(a) Whenever the Building Official finds a vacant structure and/or premises open to entry at doors or other points accessible to the general public, he or she may cause the structure and/or premises to be secured. The Building Official shall be authorized, at any time, to enter upon the premises, and the owner shall permit him or her entry to secure the structure and/or premises in order to lessen the severity of the public nuisance. In securing such structure and/or premises, the Building Official may call upon any department or division of the City for whatever assistance may be necessary, or may, by private contract, secure such structure and/or premises, with the cost to be recovered by the City in the same manner as provided by Section 1329.08(b). Photographs of the structure and/or premises shall be taken prior to securing it, and such photographs, a list of the dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions that need to be corrected and a report of the work performed shall be filed with the Building Official and the office of the City Manager.
(b) The Building Official shall cause a written notice to be served on the owner personally, or by certified mail addressed to the owner at his or her last known place of residence as appearing in the records of the County tax duplicate for the property in question, and by posting a copy of the notice in a conspicuous place on the structure or premises to which it relates. Such notice shall inform the owner that there are dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions that need to be corrected and that a list of such conditions may be obtained from the Building Official. The notice shall also advise the owner that the City has secured the structure and/or premises. Such notice shall order the owner to inform the Building Official of his or her intentions regarding the structure within fifteen days of the date of service by mail of the notice, or within fifteen days of the date specified in the notice by publication. If the owner intends to maintain or rehabilitate the structure and/or premises, he or she shall obtain from the Building Official a code compliance waiver within the fifteen-day period upon payment of a fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) and upon submitting a written commitment to correct the stated dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions. Such waiver shall be valid for ninety days from the date of issuance. The twenty-five dollar ($25.00) fee may be waived if, in the opinion of the Building Official, a reasonable likelihood exists that the owner will take immediate action consistent with his or her written commitment. A reasonable likelihood may include the submission of a signed commitment to correct the conditions.
(c) If the dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions are not completely corrected at the end of the ninety-day period, the owner may apply for a second code compliance waiver upon payment of a fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) and the payment of the fee for the initial waiver. No second waiver shall be issued unless the owner has corrected a majority of the conditions or violations that exist on the premises. The second waiver shall be valid for thirty days from the date of issuance, and during this period of time, the owner shall correct all of the remaining dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions. Not more than two code compliance waivers shall be issued for a structure.
(d) If the owner does not inform the Building Official of his or her intentions regarding the structure and/or premises, as required in subsection (b) hereof, and has not obtained a code compliance waiver within fifteen days of the date of the notice, or if the owner has obtained a code compliance waiver but has not completely corrected all of the dangerous and/or deteriorated conditions within the ninety-day time period of such waiver, or within the additional thirty-day period if a second waiver is issued, then the structure will become subject to Sections 1329.04 to 1329.08, which may result in the demolition of the structure, and all costs incurred will be charged to the owner as provided.
(Ord. 82-25. Passed 1-11-83)
(Ord. 82-25. Passed 1-11-83)