(a) The requirements of this section are in addition to any other requirements of this chapter governing securing of a structure. Any hearing before the municipal court pursuant to this section concerning the securing of a structure must comply with all notice and procedural requirements contained in Article IV-a of this chapter for hearings before the municipal court.
(b) The director shall secure any structure that the director determines:
(1) violates a minimum standard established in Article III of this chapter; and
(2) is unoccupied or is occupied only by a person who does not have a right of possession to the structure.
(c) Before the 11th day after the date the director secures the structure, the director shall give notice to the owner by:
(1) personally serving the owner with written notice;
(2) depositing the notice in the United States mail addressed to the owner at the owner's post office address;
(3) publishing the notice at least twice within a 10-day period in a newspaper of general circulation in the county in which the structure is located, if personal service cannot be obtained and the owner's post office address is unknown; or
(4) posting the notice on or near the front door of the structure, if personal service cannot be obtained and the owner's post office address is unknown.
(d) The notice issued under Subsection (c) must contain:
(1) an identification, which is not required to be a legal description, of the structure and the property on which it is located;
(2) a description of the violation of the minimum standards that is present at the structure;
(3) a statement that the director will secure or has secured, as the case may be, the structure; and
(4) an explanation of the owner's entitlement to request a hearing about any matter relating to the director's securing of the structure.
(e) A public hearing shall be held before the municipal court if, within 30 days after the date the director secures the structure, the owner files with the municipal court a written request for the hearing. The hearing must be held within 20 days after the date the request is filed. Notice of the hearing must be given to each owner of the affected property in accordance with the notice requirements of Section 27-16.5. At the hearing, the director shall present evidence of the need to secure the structure, and the owner may testify or present witnesses or written information about any matter relating to the director's securing of the structure.
(f) The municipal court shall uphold the director's action in securing a structure if it finds the structure or a portion of the structure was an urban nuisance.
(g) An unoccupied structure that is closed pursuant to an order of the director, the municipal court, or the fire marshal, or that is closed by the owner of the structure without an official order, must be secured in compliance with the Dallas Fire Code, as amended.
(h) A structure intended for residential use or occupancy that, pursuant to an order of the director, the municipal court, or the fire marshal, is closed by the owner through sealing the doors or windows with boards, or equivalent materials, may be referred by the director to the city attorney for appropriate action under Article IV-a of this chapter, if the structure:
(1) remains boarded up for 180 days or more without being occupied by the owner or a lawful tenant; and
(2) has at least one visible violation of this chapter.