[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of
the Town of Louisa 5-28-1981 as Ch. 5, Sec. 5-5, of the 1981 Code.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
The owners of property in the Town shall at
such time or times as the Town Council may prescribe remove, repair
or secure any building, wall or any other structure which might endanger
the public health or safety of other residents of the Town.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. II)]
The Council, through its own agents or employees,
may remove, repair or secure any building, wall or any other structure
which might endanger the public health or safety of other residents
of the Town, wherein the owner of such property, after reasonable
notice and a reasonable time to do so, has failed to remove, repair
or secure said building, wall or other structure. For purposes of
this section, repair may include maintenance work to the exterior
of a building to prevent deterioration of the building or adjacent
buildings. For purposes of this section, reasonable notice includes
a written notice mailed by certified or registered mail, return receipt
requested, sent to the last known address of the property owner and
published once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper having
general circulation in the Town. No action shall be taken by the Council
to remove, repair, or secure any building, wall, or other structure
for at least 30 days following the later of the return of the receipt
or newspaper publication, except that the Council may take action
to prevent unauthorized access to the building within seven days of
such notice if the structure is deemed to pose a significant threat
to public safety and such fact is stated in the notice.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. II)]
In the event that the Council, through its own
agents or employees, removes, repairs or secures any building, wall
or any other structure after complying with the notice provisions
of this chapter, or as otherwise permitted under the Virginia Uniform
Statewide Building Code in the event of an emergency, the cost or
expenses thereof shall be chargeable to and paid by the owners of
such property and may be collected by the Town as taxes and levies
are collected.
Every charge authorized by this chapter with
which the owner of any such property shall have been assessed and
which remains unpaid shall constitute a lien against such property.
