(a) Council of the City of Cleveland finds that:
(1) Non-residential sites which are closed for business but vacant and open to entry by the general public attract children to enter who may encounter health or environmental hazards, harbor vermin, serve as temporary abode for vagrants and criminals, invite dumping and illegal storage of hazardous and flammable substances, and are likely to be damaged by vandals or set ablaze by arsonists.
(2) Unkempt and open grounds on such sites invite the dumping of garbage, rubbish, hazardous and other regulated substances, and the accumulation of combustible material.
(3) Thousands of structures in this City are made of wood-frame construction which is more combustible than other building types.
(4) Thousands of structures in this City are situated on narrow lots and in close proximity to one another, thereby increasing the risk of conflagration and the spread of environmental contamination through the water and the air.
(b) All facilities which are injurious to or a menace to the public health, safety or welfare, or which constitute a fire hazard, or which are vacant and open to public entry are declared to be a nuisance and are to be abated in accordance with this chapter.
(c) The owner, operator, or party in control of any facility which is closed or vacant as of the effective date of this chapter shall comply with the requirements of this chapter by July 1, 1999.
(Ord. No. 2020-A-96. Passed 12-14-98, eff. 12-24-98 without the signature of the mayor)