(A) It shall be unlawful for the owner, occupant or person having control or management of any land within the city to permit a public nuisance, health hazard or source of filth to develop thereon through the accumulation of rubbish or the excessive growth of weeds or grass.
(B) It shall be unlawful for the owner, occupant or person having control or management of any land in an unincorporated area to knowingly permit a public nuisance or health hazard to develop thereon through the accumulation of rubbish.
(C) It shall be unlawful in the city for the owner of property to permit any structure upon the property to become unfit and unsafe for human habitation, occupancy or use or to permit conditions to exist in the structure which are dangerous or injurious to the health or safety of the occupants of the structure, the occupants of neighboring structures or other residents of the city.
(D) The city may establish by ordinance reasonable standards and procedures for the enforcement of this section. The procedures shall comply with all applicable statutes, administrative regulations or codes. Proper notice shall be given to property owners before any action is taken pursuant to this section; and, prior to the demolition of any unfit or unsafe structure, the right to a hearing shall be afforded the property owner.
(E) The city shall have a lien against the property for the reasonable value of labor and materials used in remedying the situation. The affidavit of the responsible officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the amount of the lien and the regularity of the proceedings pursuant to this statute, and shall be recorded in the office of the county clerk. The lien shall be notice to all person from the time of its recording and shall take precedence over all other subsequent liens, except state, county, school board and city taxes, and may be enforced by judicial proceedings.
(F) In addition to the remedy prescribed in division (E) of this section or any other remedy authorized by law, the owner of a property upon which a lien has been attached pursuant to this section shall be personally liable for the amount of the lien, including all interest, civil penalties and for other charges and the city may bring a civil action against the owner and shall have the same remedies as provided for the recovery of a debt owed.
(G) The provisions of divisions (D), (E) and (F) of this section shall not apply to an owner, occupant or person having control or management of any land located in an unincorporated area if the owner, occupant or person is not the generator of the rubbish or is not dumping or knowingly allowing the dumping of the rubbish and has made reasonable efforts to prevent the dumping of rubbish by other persons onto the property.
(KRS 381.770)
(H) (1) Whenever a designee of the city observes a neglected vacant and/or abandoned real property that is in violation of any section of the currently enforced edition of the "BOCA National Property Maintenance Code" or any applicable section of the city’s zoning regulations or "Bellevue Code of Ordinances," such designee shall make reasonable attempts to notify the property owner by regular mail or by posting the structure/property affected by such notice.
(2) When these reasonable attempts to notify the property owner of such violations have failed, the designee may direct the Public Works Department or make arrangements with private persons to enter upon the neglected vacant and/or abandoned property to abate the violations.
(3) This abatement may include, but is not limited to: cutting grass and weeds to discourage pest infestation; removing trash and rubbish; securing principal structure against intrusion; and removing dangerous accessory structures or appurtenances.
(4) The designee or Public Works Director shall keep an accurate account of expenses incurred for the abatement, which shall be charged against and paid by the owner of record.
(5) The owner of record shall have thirty (30) days to make payment in full for services provided for the abatement of such public nuisance.
(6) Failure of the owner of record to make payment in full within the specified time period may result in filing a lien against the property, filing a complaint in small claims court or instituting any action necessary to collect the debt.
(7) The owner of record shall pay any and all costs associated with the collection of the debts, including but not limited to the cost of labor, materials, contract fees, penalties, interest, attorney’s fees and court costs.
(Ord. 98-11-3, passed 11-24-98; Am. Ord. 2002-09-02, passed 10-9-02)
Cross-reference:
Property Maintenance Code, see Ch. 156