A. Declaration Of Policy: The City Council declares that the purpose of this Chapter is to protect and preserve the physical and mental health of the people and to promote the general safety and welfare of the people by establishing minimum standards for basic equipment and facilities for light, ventilation and heating; and to provide safety from fire; and to determine the use and location and amount of space for human occupancy and for safe, sanitary maintenance of dwellings, dwelling units, rooming units, hotels and motels; and by determining the responsibilities of owners, operators and occupants of dwellings; and providing for the administration and enforcement thereof. Any inconsistency or conflict between the provisions of this Chapter and any other provision of this Code or other existing ordinance shall not repeal such provision or ordinance, but the provisions of the Chapter shall be cumulative thereto.
B. Purpose: The ultimate purpose of this Chapter is to prevent blight and deterioration of neighborhoods into slums. More immediately, the purpose of this Chapter is to establish minimum standards for maintaining both private and commercial residential property so as to, on one hand, provide occupants and neighbors with a healthful and safe environment in which to live and, on the other hand, to permit the fullest use of residential properties for residential purposes at the lowest reasonable cost to owner-occupants and to landlords and tenants.
C. Applicability: Every building or portion thereof used for rental purposes such as a dwelling, dwelling unit, two-family dwelling, multiple-family dwelling, multiple use dwelling, hotel, motel, habitable room, rooming unit or rooming house, shall conform to the requirements of this Chapter, irrespective of the class to which such building or portion thereof may otherwise belong and irrespective of which such building or portion thereof may have been reconstructed, altered or repaired. This Chapter also applies to single-family dwellings that are not owner- occupied and used for rental purposes, provided one or more of the following conditions of subsections 9-2-5-1A through G or I are encountered. (1997 Code)