(A) These regulations shall be known as the Property Maintenance Code of The City of Columbia Heights hereinafter referred to as "this code".
(B) The provisions of this code shall apply to all existing residential and nonresidential structures and all existing premises and constitute minimum requirements and standards for premises, structures, equipment and facilities for light, ventilation, space, heating, sanitation, protection from the elements, life safety, safety from fire and other hazards, and for safe and sanitary maintenance; the responsibility of owners, operators and occupants; the occupancy of existing structures and premises, and for administration, enforcement and penalties.
(C) This code shall be construed to secure its expressed intent, which is to protect the character and stability of all premises within the city; to correct and prevent conditions that adversely affect or are likely to adversely affect the life, safety, general welfare, and health; to provide minimum standards for the maintenance of existing property and to thus prevent substandard property and blight; and to preserve the value of land and buildings throughout the city. Existing structures and premises that do not comply with these provisions shall be altered or repaired to provide a minimum level of health and safety as required herein.
(D) If a section, division, sentence, clause or phrase of this code is, for any reason, held to be unconstitutional, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this code.
(E) With respect to disputes between property owners (owners) and tenants, and except as otherwise specifically provided by terms of this code, the City Council (Council) will not intrude upon the accepted contractual relationships between owners and tenants. The Council will not intervene as an advocate of either party, nor will it act as an arbiter, nor will it be receptive to complaints from owners or tenants, which are not specifically and clearly relevant to the provisions of this code. In the absence of such relevancy with regard to rental disputes, it is intended that the contracting parties exercise such legal sanctions as are available to them without the intervention of city government. In enacting this code, the Council does not intend to interfere or permit interference with legal rights to personal privacy.
(Ord. 1532, passed 11-26-07)