A. An owner (or a foreclosing mortgagee provided with notice of the vacant building determination) of a building determined by the director to be a vacant building as provided in section 9-25-4 of this chapter may appeal that determination to the village administrator. Such appeal shall be in writing and shall be filed with the village administrator within fifteen (15) days of the date of mailing of the notice of determination. The filing of an appeal stays the owner's obligation to register his or her building as required by section 9-25-6 of this chapter or a foreclosing mortgagee’s obligation to register a building under section 9-25-7 of this chapter. The appeal shall contain a complete statement of the reasons the owner, or the foreclosing mortgagee that has filed an appeal disputes the director's determination, shall set forth specific facts in support thereof, and shall include all evidence the owner, or foreclosing mortgagee, relies upon to support the appeal. The village administrator or her designee shall decide the appeal on the basis of facts presented by the owner (or the foreclosing mortgagee) in his, her, their or its written appeal and the director's written determination.
B. The burden is upon the owner (or the foreclosing mortgagee that has filed an appeal) to present sufficient evidence to persuade the village administrator that it is more likely than not that the subject building is not a "vacant building" within the meaning of this chapter.
C. The village administrator, or his or her designee, shall send a written decision to the owner, and/or if applicable to the foreclosing mortgagee that has filed an appeal, within ten (10) days of his or her receipt of the appeal. The village administrator may, but is not required to, seek additional information from the owner or the foreclosing mortgagee that has filed an appeal. The village administrator, or her designee, may, upon written notice thereof to the owner and/or the foreclosing mortgagee that has filed an appeal, if any, take ten (10) additional days, to decide the appeal if she determines that such additional time is required for consideration of the appeal.
D. An owner or foreclosing mortgagee who wishes to challenge applicability of this chapter to his/her building or its mortgage prior to the director's determination having been made shall set forth specific facts to support inapplicability in writing to the director. In the event the director determines that the subject building is a "vacant building", the owner, and any foreclosing mortgagee provided notice by the director, shall have the right to appeal the director's determination to the village administrator as provided for herein.
E. If the village administrator, or his or her designee, fails to grant or deny an appeal within the time periods set forth in this section, the appeal shall be deemed denied.
F. All references to the village administrator in this chapter shall be deemed to include the village administrator or her designee. (Ord. 2014-46, 6-3-2014; amd. Ord. 2020-56, 6-16-2020)