The city hereby declares graffiti to be a nuisance, which adversely affects the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the community and reduces property value, and subject to abatement as provided herein.
(A) Owner obligation to remove.
(1) Upon written notification by the Police Chief’s office, the owner of the property upon which graffiti has been placed shall remove the graffiti within three days from the date of the receipt of the notice.
(2) The Police Chief’s office may grant an owner an additional ten days to remove the graffiti if the owner presents sufficient evidence of one of the following conditions:
(a) Weather conditions make removal impossible or a substantial burden to the owner;
(b) Necessary chemical for removal are not readily available;
(c) The physical condition of the owner makes immediate removal impossible or a substantial burden to the owner; or
(d) Such other condition which makes immediate removal impossible or an undue hardship to the owner.
(B) Owner assignment of obligation. The owner of the property may assign his or her obligation to remove the graffiti to the Police Chief’s office. The assignment must be done within three days from the date of the receipt of the written notification. The assignment must be in writing on a form provided by the Police Chief’s office. The assignment will be effective only if the owner signs a statement authorizing removal by the city and holding the city harmless from any claims of suits brought for damages resulting from any chemicals or from any actions taken by the city or its employees to remove the graffiti.
(C) Right of the city to remove. The Police Chief’s office shall remove graffiti from the exterior of private property if an owner fails to remove the graffiti or fails to assign the obligation to remove the graffiti to the Police Chief’s office. Graffiti shall be removed at the property owner’s expense.
(Ord. 96-8, passed - -1996; Ord. 21-08, passed 11-8-2021) Penalty, see § 94.999