A. Enforcement actions. In addition to any other penalties or remedies provided by law, the Building Commissioner may take any of the following actions against any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter, without any requirement that the actions escalate in severity:
1. Issuance of a verbal warning.
2. Issuance of a notice of violation, which may include:
a. A deadline for remediating the violation; and
b. The potential consequences for failure to remediate the violation.
3. Imposition of a waiting period before a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License may be applied for, as further provided in this section; or
4. A written order of suspension or revocation of a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License, as further provided in this section.
B. Liability of License holder and revocation orders. In addition to any other penalty or remedy provided by law, the Building Commissioner may order that a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License be revoked and the holder of such license be cited for applicable violation(s) and penalties when the Building Commissioner determines that:
1. Tenants renting or leasing a residential dwelling rental unit have engaged in or allowed others on the premises to engage in any egregious conduct as prohibited under this chapter.
2. On three or more occasions within a 12-month period, tenants renting or leasing a residential dwelling rental unit have engaged in or allowed others on the premises to engage in any objectionable conduct as prohibited under this chapter.
3. On three or more occasions within a 12-month period, tenants renting or leasing a residential dwelling rental unit have created a nuisance by violating the requirements of this chapter.
4. The license holder has:
a. Falsified information on an application for issuance or renewal of the license.
b. Failed to file required reports with the Village or falsified information on such reports.
c. Failed to pay required taxes or fees due in connection with the Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License.
d. Failed to comply with any other requirement of this chapter.
C. Determination of appropriate action. In determining the most appropriate enforcement action for any of the circumstances described in subsection B of this section, the Building Commissioner shall consider:
1. The impact of the circumstances on neighboring properties and the area in which the residential dwelling rental unit is located.
2. The threat to public health, safety, or welfare caused by violations of the provisions of this chapter.
3. The license holder's timely response and good faith effort to resolve or mitigate the circumstances.
4. The history of violations of the provisions of this chapter by the license holder or in connection with the residential dwelling rental unit.
D. Notice of suspension or revocation to license holder. Upon determining that a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License should be suspended or revoked, the Building Commissioner shall notify the license holder in writing of:
1. The Building Commissioner's intent to suspend or revoke the license.
2. The license holder's right to:
a. Request a hearing to appeal the suspension or revocation before Village Board, within ten calendar days of the date on which the notice was sent, in a form and manner prescribed by the Village Board.
b. Present to the Village Board any testimony, exhibits, or affidavits pertinent to the license holder's appeal.
E. Failure to request hearing. If the Building Commissioner orders that a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License be suspended or revoked, and the license holder fails to timely request a hearing as allowed under this section, the order to suspend or revoke the license shall go into effect.
F. Immediate suspension. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Building Commissioner may immediately suspend a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License and prohibit the license holder from renting or leasing a residential dwelling rental unit for a period not to exceed 30 calendar days if the Building Commissioner determines that continued rental of the residential dwelling unit will cause an imminent threat to public health, safety, or welfare. During such suspension period:
1. The Building Commissioner may act to:
a. Revoke the license or extend the suspension of the license, pursuant to the procedures established in this section.
b. Reduce the suspension period, if the conditions resulting in the suspension have been resolved and there appears to be no further threat.
2. The license holder may request a hearing before the Village Administrator, who shall conduct the hearing at the earliest practical time. The Village Administrator may reverse the suspension, reduce the suspension period, or allow the suspension to stand. If the license holder fails to request a hearing during the suspension period, any further actions taken by the Building Commissioner under this section shall go into effect.
G. Effect of suspension or revocation. At the time suspension or revocation of a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License goes into effect:
1. The Building Commissioner shall notify the license holder and the host platform, if applicable, of the suspension or revocation and the effective dates.
2. The Building Commissioner may take action to seek injunctive relief against a license holder or host platform provider who fails to observe the suspension or revocation.
3. Rental and advertising of the residential dwelling rental unit must be ceased by the license holder, operator and the host platform provider until:
a. The suspension period is over and the license holder has met any conditions for resuming occupancy of the residential dwelling rental unit.
b. The Village has issued a new license for operation of the residential dwelling rental unit.
H. Duration of revocation. If a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License is revoked, the revocation will remain in effect for a period of at least one year from its effective date before any person may apply for a new license for a residential dwelling rental unit at the same location. Additionally, the license holder may not apply for a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License for any other location for at least two years from the effective date of the revocation.
I. Operating without a license. In addition to any other penalty or remedy provided by law, a penalty for operating or advertising property for residential rental use without a license in violation of this chapter shall be imposed according to the following procedures:
1. Upon a determination that property has been operated or advertised for residential rental use without a license, the Building Commissioner may impose a waiting period of up to 12 months before any person may apply for a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License for the property or the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit may apply for a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License for any other location. The Building Commissioner shall determine the length of the waiting period, based on any of the following factors or combination of factors:
a. Statements made by the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit use indicating the person was aware or unaware of requirement to obtain a license.
b. Statements made by neighbors or others with knowledge of the residential dwelling rental unit use indicating the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit use was aware or unaware of requirement to obtain a license.
c. Other evidence that the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit was informed of the requirement to obtain a license and disregarded the requirement.
d. Evidence that the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit had looked into license requirements and believed a license was not required.
e. Prior violations of the provisions of this chapter by the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit.
f. Whether the person operating or advertising the residential dwelling rental unit, upon being informed of the Village's license requirements, continued to rent, lease or advertise the residential dwelling rental unit.
2. Any person affected by a waiting period imposed by the Building Commissioner under this section may request a hearing before the Village Board to appeal the length of the waiting period.
J. Special conditions. If a Residential Dwelling Rental Unit License is subject to any special conditions established pursuant to this chapter, a violation of any such conditions shall be subject to the enforcement and penalty provisions set forth in this section.
K. Hearing on suspension, revocation, or waiting period. If a license holder requests a hearing before the Village Board under this section, the hearing will be held in accordance with the procedures established under Section 4-1-17.
L. Other remedies. In addition to or in lieu of any other penalty or remedy provided for in this chapter, the Village may take any of the following actions or combination of actions against any person who violates any of the provisions of this chapter:
1. Issuance of a citation and prosecution of the violation before the Village Board, provided further that each day a violation occurs or continues shall be considered a separate violation, for which a separate penalty may be imposed.
2. Legal action in a court of competent jurisdiction to:
a. Enjoin or abate a violation.
b. Recover damages in an amount adequate to compensate the Village for any costs incurred to enforce the provisions of this article.
3. Any other action available under applicable law. (Ord. 2020-36, 12-14-2020)