It is the purpose and intent of this chapter to require owners or other responsible parties to plan for and provide for maintenance and security of distressed properties in order to protect the city of San Bruno from becoming blighted through inadequate maintenance and inadequate security of such properties.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
For the purposes of this chapter, certain words and phrases used in this chapter are defined as follows:
"Owner"
means and includes any person, co-partnership, association, corporation, or fiduciary having a legal or equitable title or any interest in any real property, or who leases, rents, occupies, or has charge, control or possession of any property in the city, including all persons identified as owning property as shown on the last equalized assessment roll of the San Mateo County assessor's office.
"Property"
means any unimproved or improved real property, or portion thereof, situated in the city and includes the buildings or structures located on the property regardless of condition.
"Responsible person"
means any person, whether as an owner as defined in this chapter, or otherwise, who allows, causes, creates, maintains, or permits a public nuisance, or any violation of the San Bruno Municipal Code or other law, to exist or continue, by any act or the omission of any act or duty.
"Vacant"
means a building/structure that is not legally occupied.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
A. 
A property is a public nuisance when the property is vacant and the city has within twelve months issued three or more notices to correct or administrative citations set forth in Chapter 5.04 of the San Bruno Municipal Code, or other violations of local, state, or other law, which notices or citations were either not contested or were contested and the hearing officer or hearing body found a violation of law.
B. 
When a property is deemed a public nuisance under this subsection, the responsible person, as defined herein, shall file with the community development director a vacant property maintenance plan that meets the requirements established in Section 5.24.040. The responsible person shall file the vacant property maintenance plan no later than ten days after service of order to file vacant property maintenance plan.
C. 
The order shall be served on a responsible person, on a form approved by the city attorney, in the following manner:
1. 
Personal Service of Notice Upon an Individual. If the responsible person is an entity, the enforcement officer may personally serve an employee, principal, partner, director, officer or representative on behalf of said entity. The date of personal service shall constitute the issuance date of the order.
2. 
Service of Notice by Mail. If the responsible person cannot be personally served in the city, the order shall be mailed to the responsible person by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested. Simultaneously, a copy of the citation shall be sent by first class mail. The issuing officer shall utilize public records to determine a mailing address for the responsible person. The date of mailing shall constitute the issuance date of the order.
3. 
Service of Notice by Posting. If service cannot be accomplished personally or by mail, the enforcement officer shall post the order on any real property in the city in which the responsible party is known to have a legal interest and possession of said property or portion thereof. The date of posting shall constitute the issuance date of the order.
D. 
The failure of a responsible person to receive a vacant property maintenance plan shall not invalidate any such order if service was given in a manner stated in this chapter.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
A. 
The community services director shall approve a vacant property maintenance plan if after inspecting the property, the information in the plan is sufficient to meet the requirements of this section. If the director rejects the plan, it shall be done in writing, providing the basis for the rejection along with a reasonable deadline for submitting a new plan or a time frame for appealing the director's decision as set forth in this chapter.
B. 
The vacant property maintenance plan shall provide the following:
1. 
The name, address, and contact information (telephone and electronic mail address) of person submitting the vacant property maintenance plan, of all responsible persons of the subject property, and twenty-four hour contact number for the person designated to manage and maintain the property for the responsible person;
2. 
A copy of a letter or other notice to properties immediately adjacent to and across from the subject property advising the residents of the name and twenty-four-hour contact number for the person responsible for managing and maintaining the property; and
3. 
A plan for actively monitoring, maintaining and securing the property for the anticipated or expected period of vacancy that demonstrates how the property will be maintained to achieve the following minimum maintenance and security requirements:
a. 
The property shall be kept free of weeds, dry brush, dead vegetation, trash, junk, debris, building materials, any accumulation of newspapers, circulars, flyers, notices, except those required by federal, state or local law, discarded personal items, including, but not limited to, furniture, clothing, large and small appliances, printed material or any other items that give the appearance that the property is vacant.
b. 
The property shall be maintained free of graffiti, tagging or similar markings by removal or painting over with an exterior grade paint that matches the color of the exterior of the structure.
c. 
Visible front and side yards or accessible areas that are visible from the right-of-way shall be landscaped and maintained such that grass, ground covers, bushes, shrubs, hedges or similar plantings receive regular watering, irrigation, cutting, pruning, mowing and removal of all trimmings.
d. 
The exterior of structures visible to the right-of-way shall be kept free of obvious peeling paint and dilapidated stairs, handrails, or structures.
e. 
Pools and spas shall be kept drained and secured or kept in working order so the water remains clear and free of pollutants and debris or drained and kept dry. In either case properties with pools and/or spas must comply with the minimum security fencing and safety requirements of the state of California.
f. 
The property shall be secured in a manner so as not to be accessible to unauthorized persons nor creates an attractive nuisance (as defined in Chapter 5.04 of this code), including, but not limited to, closing and locking of windows, doors and garage doors, gates and any other opening of such size that it may allow access to the interior of the property and or structure(s). In the case of broken windows, securing means the reglazing or boarding of the window.
4. 
A plan to make any buildings ready for occupancy that could not be legally occupied under state and local law at the time for submission of the plan.
5. 
If required by the director, a plan to occupy, sell, lease, or demolish a structure within a reasonable time.
6. 
Any other information reasonably required by the director in order to effectuate the purposes of this chapter.
7. 
Submission of a vacant property maintenance plan fee in accordance with this chapter.
C. 
If the responsible person is located more than forty miles from the property, a local property management company within forty miles shall be contracted to perform monthly inspections to verify that the property is in compliance with the requirements of this chapter. Alternatively, the community development director may approve the owner's designation of a property management company in excess of the forty-mile radius provided the management company has a twenty-four hour seven-day a week contact number to report problems and complies with the requirements of this chapter as it pertains to the subject property.
D. 
In addition to the enforcement remedies established by this code, the community development director or designee shall have the authority to require the responsible party to implement additional maintenance and/or security measures including but not limited to securing any/all door, window or other openings, installing additional security lighting, increasing on-site inspection frequency, employment of a property manager and/or an on-site security guard or other measures as may be reasonably required to arrest the decline of the property.
E. 
Nothing in this chapter relieves any responsible person from the obligation to comply with any other provision of the city's nuisance code (Chapter 5.04) or any other requirement set forth in this code or at law.
F. 
Transfer of Vacant Property. The transferee of a vacant property is subject to the requirements of this section and the seller shall provide the transferee with a copy of the vacant property maintenance plan.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
The annual fee and renewal fee for reviewing, approving and/or monitoring a vacant property maintenance plan by the director shall be established from time to time by the city council by resolution.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
A. 
Any responsible person of the subject party aggrieved by the order of the community development director to file a vacant property maintenance plan may, within ten days of the written notice of the order, appeal such order to the city manager by the filing of a written and signed notice of appeal with the city clerk stating the specific grounds for the appeal in such detail to enable the city manager to understand the nature of controversy. If such appeal is not taken within ten days, the decision of the community development director shall be final. For purposes of this section, the ten days shall commence to run from the date of service as set forth in Section 5.24.030(C) herein.
B. 
Upon appeal to the city manager, the order of the community development director shall be scheduled for review and an evidentiary hearing. A copy of the notice of hearing shall be mailed to the applicant.
C. 
At the date set for hearing, the city manager shall hear all competent testimony relating to the order to file vacant property maintenance plan and may also continue the hearing to a fixed date. The hearing is informal, and formal rules of evidence and discovery do not apply. The city bears the burden to prove by a preponderance of the evidence the requirement for the filing of the vacant property building plan or other requirements related thereto.
D. 
The city manager may affirm as written, modify, or reject the order to file a vacant property maintenance plan. The decision of the city manager may be appealed to the city council in accordance with Chapter 1.32 of this code.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)
A. 
Failure to comply with the requirements of this chapter shall constitute a misdemeanor violation punishable at law in accordance with Chapter 1.28 of this code by a fine of not less than five hundred dollars or by imprisonment in County Jail of not more than six months, or both.
B. 
The city may also seek enforcement through any administrative, civil, or criminal remedy available to it at law, which remedies are cumulative and nonexclusive. The city may exercise one or any combination of remedies in its sole discretion at any time.
(Ord. 1767 § 2, 2008; Ord. 1881 § 3, 2020)