served in the same manner as a summons in a civil action. If the owner of record cannot be found, after a diligent search, the notice of lien may be served by posting a copy thereof in a conspicuous place upon the property for a period of ten days and publication thereof in a newspaper of general circulation published in Alameda County, California.
E. 
Any fee imposed on the City by the County Recorder for costs of processing and recording the lien and the cost of providing notice to the property owner in the manner described herein may be recovered from the property owner in any foreclosure action to enforce the lien after recordation.
F. 
As an alternative to the lien procedure described in subsection C of this section, any penalty imposed for violations of this Code, including any other codes or statutes that have been incorporated into this Code, any administrative costs or other expenses of enforcement, and the cost or expenses associated with the abatement of a public nuisance that are levied in accordance with this chapter, whether imposed or levied judicially or administratively, may become a special assessment and lien against the real property where the nuisance condition existed. Any special assessment imposed on real property pursuant to this section may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary municipal taxes are collected, and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as is provided for ordinary municipal taxes. Notice of any special assessment that is levied on real property pursuant to this section shall be given to the property owner by certified mail, and shall contain the information set forth in Government Code Section 38773.5(c). All laws applicable to the levy, collection, and enforcement of municipal taxes, including those described in Government Code Section 38773.5(c), shall be applicable to such special assessment.
G. 
Pursuant to Government Code Section 38773.5(b), the prevailing party in any nuisance abatement action shall recover its attorneys' fees, not to exceed the amount of reasonable attorneys' fees incurred by the City in the action or proceeding. If the City is the prevailing party, these fees shall be additional to all other recoverable costs and penalties, as described in this section.
H. 
Unless specifically superseded elsewhere in this Code or except as may otherwise be required by law, the provisions of this section shall apply to the imposition of any special assessment or lien for purposes of abatement cost recovery carried out by the City.
(Ord. 618-03 § 2, 2003; Ord. 710-08 § 1, 2008)