No person whether the same be the owner, agent or person in control of any inhabited or uninhabited lot, piece or parcel of land within the City shall maintain such premises or allow the same to be maintained in a condition in which weeds, rubbish, or any materials exist on said premises, which constitute a fire hazard or which may provide a refuge for rats or other vermin, or may produce pollen which is injurious to health, safety, or welfare of residents of the vicinity, or which otherwise is dangerous or injurious to neighboring property or the health or welfare of residents of the vicinity. The existence of any condition prohibited by this section is declared to be a public nuisance.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Whenever the Director of Public Works shall find that a condition prohibited by Section 5300 exists upon any lot, piece or parcel of land, or upon any street, alley, sidewalk or right-of-way abutting such lot, piece or parcel of land, he shall give or cause to be given, in the manner hereinafter provided, a notice to remove such weeds, rubbish, or other material.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Such notice shall be given by posting in a conspicuous place upon or in front of the lot, piece or parcel of land on which, or upon the street, alley, sidewalk, or right-of-way adjacent to which such weeds, rubbish or other material may be. Said notice shall be headed "NOTICE TO CLEAN PREMISES" in letters not less than one inch in height and the notice in legible characters, shall direct the removal of weeds, rubbish, or other material as the case may be and refer to this chapter for further particulars. Said notice shall be in substantially the following form:
NOTICE TO CLEAN PREMISES
"Notice hereby is given that contrary to the provisions of Chapter 2 of Article V of the Downey Municipal Code, noxious and dangerous weeds and/or rubbish, refuse and dirt are existing upon or in front of the following described property: (give the address or, if posting a whole street, the name of the street) that they constitute a public nuisance which must be abated by the removal of the weeds, rubbish, refuse and dirt. Unless said removal is made within 10 days from the date of this notice, the same shall be removed by the City and the cost of the removal assessed upon the land from which, or in front of which, weeds, rubbish, refuse, and dirt are removed and such cost so assessed will constitute a lien upon such land until paid. All persons having any objection to the proposed required removal may appeal to the City Council, in writing, within 10 days from the date of this notice.
Dated this _______ day of ________
Director of Public Works
City of Downey."
As an alternative to the posting of notice, the notice required hereby may be given by person service of a notice similar in substance by serving the same upon the owner, agent, or person in control of such lot, piece or parcel of land, or by mailing said notice by depositing such notice in the United States Mail at Downey, California, addressed to the owner of such lot, piece or parcel of land, at the address shown by the last equalized assessment roll. The notice shall bear the date of posting, personal service, or mailing.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Within 10 days from the date of the notice the owner or any other person interested in the property, land, or lots affected by said notice may appeal to the City Council from the determination of the Director of Public Works. Such appeal shall be in writing, shall state the objections, and the name and address of the person filing the appeal. The appeal shall be filed with the City Clerk and shall be presented by the said Clerk to the City Council at the next regular meeting of the City Council following the date of the filing. Said City Council at such meeting, or at such meeting to which the matter may be continued by the Council, shall hear and pass upon said appeal and the decision of the Council thereupon shall be final and conclusive.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Unless within 10 days from the date of notice, or in the event that an appeal has been made to the City Council, within 10 days from the date of the determination of the appeal, unless said appeal is sustained, and the Council determines that no such removal shall be required, and written notice of the determination mailed to the one appealing at the address shown in the appeal, the weeds, rubbish or other material have not been removed from the premises in question or from the street, alley, sidewalk, or right-of-way abutting such premises as directed by said notice or by the City Council on appeal, the Director of Public Works thereupon shall cause the same to be removed and may enter upon private property for the purpose of so doing.
If, upon appeal, the requirements of the original notice have been modified by the City Council, the Director of Public Works in causing said weeds, rubbish, or other material to be removed shall be governed by the determination of the City Council.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
The Director of Public Works shall keep or cause to be kept in his office a permanent record showing the legal description as shown on the last equalized assessment roll of the County of Los Angeles, of each piece of property or lot from which, or the street, alley, sidewalk, or right-of-way abutting said property from which, said weeds, rubbish, or other material have been removed under the provision of this chapter, and said record book shall show any and all expense incurred by the City in the removal of said weeds, rubbish, or other material as said expense relates to each separate property ownership. Each entry in said record book shall be made upon the completion of work done on each piece of property or lot or upon the street, alley, parkway, or sidewalk abutting thereon. After such entry has been made in said book, the same shall constitute an assessment against the parcel of land and thereafter said assessment shall be confirmed by motion of the City Council and the assessment, after being made and confirmed, shall become a lien upon the parcel.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Between the 1st and 15th day of July of each year, the Director of Public Works shall cause to be published in the official newspaper of the City a notice to the effect that any person affected or aggrieved by any act or determination of the Director of Public Works or of the City Council, in connection with the provisions of this chapter, may appeal to the City Council. Such appeal shall be in writing and shall be filed with the City Clerk prior to the 15th day of July. At the next regular meeting of the City Council after the 15th day of July, or from time to time thereafter as may be determined by the Council, the Council shall hear and pass upon each such appeal, and the determination by the Council thereupon shall be final and conclusive. In the event any determination of the Director of Public Works is modified by determination of the City Council or any assessment changed or corrected, the Director of Public Works shall cause such correction to be made upon the record showing the assessment.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
At the expiration of the time for appeal, or upon the determination by the City Council of all appeals so filed, and in compliance with the requirements of any determination so made, the Director of Public Works shall deliver to the City Clerk an abstract of the entries of the said permanent record in which the engineer has shown each assessment, for the preceding fiscal year. Such abstract shall show the property affected and the amount charged there against. The City Clerk, prior to August 10th of each year, shall deliver to the County Auditor of the County of Los Angeles, the amount of each such charge to be placed upon the assessment roll against the respective lots and thereafter said charges shall be of the same character and effect, subject to the same penalties, and shall be collected in the same manner and at the same time as City taxes are collected. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any piece of property or land or lot the charge against which has been paid prior to the delivery to the City Clerk of said abstract, but in such case an appropriate entry shall be made in the said record book by the said Director of Public Works showing that such charge had been paid so that when the same is delivered to the City Clerk all assessments shown thereon shall be valid and effective.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Proof of the posting, serving in person or mailing of any notice, order, or determination provided for in this chapter shall be by affidavit of the person performing the duty and said affidavit must specify the time when the duty was performed. It shall be the duty of the Director of Public Works to keep such affidavits among the official records in his office.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
Any assessment or any portion of an assessment levied pursuant to the provisions of this chapter which heretofore or hereafter has been paid more than once, erroneously or illegally collected, paid in excess of the amount chargeable, was not chargeable to the person or the property paying the same under the provisions of this chapter, by reason of a clerical error of the employees or officials of the City, may be refunded by order of the City Council in the same manner, to the same extent and under the same conditions as now or hereafter are provided by the City for refund of payments of general taxes at any time after the abstract of charges taken from the record book of the Director of Public Works has been delivered to the County Assessor and entered upon the assessment books. The owner of any property assessed who may claim that the assessment is void in whole or in part may pay the same under protest. Said protest shall be in writing, shall be received by the City Clerk on or before March 1st after the tax became due and payable and shall specify whether the whole or any part of the assessment is void and the grounds upon which such claim is founded. Such owner, after such payment, may recover the same in the manner and under the conditions provided in Section 39585 of the Government Code of the State of California.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)
If the City Council finds that property damage results from negligence of a City officer or employee in connection with the abatement of a nuisance pursuant to this chapter, a claim for such damage may be paid from the City general fund. Claims therefor shall be governed by Chapter 2 of Division 3.5 of Title I of the Government Code of the State of California.
(Added by Ord. 347, adopted 7-8-68)